When Gov. Mark Dayton leaves office in two years, he will leave a long history of public service.

But what may become his singular legacy will be his commitment to improving and protecting the state’s water resources.

Dayton has kept water issues front and center in recent years. He championed the buffer law, which faced stiff opposition but is now resulting in the planting of vegetative strips along 90,000 miles of streams, rivers and farm drainage ditches across the state.

His administration has pushed cities to continue efforts to improve sewage treatment plants and to better manage stormwater runoff before it goes into rivers.

State agencies also have put more focus on the effects of increasing numbers of crop irrigation systems being installed in the state, systems that in some areas could threaten the availability of water from deep aquifers.

Last week, standing beside Lake Itasca, where the Mississippi River begins its 2,350-mile journey to the Gulf of Mexico, Dayton kicked off a “Year of Water Action” in Minnesota, urging businesses, the agricultural industry, outdoor enthusiasts, communities and families to take action to conserve and improve water quality.

Dayton cited a “shared responsibility” to protect water resources. The effort will include education about challenges facing Minnesota’s waters and how individuals, communities, businesses and farmers can do their part in water conservation and pollution reduction.

That can come in the way of small everyday actions such as buying water-efficient appliances, limiting lawn sprinkling, slowing water runoff from yards, fixing a leaky toilet or faucet, or preventing the transport of invasive water species.

It also requires some big actions, which will need to be approved by the Legislature. Minnesota is $11 billion behind in just maintaining aging water treatment and delivery systems over the next 20 years. And initial testing indicates that 60 percent of the wells in central Minnesota may not provide safe drinking water.

In many ways Dayton’s passion for water quality reflects a previous governor — Republican Arne Carlson — who put a state and federal focus on improving the Minnesota River, once listed as one of the most polluted in the country.

In a state that is defined by its lakes and rivers, protecting water — above and below ground — is an important issue that everyone, individually and collectively, must work toward.
— Mankato Free Press, Sept. 3