2024 Performance Report

Message from the General Manager

Our work this year was grounded in our vision of clean water for future generations. We prioritized collaboration, adapted our practices, and took bold steps toward a more resilient, inclusive, and sustainable future for the Twin Cities metropolitan region.
We coordinated with communities, partner agencies and water professionals to advance the Metropolitan Council’s priorities around sustainability, environmental stewardship and equity. Through strategic partnerships and long-term planning, we continued to provide essential services that support the health and growth of our region. 

• Advanced planning for a new sustainable, high-efficiency water resource recovery facility in the northwestern part of the region. The Crow River Facility will replace the Rogers Water Resource Recovery Facility. It will initially treat about 1 million gallons of wastewater daily, with capacity to treat 16.5 million gallons per day once fully developed.
• Collaborated with state and regional partners to protect and restore water resources, including programs like the Met Council’s Water Efficiency Grant Program. In 2024, the program supported funding of 10 irrigation system audits and replacement of more than 3,162 devices. It will save an estimated 27 million gallons of water annually.
• Continued operational excellence and compliance through proactive maintenance, emergency preparedness, public health protection, and workforce development. The Met Council’s nine water resource recovery facilities treated an average of 250 million gallons of wastewater daily and received recognition from the National Association of Clean Water Agencies for outstanding compliance with federal clean water permit requirements.
• Developed the 2050 Water Policy Plan as part of the Met Council's regional development guide, Imagine 2050. Planning teams engaged local communities through subregional groups of water experts who addressed shared regional challenges. The plan outlines the Met Council’s commitment to equitable water access, climate resilience, reduced greenhouse gas emissions, community partnerships, and sustainable water reuse and conservation.
• Engaged the community at the Minnesota State Fair “Oh Poop!” exhibit. The Eco Experience had more than 218,354 visitors, and many of them engaged with our staff to explore how wastewater infrastructure protects water quality and public health.

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 healthy environment are essential to quality of life. More than 600 Metropolitan Council Environmental Services employees help serve our region, collecting and treating wastewater from 111 communities in the Twin Cities region, serving approximately 2.8 million people. Our teams also monitor water quality, and plan for long-term regional water supply to meet future demand.

When someone in the Twin Cities metro region takes a shower, flushes a toilet, or runs a washing machine, that used water flows through a vast network of local and regional sanitary sewer pipes to one of our water resource recovery facilities. 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 more than 900 industrial users and 89 liquid waste haulers. Our system 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, the equivalent of 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 managing the region’s groundwater and surface water is essential to long-term water sustainability. 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 outlines strategies to achieve four objectives that support 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 manages a cost-effective and resilient regional wastewater collection and treatment system. We maintain affordable service rates by planning for capacity and resilience, supporting resource recovery, and investing in infrastructure maintenance. Average household wastewater fees are $31 per month—approximately 35% lower than those in other large U.S. wastewater utilities, according to the National Association of Clean Water Agencies.
The Met 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 more than 900 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 Met 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 Met 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