Latest news with #MinnesotaPollutionControlAgency
CBS News
12-06-2025
- Climate
- CBS News
Wildfire smoke extends air quality alert until Thursday night for southern Minnesota
NEXT Weather: Noon report for Minnesota from June 12, 2025 NEXT Weather: Noon report for Minnesota from June 12, 2025 NEXT Weather: Noon report for Minnesota from June 12, 2025 by Abby Madsen An air quality alert for central and southern Minnesota continues from Wednesday into Thursday until 11 p.m. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency says the area under the alert starts around Alexandria, Brainerd and Hinckley and extends south. Smoke from Canadian wildfires has been moving into Minnesota behind a cold front, impacting air quality, making it unhealthy for sensitive groups. The alert for northern Minnesota has been canceled. Rain is expected throughout Minnesota Thursday, with the possibility of reducing the smoke levels in the Twin Cities area. Ground-level smoke is expected to linger throughout Thursday and potentially into Friday and Saturday, with cleaner air moving into northern Minnesota starting Friday. For sensitive groups, the air and pollution may affect anyone with cardiovascular and respiratory conditions. Symptoms may include chest pain, shortness of breath, coughing or fatigue. Reducing outdoor physical activities and taking more breaks are a few ways to prevent these symptoms. Wildfires are also still affecting northern Minnesota; The Jenkins Creek Fire, north of Duluth, Minnesota, which began on May 12, is 94% contained on Thursday. Crews are continuing to work along Bundle Lake Road with drone units looking for any hotspots in the interior of the fire. For the past three days, there hasn't been smoke or heat located in the interior. With a chance of storms moving into Minnesota Friday, they may pass over the fire area, relieving some of the vegetation.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Air quality alert issued for central, southern MN for wildfire smoke from Canada
The Brief The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) has issued an air quality alert for wide swaths of central and southern Minnesota due to wildfire smoke from Canada. The alert runs through 11 p.m. on Thursday, June 12, putting the air quality index in the orange category – meaning it will be unhealthy for sensitive groups. (FOX 9) - The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) has issued an air quality alert for a wide range of central and southern Minnesota due to the continuing wildfires in Canada. What we know The MPCA warns that smoke from wildfires in northwest Canada have moved into central and southern Minnesota behind a cold front, while fine particle levels have climbed to unhealthy levels for sensitive groups. The affected areas include: Twin Cities metro area Brainerd Alexandria Albert Lea Marshall Worthington Hinckley St. Cloud Ortonville Mankato Moorhead Duluth The Tribal Nations of Upper Sioux, Mille Lacs, Prairie Island, Leech Lake, and Fond du Lac. What to expect Minnesotans can expect to see a hazy sky, and smell smoke in the air, MPCA says. For sensitive groups, like people with asthma, COPD, heart disease, children, older adults and pregnant people, being outside during the alert could impact their health. What you can do The MPCA is urging people to reduce activities that contribute to poor air quality, like fires, reducing vehicle trips and vehicle idling as much as possible. To keep up to date on current air quality conditions, click here. The Source A press release from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA).
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Chalkfest Maple Grove goes on amid air quality alert
The Brief The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency issued a statewide air quality alert over the weekend. People with underlying health conditions are most likely to be impacted by the smoke. The air quality alert expires at 11 p.m. on Sunday. MAPLE GROVE, Minn. (FOX 9) - On a day when dense smoke threatened to overshadow a warm weekend in the north metro, vibrant street chalk art managed to bring things back to life in Maple Grove. "I love events like this, seeing people happy and having a good time," visitor Suellen Rehor told FOX 9. What we know On Saturday and Sunday, more than 25,000 people were expected at Chalkfest. "Everyone's really happy to be here," artist Madelyn Hohler said. The crowd marveled at the work of dozens of artists, some of whom travelled from as far as Ukraine, Turkey, and Colombia. However, Mother Nature did not treat them as kindly. "I need a Kleenex because my allergies are kind of bugging me," Hohler said. What they're saying The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency issued a statewide air quality alert over the weekend, as more smoke from wildfires in Canada travels to Minnesota. People with underlying health conditions are most at risk; but on Sunday, the air didn't keep people away from having a good time. "We were a bit concerned," Maple Grove Business Association executive director Kira Johnson said. "We're paying close attention to it, and then we just hope people will do what's best for them healthwise; maybe wear a mask, or not come out if it's going to be an issue for them." The air quality alert expires at 11 p.m. Then, on Monday, June 9, an additional day of viewing is planned.
