MPR News Special Report: Minnesota's water quality problem
The confluence of the St. Croix and Mississippi rivers south of the Twin Cities - after the Minnesota River flows into the Mississippi - shows the contrast between Minnesota's river systems in ag-dominated areas and more natural areas.
Courtesy MPCA
Minnesota is rich in water, so we don't have a supply problem. But regulators say 40 percent of Minnesota's lakes and streams are polluted.
A team of MPR News reporters has been investigating the source of this pollution, and some ways to prevent it. There's agricultural runoff, leaking sewage, toxic algae and lead in the drinking water.
The MPR News water reporting team is Mark Zdechlik, Dan Gunderson, Dan Kraker, John Enger, Mark Steil, Lorna Benson and Elizabeth Dunbar, plus Clay Masters from Iowa Public Radio.