Legislation introduced this week at the Capitol in St. Paul could provide about $7.5 million toward dredging Fountain Lake.

District 27 Sen. Dan Sparks and District 27A Rep. Rich Murray brought the measure forward in each chamber. The funding come through bonding, so it would require a bonding bill to be passed this session.

In the House, the measure was sent to the Environment, Energy and Natural Recourses Policy and Finance Committee. In the Senate, it went to the Capital Investment Committee.

Overall phosphorus levels in the lake remain high, and the legislation would provide funds for dredging Fountain Lake. Shell Rock River Watershed District Administrator Brett Behnke said he had several meetings with Sparks and Murray to discuss the lake.

“The dredging of Fountain Lake is a top priority for the Shell Rock River Watershed District,” Behnke said. “By addressing water quality, this project will provide additional benefits for recreation and fish habitat.”

The total project cost is expected to be about $15 million, which includes engineering, design, dredging, sludge storage and disposal. Funding from the local-option half-cent sales tax would cover the other half of the costs.

Behnke said he understands the state’s current tight budget, but that the district will keep working toward the project even if the funding isn’t secured.

“We’re always looking for different avenues of funding,” Behnke said.

Phosphorus is a plant nutrient that stimulates the growth of algae when in lake water. According to the Shell Rock River Watershed District, the average summer concentrations of phosphorus are continually higher than the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency’s standard for shallow lakes in southern Minnesota.

Behnke said the dredging project will give better water clarity and provide the photosynthesis needed for plants to grow on the lake bed.

Phosphorus levels are attributed to stormwater runoff from the lake’s direct watershed, water from upstream lakes and tributary streams and release of phosphorus from sediments in the lake.