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Ground Level®: Amplifying Community Voices

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Skepticism apparent as state tries new approach to Bonanza Valley water

Skepticism apparent as state tries new approach to Bonanza Valley water

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources last night launched its third project to deal with water availability differently than in the past. We asked Dan Haugen, a reporter and writer in Sioux Falls, S.D., to check out how it went. Here’s his report. BELGRADE — Central Minnesota farmers and well owners listened with skepticism and Read more →
by Dave Peters

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State should put $100 million into broadband fund, says task force

State should put $100 million into broadband fund, says task force

Minnesota should put $100 million of its surplus into a fund to help pay for broadband infrastructure in parts of the state that now are poorly served, a state task force studying the issue is recommending. The fund, envisioned as a matching-grant program to help public and private broadband providers, could deliver service to more Read more →
by Dave Peters

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Rising groundwater demand in Bonanza Valley prompts new state approach

Rising groundwater demand in Bonanza Valley prompts new state approach

Groundwater demand in an area of central Minnesota has increased by 175 percent in the past 25 years — five times as much as the state average, according to the Department of Natural Resources. That’s a big reason the Bonanza Valley, an area that stretches from southern Douglas County to Paynesville in Stearns County, is Read more →
by Elizabeth Dunbar

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Who owns rural Minnesota?

Who owns rural Minnesota can quickly get complicated, says the Center for Rural Policy and Development in a new issue of its journal.
by Dave Peters

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An argument to charge more for water

A resident in Woodbury pays 88 cents for 1,000 gallons of water. If he or she uses a lot of water, say, for sprinkling the lawn, the price goes up — to $1.88, then $2.88, then $3.88 and so on, says Klayton Eckles, Woodbury’s public works director. • Beneath the Surface: Minnesota’s Pending Groundwater Challenge Read more →
by Dave Peters

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