BLAINE, Minn. — An investigation by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) found the city of Blaine is responsible for "interfering" with dozens of private wells during the drought-ridden summer of 2022, causing them to go dry.
In a news release announcing the findings, the DNR explained that well interference occurs when a pump draws groundwater from a well (typically a deep well of a higher volume water user, like a city), causing water levels in the surrounding aquifer to go down. The result is a lack of water available to shallower wells, such as those owned by a private homeowner.
The DNR investigation revealed that 50 complaints were filed during the summer of 2022 by private well owners stating that their water supplies had been tapped out. Of those complaints, 47 were sustained. Investigators learned at the time residents began reporting problems, three of the wells the city of Blaine was operating were unpermitted. The city stopped pumping from those three wells after the DNR informed them that the wells were not authorized for use.
Irrigation wells operated by two local golf courses were also found to be minor contributors to interference with one private well.
Bruce Zakseski, who lives in southern Ham Lake near the border with Blaine, did not personally lose water from his private his well last summer. However, he said he knows plenty of people who did.
"Three of my neighbors, they basically ran out of water. Couldn't wash clothes, run the sprinklers, nothing. Their yards basically dried up until they could get someone to come out and fix it," Zakseski said. "Everybody you talked to, it was, 'Did you have problems with your water? Did you have problems with your well?'"
DNR experts say groundwater aquifers in the Blaine and Ham Lake area are strongly interconnected. Pumping large volumes of water from one part of the aquifer can cause water levels to drop several miles away.
“Like many growing communities, the city of Blaine has been seeking to expand water supply sources to meet the increased water demands of its community,” said DNR Conservation Assistance and Regulation Section Manager Randall Doneen. “Expansion of water supplies is difficult and complex, especially when a growing community has many neighboring private domestic wells.”
“The city has been anticipating the completion of this DNR investigation and is ready to continue to work with private well owners to mitigate impacts that are determined to be related to the city’s growing water infrastructure," said Blaine city spokesperson Ben Hayle. "Blaine is committed to responsibly providing high-quality water service to our growing municipal customer base while also protecting private well owners."
Dan Schluender, the director of engineering for the city of Blaine, told KARE 11 in an interview that miscommunication in the permitting process led the city to temporarily operate three unpermitted wells.
According to Schluender, when the city began developing a new well field in 2017, the city thought it applied for a permit covering four wells.
"As it turns out, only one of those four wells was listed on the appropriations permit," Schluender said. "So, the city inadvertently starting using the four wells and then interference complaints started to come in. The DNR and the city had discussions that, 'yes, in fact the wells were on.' They asked us to shut those wells off, as they were not listed in the permit, and the city complied with that. And they've been off since that notification."
Going forward, the next step is to begin a well interference settlement process. Over the next 30 days, the DNR will assist the city of Blaine, the two golf courses involved and the private well owners in negotiating financial settlements for the cost of restoring residential water supplies.
"The message is, the city is going to do the right thing," Schluender said. "We know there was interference. We know why there was interference."
An additional 24 complaints remain under investigation by the DNR. The agency is encouraging anyone who owns a private well in the Blaine/Ham Lake area and has had water supply problems they believe are due to high-capacity pumping to call 651-259-5034.
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