PFAS Protection
Overview: Minnesotans deserve total transparency before commercial mega-users tap into local aquifers, as well as the resources to defend their taps against toxic contaminants. Senator Johnson Stewart is fighting to keep the public informed and our drinking water clean.
Key Takeaways:
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Mandatory Transparency: S.F. 3852 requires a 30-day public comment period before any large-volume commercial water permit is approved.
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Stopping Closed-Door Deals: Closing the loophole that lets mega-users (like data centers and bottling plants) drain local aquifers under the radar.
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Filtering ‘Forever Chemicals’: Securing state Clean Water Legacy grants so local taxpayers aren’t forced to pay millions for PFAS filtration systems.
Giving Communities a Voice: Public Transparency & PFAS Protection
Local residents, farmers, and city councils should never be blindsided by commercial groundwater deals made behind closed doors. Senator Ann Johnson Stewart is fighting to enforce mandatory public transparency before mega-users touch local aquifers—while securing state resources to filter out toxic “forever chemicals” (PFAS).
Senator Ann Johnson Stewart chief-authored S.F. 3852 to introduce deep transparency to our state’s water appropriation system. Under this proposed legislation, all large-volume water permit applications exceeding 100 million gallons per year would legally mandate a 30-day public notice and comment period. Paired with her consistent support for Clean Water Legacy Funds appropriations, she is working to ensure Minnesota communities have the tools and funding needed to keep local taps clean and safe.
“These are natural resources we all use for our drinking water, but recently we have seen large industrial and commercial users moving into our communities… By implementing water permits for industrial and commercial uses exceeding 100 million gallons of water per year, we are ensuring the state can manage water use proactively into the future, and that the public has access to plentiful drinking water.” — Sen. Ann Johnson Stewart
Stopping Closed-Door Water Deals with Mandatory Notice
In recent years, communities across Minnesota—from Farmington to Elko New Market—have discovered after municipal utility contracts were already signed that high-volume commercial users (such as bottled water plants or hyperscale data centers) were preparing to draw hundreds of millions of gallons from local aquifers.
The Transparency Gap
Under standard municipal utility agreements, commercial connections are often treated as routine administrative approvals. This framework gives local homeowners, neighboring communities, and private well owners no formal warning or avenue for public testimony until after the infrastructure commitments are locked in.
The S.F. 3852 Fix
Senator Johnson Stewart’s bill would establish a mandatory 30-day public notice and comment period for all large-volume commercial water appropriation applications. Under this rule, the DNR would be required to notify adjacent property owners, local governments, and watershed districts. This would give neighbors a formal, legal window to submit local hydrogeologic concerns and well data before any final permit is granted.
Engineering Insight: 30-Day Public Notice Mandate
Definition: A statutory requirement proposed in S.F. 3852 guaranteeing a 30-day public comment window prior to large-volume permit decisions.
The Impact: Prevents secretive commercial utility hookups by requiring public hearing notices for local property owners and municipal neighbors.
The scale of this issue is immense. A single hyperscale data center can consume up to 5 million gallons of water per day for server cooling—an extraction rate equivalent to the daily usage of an entire residential suburb. In Farmington, a proposed data center contract sought to draw 900 million gallons of water annually under a municipal umbrella permit, bypassing independent state review. A mandatory 30-day public comment period on these water permits ensures that local stakeholders have a transparent, data-driven seat at the table.
Filtering “Forever Chemicals”: State Grants for PFAS Mitigation
Beyond water quantity, protecting public health requires rigorous defense against emerging toxic contaminants—specifically PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances), known as “forever chemicals.”
The Infrastructure Threat
Because PFAS compounds do not naturally break down in the environment, they accumulate continuously in groundwater formations. When state or federal health advisory limits drop—such as the EPA’s enforceable limits of 4 parts per trillion for PFOA and PFOS—municipal treatment plants must install advanced specialized filtration systems to meet safety metrics.
An independent engineering study commissioned by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) found that eliminating PFAS from municipal water streams could cost Minnesota communities between $14 billion and $28 billion over 20 years, with specialized filtration technologies costing millions of dollars per facility. Without state intervention, these staggering capital expenditures fall entirely on local rate bases.
Ann’s Water Protection Strategy
Senator Johnson Stewart advocates for deploying Legacy Clean Water Fund dollars and state bonding grants directly to local municipal treatment facilities. By providing state-backed capital grants for advanced PFAS treatment, the state can ensure clean drinking water at the tap without forcing local suburbs or small towns to spike municipal property taxes or utility rates.
Engineering Insight: Granular Activated Carbon (GAC)
The Fiscal Safeguard: State Clean Water Fund grants help cover the high upfront capital expense of installing industrial GAC vessels so local property taxpayers don’t absorb the full cost of environmental remediation.
Join the Movement for Data-Driven Clean Water
Clean water and transparent governance require continuous oversight in St. Paul:
- Holding Mega-Users Accountable: Enforcing S.F. 3852 would ensure commercial operators pay for their own hydrogeologic studies and monthly water metering reports, ending the practice of hiding behind municipal allocations.
- Empowering West Metro Neighborhoods: From Minnetonka and Wayzata to Mound and Spring Park, Senator Johnson Stewart is leveraging her civil engineering expertise to safeguard local municipal wells, upgrade infrastructure, and protect the Lake Minnetonka watershed.
Everyone deserves safe, clean drinking water at the tap. Help us continue building transparent, data-driven water policies for Minnesota.