After a 10-day comment period, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Commissioner Tom Landwehr announced on November 10 that the DNR would grant Lutsen Mountains Corp.’s request to continue drawing water from the Poplar River for snowmaking— with some conditions.
Lutsen Mountains Corp. (LMC) asked the DNR to allow the ski hill to continue to pump water despite the low water flow conditions in the river that would normally require pumping operations to be discontinued. LMC’s original permit from the DNR required suspension of pumping if the flow of the Poplar River fell below15 cubic feet per second (cfs). According to the DNR, flows of the Poplar River fell as low as 7 cfs in September and have varied from 13 to 16 cfs since mid-October. In the DNR’s findings of fact, the agency states, “Unless significant rainfall is received in the area before freeze-up, flow rates will fall below the 15 cfs limit as soon as LMC starts appropriating water for snowmaking.”
However, the DNR also acknowledged the financial impact of the ski hill on Cook County’s economy. The DNR also stated, “LMC has indicated that it will go bankrupt if it is not able to make snow in early winter, resulting in loss of jobs and significant impact on the local community’s economy.”
In addition to recognizing economic concerns, the DNR said the same drought conditions that are affecting LMC are also likely to “severely impact trout in that section of the river,” adding, “These conditions may occur whether LMC appropriates water or not.”
The DNR did note however that the additional appropriation by LMC could make the impact to the fishery worse.
For that reason, the DNR said the best long-term solution is for LMC to draw water from Lake Superior, which has no low-flow water protection. If LMC were able to draw water for snowmaking from Lake Superior, it is unlikely that the appropriations would ever need to be restricted.
In temporarily waiving the limitations on withdrawing water, DNR Commissioner Landwehr added that the authorization would have a term of one snow season, with the possibility for extension for two more seasons. “A new permit application will need to be submitted if conditions require appropriations below the 15 cfs level at the start of the 2015 snowmaking season and LMC will need to prove that an acceptable alternative water supply is nearly ready for implementation before such a permit will be issued,” wrote Landwehr.
The permit will allow LMC to pump water out of the Poplar River at a rate of 4cfs when the flows fall below 15 cfs and all pumping will cease when flows fall below 5 cfs. The permit will also be modified in the other direction if conditions allow. The permit will allow LMC to gradually increase its pumping rate when flows increase to 20 cfs.
According to the DNR, more than 600 public comments were received during the comment period, many in favor of allowing the continued water use. However, there were also concerns about the impacts to the river and its trout population.
All comments were considered in making the decision to issue a permit according to Commissioner Landwehr. He stressed that allowing the permit, is a short-term solution because of its limited duration and because it requires Lutsen to commit to cease all pumping from Poplar River by the fall of 2016.
“The Poplar River is not a long-term sustainable source of water for LMC,” said Landwehr reiterating what he said when the comment period opened. “We will work with LMC and key legislators to find an alternate source of water for snowmaking even sooner—probably Lake Superior— within three years.”
The problem with drawing water from Lake Superior is the expense of constructing a water line. In a June 2011 interview with the Cook County News-Herald, LMC Co-President Tom Rider said Lutsen Mountains’ neighbors have granted the easements they would need to access water from Lake Superior. However, the cost was felt to be prohibitive, at an estimated $3-4 million for infrastructure plus the cost of operation and maintenance.
Immediately after learning that the DNR had issued a permit for continued use, LMC Co-President Charles Skinner issued a statement, thanking the DNR for responding favorably to LMC’s request. “By issuing such additional permit for just cause, the ski area will be able to continue to make snow on the same basis it has in past years,” he said.
“We also appreciate the overwhelming response to our requests for support. The public comment period demonstrated that while there were differing views, there was critical support for our request from a broad array of interests.
“Clearly, there is much work remaining to resolve this issue to everyone’s satisfaction,” said Skinner.
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