2024 Performance Report

Message from the General Manager

Our work this year was rooted in our vision of clean water for future generations. We prioritized collaborative partnerships, evolving practices, and taking bold steps toward a more resilient, inclusive, and sustainable future for the Twin Cities metropolitan region.

Through collaboration, partnership and strategic planning with our communities, partner agencies and water professionals, we continued providing essential services for the region. 

• Advanced the Met Council’s priorities related to sustainability, stewardship and equity, while planning further actions for the future of our region’s water.
• Collaborated with state and water partners to protect and restore water resources, including programs like the Met Council’s Water Efficiency Grant Program. In 2024, the grants funded 10 irrigation system audits and replacement of more than 3,162 devices that will save an estimated 27 million gallons of water per year.
• Continued operational excellence and compliance through proactive maintenance, emergency preparedness, public health measures, and workforce development. The Metropolitan Council’s nine water resource recovery facilities treated an average of 250 million gallons of wastewater daily, receiving recognition from the National Association of Clean Water Agencies for excellence in compliance with federal clean water permit limits.
• Developed the 2050 Water Policy Plan, included within the Met Council regional development guide, called Imagine 2050. Our planning teams engaged local communities through established subregional groups of water experts who addressed common regional issues. The policy plan outlines the Met Council’s commitment to equitable water access, climate resilience, mitigating greenhouse gas emissions, partnering with communities, and water reuse and conservation.
• Engaged our community at the Minnesota State Fair “Oh Poop!” exhibit. The Eco Experience had 218,354 visitors, who learned about wastewater infrastructure and how treatment processes protect water.
• Facilitated planning of our new sustainable, efficient water resource recovery facility in the northwestern part of the region to replace the existing Rogers Water Resource Recovery Facility. The Crow River Facility will treat about 1 million gallons of wastewater per day and will have capacity to treat 16.5 million gallons per day once fully developed.

Learn more about how we partner, plan and provide services to our region.
Leisa Thompson, general manager

Environmental Services at a glance

Clean water and a clean environment are essential to a healthy life, and our 600+ employees are committed to both. We collect and treat wastewater from 111 communities in the Twin Cities region, serving approximately 2.8 million people. We also monitor water quality, and plan for a long-range water supply to meet future demand.

Whenever someone in the Twin Cities metro region takes a shower, flushes a toilet, or runs a washing machine, the used water is routed to one of our water resource recovery facilities through an extensive network of local and regional sanitary sewer pipes. We own, operate, and maintain the regional wastewater collection and treatment system, which includes:

• 634 miles of regional sanitary sewers
• 231 flow meters
• 60 lift stations
• Nine water resource recovery facilities

We also work with 900 plus industrial users and 89 liquid waste haulers. In total, our system collects and treats an average of 250 million gallons of wastewater each day; about 70% of this is processed at the Metropolitan Water Resource Recovery Facility in Saint Paul. In 2024, we treated approximately 81.4 billion gallons of wastewater—equivalent to filling the U.S. Bank Stadium every two days.

The Twin Cities region is projected to gain 657,000 residents between 2020 and 2050, changing how we use our water resources. Protecting, conserving, and using the region’s groundwater and surface water is critical for the sustainability of water resources in our region. In 2024, the Met Council approved its new Water Policy Plan, which is part of the regional development guide, Imagine 2050. The Water Policy Plan includes strategies to achieve four objectives that support our regional goals.

• Climate: The region’s water and water services are protected from and made resilient to the ongoing and future effects of climate change.   
• Investments: Water protection, planning, management, and infrastructure investments are optimized to ensure public and ecosystem health are fully protected now and for future generations.   
• Health: Natural waters, source waters, water services, and infrastructure are managed, restored, and enhanced to protect public and ecosystem health that ensures a high quality of life in the region.  
• Equity: The benefits of clean and abundant water and water services are defined by local needs and environmental context, are accessible, and are justly shared by all residents and communities.  

This work ensures water is sustainable, adaptable, and resilient from both an ecosystem and public health perspective, preparing the region to meet the evolving needs of current and future generations.

The Met Council coordinates a cost-effective and resilient regional wastewater collection and treatment system. We keep our service rates reasonable to best meet our region’s water needs through capacity and resilience planning, collection and treatment, resource recovery, and infrastructure maintenance. Wastewater fees average $31 a month per household – estimated to be 35% less than other large U.S. wastewater utilities, according to the National Association of Clean Water Agencies.

The Metropolitan Council approved a 5.6% increase in the overall regional municipal wastewater charge for 2025. The 111 cities and townships served by the regional wastewater collection and treatment system pay the Met Council based on the volume of wastewater local governments send to our water resource recovery facilities.
Our three largest sources of revenue are:

• Municipal wastewater charge: We charge our customer communities for sewer service. They pay based on the volume of wastewater treated.
• Sewer availability charge: We charge our customer communities when properties first connect to the system, and when properties expand or change (causing more demand on the system).
• Industrial waste charges: We have 900 plus industries with permits to discharge wastewater that needs additional treatment steps. Additional fees depend on the types of services provided.

Partnering with communities

Water is an essential resource that transcends community and watershed boundaries. Our surface and groundwater in the Twin Cities region move between cities, counties, and states. And some projects, from wastewater collection and treatment to regional water planning management activities, are too complex for most communities to handle alone. The Metropolitan Council convenes, engages, collaborates, and builds solutions with our customers, stakeholders, and partners to solve those complex problems.
More about partnering with communities

Planning for the future

The Met Council is continually looking to the future and working holistically to ensure clean water for future generations. Guided by a long-range plan, we are committed to supporting sustainable and cost-effective water treatment and water resources protection as our communities develop and grow. We ensure that wastewater collection and treatment is competitive in cost and quality, and continually identify long term approaches and infrastructure investments.
More about planning for the future

Providing excellent service

24 hours a day, 365 days a year, the Metropolitan Council delivers critical services, tools, and resources to our customer communities and partners. We focus on work that makes a positive impact on the health and quality of life in our region, like expanding programs that help prevent sewer backups and overflows, monitoring chloride levels in regional water bodies, and providing wastewater samples for tracking the spread of disease in our communities. 
More about providing excellent service