MDH planner outlines 10-year update to Fergus Falls wellhead protection plan

The Fergus Falls City Council heard an informational briefing on the city's 10-year wellhead protection plan update as the meeting opened. Guy Taylor introduced Dan Disrude of the Minnesota Department of Health, who described work MDH completed on delineation and a vulnerability assessment for the community's drinking-water supply.

Dan Disrude, a source water protection planner with the Minnesota Department of Health, said MDH completed the groundwater delineation and an assessment of vulnerability. "The red line is depicting the modeling that was done to show a 1 year time of travel to get to the well. The blue line is the 10 year time of travel to get to the well," Disrude said. He explained the new delineation is notably smaller than the prior one because MDH removed the surface-water contribution area from the model, a change driven by the local hydrogeology rather than city actions.

Disrude said the update follows Minnesota Rule 4720 and is intended to improve transparency and civic engagement. He outlined next steps: scoping and partner notification, selecting a plan writer, drafting strategies, circulating the draft to partners for review, and holding a public hearing before the council would consider approval and the state's formal review. He estimated the overall process at roughly a year and emphasized that the city's previous protections were not portrayed as deficient by the new modeling.

The council and staff asked clarifying questions; the council did not take action at the meeting, and Disrude confirmed the draft review and public hearing would come later in the process.