Governor Dayton Holds Another Water Meeting

EDGERTON, Minn. (AP) — Gov. Mark Dayton and key cabinet members visit Edgerton on Wednesday to discuss water quality challenges facing southwestern Minnesota.

Administration officials and local government leaders will discuss a report from the Pollution Control Agency last spring that concluded the poor water quality in southern Minnesota is caused predominantly by agricultural runoff. They'll also discuss the human health impacts from nitrates and phosphorous in the region's groundwater.

And they'll discuss conservation programs for farmers, including Dayton's buffer strips initiative and the Minnesota Agriculture Water Quality Certification Program.

Water issues are becoming a hallmark of Dayton's second term. He convened a Water Summit in St. Paul last month that drew nearly 1,000 people. The governor's office is still digesting over 200 pages of public comments collected at the summit and online.