ST. PAUL — In an effort to support work that improves water quality and helps make landscapes more resilient to severe weather in a changing climate, the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR) awarded $2.5 million in water quality and storage program grants to 10 government entities Tuesday.

Grant recipients include Cottonwood County, Le Sueur, Nicollet and Yellow Medicine County Soil and Water Conservation Districts and the Area II Minnesota River Basin that includes the south side of the Minnesota River from Mankato to Ortonville.

“Increasing water storage on Minnesota landscapes helps communities better prepare for flooding and the associated impacts to infrastructure and farming,” said BWSR Executive Director John Jaschke. “These projects are strategically located in areas of the state that are especially prone to erosion and flooding.”

Coalition For a Clean Minnesota River Executive Director Scott Sparlin of New Ulm said he provided testimony when the Minnesota Legislature directed BWSR to establish a water storage assistance program in 2021.

“I worked with various representatives to get the bill enacted into the law. Approved by Congress, it was originally appropriated in 2024 for $21.3 million and signed into law by President Biden,” said Sparlin. “As soon as President Trump won, the money was rescinded by the federal government’s Inflation Reduction Act. I think there is some progress in trying to obtain the rescinded money, but right now, $2.5 million is set to fund projects.”

Sparlin said the BWSR projects will help control Minnesota River rate flow which is very important for river improvement and reduce erosion and sediment from “leapfrogging” down the river and fill up Lake Pepin.

“We need to store more water on the landscape,” he said.

Sparlin said efforts are underway for water storage funding and get it implemented on a large scale which is needed for culverts that blow out on township and county roads and places such as where the former Rapidan Dam was.

The BWSR is the state soil and water conservation agency. It administers programs that prevent sediment and nutrients from entering lakes, rivers and streams; enhance fish and wildlife habitat and protect wetlands. The 20-member board consists of representatives of local and state government agencies and citizens.

For more information, visit https://bwsr/state.mn.us/water-storage-and-climate-resilience.