DNR Issues Plans for Making Maps Under New Buffer Strip Law

ST. PAUL (AP) - The Department of Natural Resources has issued a timeline and other details as it works to implement Gov. Mark Dayton's buffer strip law.

The law will require vegetation buffers of up to 50 feet along rivers, streams and ditches to help filter out phosphorus, nitrogen and sediment.

The DNR says it will produce final maps by July of public waters and ditch systems that require buffers under the new law. The four-phase plan announced Wednesday starts this fall with identifying waters that require 50-foot buffers, then identifying ditches that require 16.5-foot buffers, producing preliminary maps in late winter, then delivering the final maps next summer.

The maps will help landowners identify whether they need to create a buffer and, if so, whether they need a 16.5-foot or 50-foot buffer.