Five environmental advocacy groups including the Voyageurs National Park Association and the Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness have filed a petition with the federal Environmental Protection Agency objecting to an air pollution permit granted to the United Taconite processing plant in Forbes, Minnesota.
The petition claims that the permit, granted by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency under the auspices of the Clean Air Act, “improperly allows United Taconite to avoid statutory pollution reduction requirements for plant modifications.” The permit, say the petitioners, supersedes the mandated review process and allows the plant to operate with inadequate pollution controls and harmful emissions.
The advocacy groups claim the plant is using emission reduction credits twice in an effort to cancel out new emission increases.
“By double-crediting for the same emissions reductions, United Taconite and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency are undermining the Clean Air Act,” Lynn McClure, the Midwest Regional Director, National Parks Conservation Association, said in a media release. “It’s like writing two checks, each for everything left in your account, and expecting not to be overdrawn – the people and parks of the Midwest cannot afford accounting like that.”
The United Taconite plant is located roughly 60 miles from Voyageurs National Park and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.
According to the petitioners, United Taconite emits the most sulfur dioxide pollution among iron ore refiners in Minnesota and has repeatedly faced state fines for air quality violations. Per unit of taconite ore produced, they say, United Taconite’s sulfur dioxide emissions have been nearly six times higher than any other taconite processor in the state.
A copy of the petition to the EPA can be found HERE.
The media release on the subject by the Voyageurs National Park Association can be found HERE.