In 1977 Minnesota was stricken by drought conditions that nearly rivaled the infamous drought of the 1930s. That prompted the Legislature to seek ways to better manage the state's water supplies, which led to the enactment of the Comprehensive Local Water Management Act in 1985.
This guidance contains the requirements and procedures for amending and/or extending a County Comprehensive Local Water Plan (County Water Plan).
Amendments alter a plan by modification, deletion, or addition using the process described in statute. Extensions lengthen the plan end date. Each option is described in detail below.
A county water plan update is a entire revision of the current plan. The process is outlined in the following steps.
Watershed districts must develop and revise their watershed management plans. The following information describes the process for developing and revising watershed plans (plans).
In 1955, the Minnesota Legislature authorized the creation of watersheds through the Watershed Act. The intent of the Act was to develop water management policies and plans on a watershed basis, because water does not follow political boundaries.
The Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources adopted policies that establish a boundary framework and set minimum procedural and plan content requirements for developing comprehensive watershed management plans through its One Watershed, One Plan program. These policies are consistent with Minnesota Statutes §103B.801 and based on the One Watershed, One Plan Guiding Principles adopted by BWSR on December 18, 2013.
SWCD comprehensive plans were included in Minnesota's original district law (1938 Supplement to Mason’s Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 44A Soil Conservation). The purpose of the comprehensive and annual plans is to plan for the management and protection of the resources of the district, see Minnesota Statutes §103C.331, Subd. 11.
While this is not a comprehensive list, BWSR grants, affiliated programs, and partners may use the following acronyms.
BWSR: Board of Water and Soil Resources
CWC: Clean Water Council
DNR: Department of Natural Resources
LCCMR: Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources
Each year, BWSR tabulates required plans and the required or voluntary reports submitted to BWSR, other units of government, and the public about fiscal status, plans, programs and activities. Specific performance standards can be found on the Performance Standards Checklists below.