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Iowa exits statewide air quality alert
Smoke from Canadian wildfires worsened air quality in the eastern U.S. on Wednesday as several Midwestern states battled conditions deemed unhealthy by the federal government. The fires have forced thousands of Canadians to flee their homes and sent smoke as far as Europe. Iowa issued a statewide air quality alert through early Thursday, urging residents to limit certain outdoor activities and warning of possible health effects due to the thick smoke. Wisconsin officials made similar suggestions as the smoke drifted southeast across the state. In the U.S., smoke lingered on the skylines of cities from Kansas City to Minneapolis, and a swath of the region had unhealthy air quality Wednesday, according to an Environmental Protection Agency map. In Stoughton, Wisconsin, Nature's Garden Preschool was keeping its kids indoors Wednesday due to the bad air quality, which interferes with the daily routine, said assistant teacher Bailey Pollard. The smoke looked like a coming storm, he said. The 16 or 17 kids ages 12 weeks to 5 years old would typically be outdoors running or playing with water, balls and slides, but were instead inside doing crafts with Play-Doh or coloring. The situation was unfortunate because kids need to be outside and have fresh air and free play, Pollard said. 'It's something where we've got to take precaution for the kids,' he said. 'Nobody wants to stay inside all day.' In Michigan's Upper Peninsula, authorities advised people shut windows at night, avoid strenuous activity outside and watch for breathing issues. Parts of Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire and New York had areas of moderate air quality concern, and officials advised sensitive people to consider reducing outdoor activity. Unhealthy conditions persist in Midwest The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency issued an alert for almost the entire state into Wednesday, but the Twin Cities area got the region's worst of it Tuesday. Children's Minnesota, a network of pediatric clinics and hospitals in the Twin Cities area, has seen a 'modest increase' increase this week in patients with symptoms that doctors attributee to polluted air, Dr. Chase Shutak said. Their symptoms have included breathing problems, including asthma and other upper respiratory issues, said Shutak, who stays in close touch with other pediatricians in his role as medical director of the Minneapolis primary care clinic at Children's. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources warned that air quality in a band from the state's southwest corner to the northeast could fall into the unhealthy category through Thursday morning. The agency recommended that people — especially those with heart and lung disease — avoid long or intense activities and to take extra breaks during strenuous activity outdoors. Conditions at ground level are in the red The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's AirNow map showed a swath of red for 'unhealthy' conditions across Wisconsin and northern Iowa. Conditions in northern Michigan also reflected many unhealthy zones. The Air Quality Index was around 160 in many parts of the upper Midwest, indicating poor conditions. The Air Quality Index , or AQI, measures how clean or polluted the air is, indicating which health effects might be experienced within a few hours or days after breathing polluted air. It is based on ground-level ozone, particle pollution, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide. Particulates are the main issue from the fires. The index ranges from green, indicating satisfactory air quality that poses little or no risk, to maroon, which is considered hazardous. That level comes with health warnings of emergency conditions, which are more likely to affect everyone. There were areas of reduced air quality all over the U.S. on Wednesday, with numerous advisories about moderate air quality concerns as far from the fires as Kansas and Georgia. The air quality was considerably better Wednesday in Minnesota, where only the barest hint of haze obscured the downtown Minneapolis skyline. The city experienced some of the worst air in the country on Tuesday. But the air quality index, which had reached the mid-200 range, or 'very unhealthy' on Tuesday, was down to 60, or 'moderate,' by Wednesday afternoon. The Canadian fire situation even reaches Europe Canada is having another bad wildfire season. Most of the smoke reaching the American Midwest has been coming from