ST. PAUL — The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources will collect water samples this summer from about 90 wells in Nobles County for use in the county’s Groundwater Atlas.
Select well owners will be contacted for permission to sample their wells by collecting a water sample from an outside spigot or hydrant. Participation is voluntary.
Wells are selected based on geology, location, well depth and construction. Participation will help the DNR create county maps and descriptions of groundwater distribution, movement, conditions and the pollution sensitivity of aquifers.
The atlas can be used to identify viable sources of drinking water, manage sustainability, guide decisions for well and septic system construction, inform well-head protection efforts for public water supply, understand regional recharge and groundwater movement, and assess pollution sensitivity and possible contaminant migration.
The atlas is expected to be completed in 2023, with geology completed by the Minnesota Geological Survey in 2021.
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For more information, visit mndnr.gov/groundwatermapping.
