Minnesota’s Buffer Law

State of Minnesota Buffer Law and Winona County Shoreland Ordinance require 50 feet of perennial vegetative buffer along all public waters.  These buffers help to filter out phosphorus, nitrogen and sediment.

As of July 2019, statewide, approximately 98% of landowners with property adjacent to public waters are compliant with the Buffer Law.

Requirements of the Buffer Law

The Buffer Law

  • Is not a one-and-done law; it requires maintenance
    • If the stream moves, the buffer needs to move with it
    • Make sure the cropland doesn’t slowly encroach on the buffer
    • When spraying cropland, don’t over spray onto the buffers and kill the cover
  • Requires that the SWCD review all buffers at least once every three years
  • Buffers can be used as pasture or harvested for hay
    • Allows the landowner to still use these acres
    • Helps maintain the buffer
    • Helps control weeds

The Buffer Law Also

  • Requires SWCDs to make compliance determinations
  • Exempts certain land uses and areas from the buffer requirements
  • Requires SWCDs to identify “other waters” for inclusion in local water plans
  • Requires SWCDs to assist landowners in complying with the law
  • Provides for enforcement by counties, watershed districts or the MN Board of Water and Soil Resources

Buffer Functions & Values

Buffers, in conjunction with in-field conservation practices, reduce field runoff, erosion and nutrient transport to public waters.

Buffers provide an uptake and denitrification zone for shallow subsurface flow.

Buffers provide numerous wildlife and other environmental benefits listed below.

Benefits of Buffers

  • Trap sediment and nutrients from adjacent lands. Many studies indicate >80% efficiency is possible at the field edge.
  • Provide a setback distance from input’s (pesticides, herbicide, nutrients, and manure) applied to adjacent lands.
  • Provide an infiltration area for surface water. Land with perennial vegetation can infiltrate water at up to 10x the rate of tilled ground.

  • Retirement from crop production of areas that have low productivity or are inefficient to farm can provide water quality and habitat benefits.

  • Provide habitat for some wildlife species if corridor is wide enough (>400’) and/or the buffer connects larger habitat areas together.

  • Aquatic habitat improvements are realized when negative inputs to a water body are reduced and riparian zone is restored with vegetation.

  • Improve stream or ditch bank stability with deep rooted plants.

  • Native trees and grass have root systems far exceeding most agricultural crops or introduced species of grass and will draw nutrients from shallow groundwater flow.

  • Soil biology in buffers (e.g. saturated buffers) can break down nitrates in subsurface water into harmless nitrogen gas.

Does the Buffer Law Affect Me?

The focus of the buffer program in Winona County will be on buffers along Public Waters.  As far as Public Drainage Systems, Winona County only has a couple of these systems; they are located primarily in the cities of Goodview and Winona.

To see the Draft map, please click on the Buffer Map Viewing Application and zoom in on the map to the location your are interested in.  There will be some corrections/adjustments to the map in the future as needed corrections are verified.

Winona County SWCD compliance numbers as of July 2, 2018

5261 Parcels reviewed based on proximity to “Public Waters”

  • 2276 Parcels found to be adjacent to “Public Waters”
  • 2188 (96.1%) Parcels Compliant to the Buffer Law
  • 46 (2%) Parcels with 26 landowners working with the SWCD towards compliance
  • 42 (1.9%) Parcels with 28 landowners not responding to the SWCD nor showing that they are working to become compliant
  • 2985 Parcels close to the Public Waters but not adjacent at this time (not applicable)