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average at least once every 10 years, and it has been used to define low flows for the purpose of <br />setting permit limits. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency has established The 7Q10 value for the <br />Minnesota River near Jordan is 175 MGD (272 cfs). <br />Low flow in the Mississippi River is of particular concern and is included in the State Drought Plan, <br />which includes a matrix of drought phase triggers. When flow is less than 2,000 cubic feet per second <br />(1,293 MGD) for five consecutive days, public water suppliers and other water users using the <br />Mississippi River implement appropriate conservation measures. Should flow fall below 1,000 cubic <br />feet per second (646 MGD) for five consecutive days, all public water suppliers in the Twin Cities <br />metro area implement mandatory water use reductions with the goal of reducing water use to January <br />levels (Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, 2009). <br />Much discussion about these limits followed the 1988 drought. Critical flow of the Mississippi River <br />was determined to be a flow that supports basic needs for water supply, power and navigation; a <br />minimum flow of 554 cubic feet per second (358 MGD) is needed for these purposes (Metropolitan <br />Council, 1990). Work done by the U.S. Geological Survey indicate that there is less than a 1% <br />probability of flow on the Mississippi River falling below 600 cubic feet per second in any give year; <br />the recurrence interval for flow less than 600 cubic feet per second is 100 years (Kessler and Lorenz, <br />2010). <br />Stormwater <br />Currently, the State of Minnesota does not have a state -specific code applicable to stormwater <br />harvesting and reuse. The MPCA has developed some guidelines for the use of reclaimed water, and <br />the Metropolitan Council has summarized these and other information in its Stormwater Reuse Guide <br />(Metropolitan Council, 2011). <br />Because of its direct tie to precipitation, stormwater is not consistently available for reuse, so storage <br />is required to ensure water is available when needed. The amount of stormwater available at any given <br />location is also a factor of the size and amount of impervious surface in the area contributing to the <br />site. <br />More work is needed to evaluate the potential for stormwater reuse across the region, but a rough <br />estimate can be made of the amount of stormwater available for reuse, based on some simplifying <br />assumptions: <br />• A one acre parking lot generates 27,000 gallons of runoff during a 1" rainfall, <br />• An average of six 1" rainfall events occur on average in recent years, and <br />• 245,909 acres of impervious area exist in the metropolitan area. <br />Given those assumptions, approximately 100 million gallons per day of stormwater water could be <br />available in the region. Stormwater reuse projects are not tracked consistently through the region, so it <br />is uncertain how much stormwater reuse currently exists. <br />Reclaimed wastewater <br />Opportunities to use reclaimed wastewater as a non -potable water source exist throughout the region. <br />Reusing treated wastewater to supplement groundwater and surface water as sources of water to <br />support regional growth, where economically feasible, will promote sustainability goals. Feasibility <br />depends on site-specific factors. For instance, proximity to treatment plants, regulatory requirements, <br />water quality needs, distribution system requirements, and the benefits of reuse from a total water <br />perspective all contribute to feasibility. Reclaimed wastewater is one of the region's underutilized <br />water supply sources. <br />The amount of reclaimed wastewater available for reuse is ultimately limited by the amount of <br />wastewater produced and the number and size of wastewater treatment facilities. The Council <br />WATER SUPPLY MASTER <br />PLAN- Draft June 2015 <br />37 <br />