The Minnehaha Creek Watershed District is the regional governmental unit responsible for managing and protecting the water resources of the Minnehaha Creek watershed, located in the area including and immediately west of Minneapolis, Minnesota. The District was established in 1967 under the Minnesota Watershed District Act, which recognizes that hydrologic boundaries rarely match political boundaries. The 1955 act established watershed districts to integrate water management efforts between city, county and state agencies.

The District covers approximately 181 square miles that ultimately drain into the Minnehaha Creek (which then enters the Mississippi River). The watershed includes natural treasures such as Minnehaha Creek, Lake Minnetonka, The Minneapolis Chain of Lakes and Minnehaha Falls. There are eight major creeks, 129 lakes and thousands of wetlands within the MCWD.

The MCWD also includes all or part of 27 cities and two townships in Hennepin and Carver Counties.

The MCWD is governed by a seven-member Board of Managers, who are appointed by the Hennepin and Carver county boards.

• Budgets
• Comprehensive Water Resources Management Plan
• Citizen Advisory Committee
• Staff List
• More Info: maps and lists of legislative districts, school districts, and neighborhood associations within the MCWD.

This website is intended to be the primary comprehensive source of information about us. If you still need additional information, feel free to contact the District office by email or by calling 952-471-0590.

Mission Statement

The Minnehaha Creek Watershed District is committed to a leadership role in protecting, improving and managing the surface waters and affiliated groundwater resources within the district, including their relationships to the ecosystems of which they are an integral part. We achieve our mission through regulation, capital projects, education, cooperative endeavors, and other programs based on sound science, innovative thinking, an informed and engaged constituency, and cost effective use of public funds.

What We Do

The Minnehaha Creek Watershed District protects and improves water quality, manages stormwater, manages levels of Lake Minnetonka and flow of Minnehaha Creek (via Grays Bay Dam), restores and manages wetlands and lakes, and much more. These activities are accomplished through six main program areas:

1. Water quality monitoring and research;
2. Regulatory permits
3. Project management and maintenance
4. Land conservation
5. Education and communications
6. Planning
   

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