Subpart 1.
Required.
All aeration systems installed and operated in protected waters
require a permit issued by the commissioner of the Department of Natural
Resources, unless the system is used exclusively for and is no larger than the
minimum size adequate to keep dams, structures, or mooring areas free of ice.
No permit issued pursuant to this part shall be construed to satisfy the need
for permits required by other governmental entities.
Subp. 2.
Issuance prohibited.
No aeration permit shall be issued:
A. for the purpose of attracting or delaying
the migration of wild waterfowl, except for waterfowl management practices
approved by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service or the Minnesota
Department of Natural Resources, Division of Fish and Wildlife;
B. for protected waters designated for
wildlife management under Minnesota Statutes, section
97A.101,
subdivision 2, unless the aeration system is included as part of the management
plan;
C. for protected waters
proposed by the commissioner for designation for wildlife management purposes
under Minnesota Statutes, section
97A.101,
subdivision 2, until the designation process is terminated or
completed;
D. for protected waters
designated as scientific and natural areas under Minnesota Statutes, section
84.033;
or
E. for protected waters without
a management plan, unless:
(1) the protected
waters are designated for use under a fish farm or hatchery license issued by
the commissioner; or
(2) the
protected waters do not have public access.
Subp. 3.
Winter operation.
An aeration permit shall not be issued for winter operation of
a system where the diffusers are placed in a configuration where more than one
open water area is created during ordinary winter weather unless:
A. there is no public access; and
B. the permittee owns all land riparian to
the protected water, or all of the possessory rights to the land riparian to
the protected water, or has leased all access rights to the protected water;
or
C. the commissioner has first
determined that such a system will provide substantial benefit to the lake
resource.