Minnesota Statutes 115.061 – Duty to Notify; Avoiding Water Pollution
(a) Except as provided in paragraph (b), it is the duty of every person to notify the agency immediately of the discharge, accidental or otherwise, of any substance or material under its control which, if not recovered, may cause pollution of waters of the state, and the responsible person shall recover as rapidly and as thoroughly as possible such substance or material and take immediately such other action as may be reasonably possible to minimize or abate pollution of waters of the state caused thereby.
Terms Used In Minnesota Statutes 115.061
- Agency: means the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. See Minnesota Statutes 115.01
- Discharge: means the addition of any pollutant to the waters of the state or to any disposal system. See Minnesota Statutes 115.01
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Person: means the state or any agency or institution thereof, any municipality, governmental subdivision, public or private corporation, individual, partnership, or other entity, including, but not limited to, association, commission or any interstate body, and includes any officer or governing or managing body of any municipality, governmental subdivision, or public or private corporation, or other entity. See Minnesota Statutes 115.01
- Sewer system: means pipelines or conduits, pumping stations, and force mains, and all other constructions, devices, and appliances appurtenant thereto, used for conducting sewage or industrial waste or other wastes to a point of ultimate disposal. See Minnesota Statutes 115.01
- state: extends to and includes the District of Columbia and the several territories. See Minnesota Statutes 645.44
- Treatment works: means any plant, disposal field, lagoon, dam, pumping station, constructed drainage ditch or surface water intercepting ditch, incinerator, area devoted to sanitary land fills, or other works not specifically mentioned herein, installed for the purpose of treating, stabilizing or disposing of sewage, industrial waste, or other wastes. See Minnesota Statutes 115.01
- Waters of the state: means all streams, lakes, ponds, marshes, watercourses, waterways, wells, springs, reservoirs, aquifers, irrigation systems, drainage systems and all other bodies or accumulations of water, surface or underground, natural or artificial, public or private, which are contained within, flow through, or border upon the state or any portion thereof. See Minnesota Statutes 115.01
(b) Notification is not required under paragraph (a) for a discharge of five gallons or less of petroleum, as defined in section 115C.02, subdivision 10. This paragraph does not affect the other requirements of paragraph (a).
(c) Promptly after notifying the agency of a discharge under paragraph (a), a publicly owned treatment works or a publicly or privately owned domestic sewer system owner must provide notice to the potentially impacted public and to any downstream drinking water facility that may be impacted by the discharge. Notice to the public and to any drinking water facility must be made using the most efficient communications system available to the facility owner such as in person, telephone call, radio, social media, web page, or another expedited form. In addition, signage must be posted at all impacted public use areas within the same jurisdiction or notification must be provided to the entity that has jurisdiction over any impacted public use areas. A notice under this paragraph must include the date and time of the discharge, a description of the material released, a warning of the potential public health risk, and the permittee’s contact information.
(d) The agency must provide guidance that includes but is not limited to methods and protocols for providing timely notice under this section.