Budgeting For Source Water Protection—Sooner Is Better Than Later

By Robyn Hoerr - MRWA Groundwater Specialist 

Most likely those of you reading this publication have become aware of Minnesota’s source water protection program through the many articles and educational opportunities that have been offered by the Minnesota Department of Health or Minnesota Rural Water Association.  While you have become knowledgeable about the program and some of its expectations of your public water supply, you may still be waiting for the time that your system must officially begin the planning process to develop a source water plan.  As noted in many previous articles by other writers addressing source water issues, there are many actions that a public water supplier can take while “waiting” to begin the actual planning process such as maintaining setback distances from the well to potential contaminant sources, monitoring nonconforming potential contaminant sources, or removing noncomplying potential contaminant sources from the inner wellhead management zone.

While managing the inner wellhead management zone is extremely beneficial to the protection of your groundwater supply, you may also choose to begin budgeting for costs that will be incurred by your system as it develops, and then implements a source water protection plan.  Creating a line item in your budget for delineating the wellhead protection area and drinking water supply management area, holding meetings, writing reports for either Part 1 or Part 2 of the plan, as well as funds to help carry out the management strategies specified in Part 2 can be done at any time before being officially brought into the source water protection program by the MDH.  With state, local, and federal budgets being what they are these days, the ability to plan ahead by budgeting possibly years in advance of a necessary event requiring a financial expenditure is something that should be taken advantage of.

It should be noted that systems will need to assess beforehand what kind of financial commitment must be made in the source water protection planning process.  This commitment will be different for each system.  Factors that will influence the cost of each particular source water protection plan include:

• Size of the public water supply.  Larger systems will be expected to contribute more in terms of technical assistance and $$$;

• Vulnerability of the well(s).  Those systems with wells that are considered “vulnerable” as opposed to “non-vulnerable” will be required to do more assessment;

• Total size of the drinking water supply management area.  The larger the management area, the more time consuming the process may be;

• Number of potential contaminant sources within the drinking water supply management area.  The more sources present, the more management strategies are necessary to address the sources;

• Amount of staff time and technical expertise available to develop a source water protection plan.  Systems may be able to assign a staff member to perform many of the duties required to develop a plan.

These are only a few of the general issues when considering how much a source water protection plan may cost your system.  Again, each system’s financial contribution will vary.

 

Especially for those of you who are not yet participating in the source water protection program but are waiting for your number to come up, make the source water planning process run smoother later by setting up a budget to get the job done when your time comes.  Many dollars can be accrued between the present and  which will keep your system from being placed “behind the eight ball” later and will get the plan development process of on the right foot!