Pines to potatoes conversion in central Minnesota put on hold

Alarmed by rapid deforestation in an ecologically sensitive swath of central Minnesota, state regulators have ordered a broad environmental review that will temporarily halt conversion of the region’s jackpine stands to potato fields.

Natural Resources Commissioner Tom Landwehr said Thursday he’s ordering the study of water and wildlife impacts because the bulldozing of trees and plowing of soil is happening over a permeable aquifer that could be polluted by fertilizers and depleted by crop irrigation.

Until the study’s completion, which could take nine months to a year, the state won’t consider dozens of permit applications for high-capacity groundwater wells submitted by potato processor R.D. Offutt Co. as it expands its already formidable footprint in the region.

Even then, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) could block further conversions if the review finds there are already severe threats to natural resources associated with the pristine Pineland Sands Aquifer and its overlying woods, Landwehr said. The area of concern touches Becker, Cass, Hubbard and Wadena counties.

“We simply have to get a better handle on what’s happening with overall water use and water quality in this very, very, very important aquifer,” Landwehr said.