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Protecting Drinking Water

Every Minnesotan Deserves Clean Water to Drink

In the Land of 10,000 Lakes, one would think that every Minnesotan would have access to clean water for drinking and recreation—but that's not always the case. In communities across Minnesota, different threats to drinking water remain. Here are the priorities we must address to ensure every Minnesota has access to the clean drinking water they deserve.

  • Fully Funding Lead Pipe Replacement

    In 2023, nearly unanimous bipartisan legislation was passed to begin to replace all lead service lines over the next decade and allocated $240 million to initiate the work. While this represents a significant step toward ensuring equitable access to safe drinking water, the goal will be accomplished only if the state continues to prioritize the replacement funding.

    In 2024, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) compiled a statewide inventory of all water service lines, finding nearly 100,000 lines statewide still need to be replaced and 280,000 lines need additional testing. MDH estimates that completing the remaining work could cost the state at least $1.2 billion.

    To keep the work on track, legislators will need to allocate over $100 million per year for the next 8 years. Conservation Minnesota will track progress over the next ten years to ensure funding and replacement work remains on track.

    See the statewide Lead Service Line map MDH created.

  • Keeping Toxic PFAS Out of Drinking Water

    Harmful PFAS, or forever chemicals, have infiltrated our drinking water, lakes, fish, and wildlife. Because PFAS are bio-accumulative and highly persistent, they present significant health risks. Twenty-two communities across Minnesota have drinking water above the federal PFAS limit. 

    In 2023, Minnesota enacted a nation-leading ban on PFAS. This new law was called Amara’s Law, named for a young woman who died from cancer related to PFAS exposure. As the state implements Amara’s Law, we expect the Legislature will face tremendous corporate and political pressure to grant exemptions or allow lax enforcement. Industry groups, such as the Cookware Sustainability Alliance, are filing lawsuits claiming that Minnesota's PFAS laws are unconstitutional and unenforceable. We are committed to prioritizing people over corporations and upholding the strictest interpretation and implementation of the law to safeguard the health of our communities and environment.

  • Protecting the Natural Landscapes That Source Our Drinking Water

    Most communities in Minnesota provide residents with water from municipal wells. Local groundwater quality determines the treatment required to provide residents with safe drinking water. Minnesota has identified hundreds of areas where conservation and protective practices on the land can impact drinking water quality. However, only a few of these areas have implemented such practices. Instead, traditional agricultural methods leach nitrate into the groundwater, and drained wetlands can no longer serve as effective filters for the water.

    When sensitive lands above wells are returned to native wetlands and prairie, wells’ water quantity and quality improve significantly, with reduced amounts of pollutants like nitrate and PFAS. We will work to advance policies to support and incentivize ecosystem restorations to ensure safe drinking water.

  • Restoring Our Wetlands

    Wetlands do more than provide habitat for birds and other wildlife. They help improve water quality and minimize the impacts of flooding and drought. Over 60% of Minnesota’s wetlands have already been destroyed, and extreme weather patterns are putting increased pressure on the remaining wetlands.

    Minnesota currently operates under a no-net-loss of wetlands policy–but there is evidence that despite the current legal framework, wetland loss has continued over the last two decades. 

    We’ll work to not only protect our remaining wetlands, but restore the degraded wetland systems that clean our water and prevent flooding. Increasing wetland resiliency statewide will require funding, and we will advocate for the state to set a wetland restoration goal to help guide this work.