State regulators are threatening to revoke the permit for a metal foundry accused of emitting excessive pollution on St. Paul’s East Side, citing months of delays and failures to submit information to determine if the company is in compliance with air quality standards.
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) on Thursday issued a final deadline of May 8 to Northern Iron and Machine, demanding that it provide information needed to complete a new permit application for the facility.
“At this point, the MPCA cannot make the necessary determinations to issue a permit, and, in fact, by rule, Northern Iron’s refusal to provide information is justification for revoking a permit,” said Frank Kohlasch, MPCA assistant commissioner for air and climate policy.
Northern Iron said in a statement that the MPCA’s letter was the first message the company received from the agency since it submitted its permit application in March.
“We believe that working constructively with MPCA on the application will benefit everyone, including the community,” Northern Iron’s statement said, adding that it’s open to discussions with the MPCA.
The MPCA said in a letter to Northern Iron that the agency received permit application materials on March 27 and April 1, but that they were missing information the state had been requesting for months.
Two-year fight
The state and Northern Iron have been in a dispute for more than two years, stemming from a $41,500 2023 MPCA fine against Northern Iron for failing to disclose changes to pollution control equipment over several years. The fine came with a stipulation agreement ordering Northern Iron to submit a new permit application.
The MCPA ordered the foundry in April 2024 to reduce its operating hours after new pollution estimates showed that Northern Iron was likely emitting dangerous amounts of lead and smog into a residential part of the Payne-Phalen neighborhood.
The company sued the MPCA in May 2024, and received a temporary injunction largely allowing it to resume typical hours while it implemented new pollution control measures and applied for a new state permit. The case was stayed in February to allow time for a permit application to be completed. The next court hearing is scheduled for May 23.
The MPCA says Northern Iron has not followed through on requirements to submit a complete permit application. The state says Northern Iron also failed to provide information about its ability to contain pollutants in its building, sufficient testing to determine what is emerging from its smoke stacks and certify the effectiveness of new pollution control equipment. If Northern Iron doesn’t meet the May 8 deadline to submit that information and a proper permit application, the MPCA intends to begin the process to revoke its current permit, which would remove its ability to operate.
“Northern Iron failed again to provide the information MPCA has been requesting for months and what little information was provided remains deficient,” Kohlasch said.
State Rep. Liz Lee, DFL-St. Paul, said she hopes the state can get the data, which she said neighbors are also seeking. Lee, whose district includes the foundry, attended community meetings where Alex Lawton, CEO of Northern Iron’s parent company Lawton Standard, said the company would be open and collaborative with neighbors. But that hasn’t happened, she said.
“They absolutely have the ability to be better community partners,” Lee said.
Years of concerns from residents about dust and pollution have been validated by news of the MPCA-Northern Iron case, she said, and many are now making their voices heard.
“It’s a thing for them every day,” Lee said of the pollution.
Protests and community meetings about the foundry have steadily increased in recent months, with people calling for better practices from Northern Iron and stronger action from the MPCA to reduce harm.
A last resort
Revoking a permit is a last resort conducted through a civil process that starts with a notification to the permit holder, according to the MPCA. The permit holder has 30 days to request a hearing to contest the state’s efforts.
The MPCA, in legal filings, has called Northern Iron’s permit application incomplete. The agency said in a Feb. 10 letter that Northern Iron’s permit application was more than four months late and deficient. The state says the foundry has not submitted scientific estimates showing it can operate within national air quality standards.
The MPCA’s demand is very significant, according to Mel Lorentz, an environmental attorney who lives near the foundry and is helping her neighbors track the case. Lorentz is not working on the legal case.
“They’ve had months to do this basic work and have not, and there’s evidence of people being harmed,” Lorentz said.
Neighbors have submitted complaints to the MPCA about dust and soot accumulating on cars and homes, according to court documents. The MPCA tested samples of that soot and determined it likely came from Northern Iron due to the presence of heavy metals such as lead and cobalt, court documents say. The MPCA argued this showed Northern Iron is not adequately containing pollution.
Brittney Bruce, who lives directly across the street from Northern Iron, filed a class-action lawsuit against the foundry in March alleging that its pollution is violating neighbors’ wellbeing and property rights.
Another foundry neighbor, Ishmahan Alasow, told Sahan Journal that she intended to leave the home she rented with her six children due to dust from Northern Iron, which she believed was causing allergies and other health issues.
Sarah Degner Riveros, a mother of five living on the East Side, called for the MPCA to protect the health of local children and workers at Northern Iron.
“The MPCA is accountable to the neighbors to whom all these homes belong, to the renters and homeowners who have absolutely no say in the quality of the air except through the regulation of the state’s governing body,” Degner Riveros said.