fires northwest of the provincial capital of Winnipeg in Manitoba. Canada's worst-ever wildfire season was in 2023 and choked much of North America with dangerous smoke for months. The smoke over western Europe is expected to keep moving eastward, according to the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration. It's causing hazy skies, but not expected to affect surface-air quality. However, it could rise high enough to be carried that far, indicating the immense size and intensity of the fires, according to Copernicus. Whittle reported from Portland. Karnowski reported from Minneapolis. Associated Press writers Jack Dura in Bismarck, North Dakota; Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire; Tammy Webber in Fenton, Michigan; and Scott McFetridge in Des Moines, Iowa, contributed to this report. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
State seeks to cancel permit for St. Paul's Northern Iron foundry
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency has begun the process of canceling the operating permit for a St. Paul metal foundry that employs some 80 United Steelworkers on the city's East Side. Officials with Lawton Standard, which owns the Northern Iron and Machine foundry in the Payne-Phalen neighborhood, received notice from the MPCA on Wednesday that they had officially run afoul of the regulatory agency, which has sought for years to enforce deeper controls over emissions and heavily reduce foundry production. 'After prolonged attempts to get necessary information from Northern Iron, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency today took the first steps to revoke the company's operating permit,' reads a written statement from the MPCA. 'We have repeatedly requested information required under state law for us to issue a permit that would allow Northern Iron to operate in a way that protects human health and the environment. … We do not have reasonable assurance that the company can comply with a permit.' The permit revocation is not immediate. The MPCA described it as a 'rare and lengthy process' that likely will entail a contested case hearing before an administrative law judge. The foundry, which dates to 1906, is allowed to maintain its operations throughout that process. The MPCA fined Northern Iron $41,500 in 2023 for out-of-date pollution control equipment, as well as equipment updated without a permit. A more recent MPCA investigation tested soot collecting on homes near the foundry and found toxic heavy metals such as lead, chromium and manganese, which residents in a recent legal action have described as evidence it originated from the Forest Street metal plant. Calling the company's PurpleAir testing equipment outdated, the MPCA issued an April 2024 order limiting Northern Iron's material processing to 10 tons per day, or roughly a third of normal production. That limit held until it was lifted by a July 2024 decision from Ramsey County District Court Judge Leonardo Castro. Company officials maintain their monitors show dust particles and lead levels to be well within state standards, and that the MPCA has misinterpreted the data. In a written statement Wednesday, they said revoking their existing operating permit without processing the company's new permit application is 'unprecedented' and 'not supported by any evidence or data from extensive environmental monitoring of the facility.' The MPCA 'has officially determined that it wants to shut down a business, lay off people, and needlessly scare the community by ignoring facts, data, and a judge's decisions,' they wrote. 'The MPCA is not following the rule of law as a regulator, which is unacceptable.' In March, residents from the Payne-Phalen neighborhood filed a class action lawsuit against the foundry owners in Ramsey County District Court, claiming emissions have lowered their home values, damaged property and left them dealing with soot and dust on their houses. Lawton Standard, which is based in DePere, Wis. and maintains foundries in six states, purchased the Northern Iron foundry in August 2022. The foundry makes casings and custom metal parts for national clients. St. Paul's Maxfield Elementary breaks ground on 'community schoolyard' Ex-teacher of Hmong College Prep Academy in St. Paul sentenced for criminal sexual conduct with student Four candidates file for Ward 4 seat on the St. Paul City Council Canadian wildfire smoke causes 'very unhealthy' conditions in American Midwest and reaches Europe 40 St. Paul street lights stripped of copper wiring, though reports are down overall
