Great Lakes Compact

Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin Compact and Agreement 

These historic documents were approved by the Governors of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin and the Premiers of Ontario and Quebec in order to act together to protect, conserve, restore, improve and effectively manage the waters and water dependent natural resources of the Basin.

Great Lakes Basin Map

Regional, National, and Bi-National Information

• The Council of Great Lakes Governors  encourages and facilitates environmentally responsible economic growth through a cooperative effort between the public and private sectors among the eight Great Lakes States and with Ontario and Quebec.
• Through the Great Lakes - St. Lawrence River Water Resources Council Regional Body  the Great Lakes Governors and Premiers work to put the Agreement into action.
• Great Lakes - St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Council  (Compact Council ) was established on December 8, 2008, when the Compact became State and federal law (Public Law No: 110-342 ). The Compact details how the States will work together to manage and protect the Basin. It also provides a framework for each State to enact programs and laws protecting the Basin.

Compact Implementation in Minnesota

• The Compact Council and Regional Body have found that Minnesota's Water Conservation and Efficiency Program and Water Management Program meet or exceed the current requirements of the Agreement and Compact (Joint Declaration of Finding , January 7, 2010).
• Minnesota's Water Management Program Report and a summary of Water Conservation and Efficiency Programs were submitted to the Council of Great Lakes Governors in December 2008. These and other states' Program Reports  are available online.
• Minnesota's water appropriation permit program addresses water withdrawal requirements in the Compact. In Minnesota, permits are required for water uses of 10,000 gallons or more per day and 1 million gallons or more per year - a lower threshold than that in the Compact.
• Water use data in Minnesota is updated annually and is available online.
• In 2007 Minnesota enacted the Great Lakes Compact into law (Minnesota Statutes, section 103G.801 ). This law includes the water conservation goals in Compact Section 4.2.1. The document, Minnesota Water Conservation Goals and Objectives , provides a summary of these. The law also provides that new diversions of water from the Great Lakes Basin are prohibited. The Lake Superior-North, Lake Superior-South, Cloquet River, St. Louis River, and Nemadji River watersheds are within the Great Lakes Basin.
• Section 4.12 of the Compact requires each state to submit a list to the Compact Council of all diversions, consumptive uses and withdrawals of Basin water that existed in each of the states on December 8, 2008. The information submitted established a baseline for determining what is a new or increased diversion, consumptive use or withdrawal of Basin water. Minnesota has established its baseline water use  data for the Great Lakes Basin.
• Water use data in the Lake Superior watershed are submitted annually to the Great Lakes Regional Water Use Database repository .

Contacts

Regional Body (Designee) and Compact Council (Alternate)
Dale Homuth, Program Manager
Conservation Assistance and Regulation Section
DNR Division of Ecological and Water Resources
500 Lafayette Road
St. Paul, MN 55155-4032
phone: 651-259-5133
email: Dale.Homuth@state.mn.us

Compact Council (Alternate)
Julie Ekman, Supervisor
Water Regulations Unit
DNR Division of Ecological and Water Resources
500 Lafayette Road
St. Paul, MN 55155-4032
phone: 651-259-5674
email: Julie.Ekman@state.mn.us