On Monday, Aug. 3, Land Stewardship Project members and local residents gathered at the Stevens County Planning and Zoning public meeting — and because our community showed up, spoke out, and organized together, we won an important step forward.
Riverview demonstrated a very organized corporate approach. But our community met that pressure with real people power — and won a crucial victory: the county delayed its decision.
Instead of rubber-stamping an immediate approval with no conditions, the Planning Commission tabled the vote. They directed the county staff to gather more information about the water concerns that were raised. That information could be used for recommendations or conditions of approval.
Why This Is Big News:
This gives us an important opening. By stopping a no-strings-attached approval this week, we made sure the county cannot move forward as if there are no serious water concerns.
The Planning Commission will reconvene on Wednesday, Aug. 19, to review staff recommendations. This pushes the absolute earliest date for a final County Board vote to Sept. 1. We now have invaluable time to make the case to the County Board, which holds the ultimate final say.
Water was the main concern raised on Monday, and county officials acknowledged the community’s deep anxieties multiple times. This project would operate at a scale Minnesota has never seen before, and state-level approvals do not guarantee that our water is protected.
Local control matters. Other counties, including Winona and Todd, as well as communities in neighboring states, have successfully stood up to protect their land, water, and people.
We are pushing back because Minnesota’s concerns are grounded in real risks:
• Threatens Local Water Reserves: The facility will use 319 million gallons of water annually. That nearly eclipses the neighboring city of Morris’s annual limit for its entire population of over 5,000 people.
• Outdated Data: Riverview’s proposal relies on an aquifer test that is 20 years old. Furthermore, Stevens County lacks a completed County Geologic Atlas to map groundwater vulnerability.
• Unenforced Waste Management: The project involves storing 250 million gallons of liquid manure and spreading it across 13,200 acres above the aquifer. While Riverview has a “manure management plan,” the state only physically inspects 7% of all plans in any given year.
• Track Record of Issues: Riverview reported a manure spill at its Pennock, Minn., facility in February 2025. Additionally, the company recently agreed to pay $11 million after the Arizona Attorney General found they over-pumped regional water supplies in that state.
What Comes Next:
The door is open for us to push for strong, protective conditions. We need to make sure any water conditions staff recommend truly protect our shared aquifer and the people who depend on it.
If you are on our mailing lists, keep an eye on your inbox next week. We will send out specific action steps on how to contact the full County Board ahead of its final decision. If you would like to join our mailing list, fill out this form.
Want to be more involved?
If you want to be closely involved in mapping out our strategy for the Aug. 19 meeting and the upcoming County Board push, we invite you to be on our core team. Please reach out directly to Matthew Sheets at LSP to get looped into our rapid-response planning. E-mail Matthew today at: msheets@landstewardshipproject.org