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The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency

What We Do

To continue moving Minnesota toward environmental excellence, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) monitors environmental quality, offers technical and financial assistance, and enforces environmental regulations.

The agency finds and cleans up spills or leaks that can affect our health and environment. Staff develop statewide policy, and support environmental education.

Partnerships

The MPCA works with many partners — citizens, communities, businesses, all levels of government, environmental groups, and educators — to prevent pollution and conserve resources. These partnerships allow the agency to:

• Foster greater commitment and personal responsibility for our environment
• Work to minimize the use and generation of toxic chemicals from products and buildings
• Help others convert waste into energy or high-value products
• Protect, restore, and preserve the quality of Minnesota’s waters
• Develop solutions to Minnesota’s climate-change challenges

What You Can Do

The most challenging environmental issues we face are the result of the choices people make every day — how we use energy, how we travel, and what we buy.

Volunteer

Join the more than a thousand people like you who help monitor our lakes and streams.

Be a part of the process

Learn what is happening in your air and water. Get daily air-quality information for locations across Minnesota, here, at our web site.

Sustainability

Achieving sustainable solutions calls for stewardship of the environment, with everyone taking responsibility for solving the problems of today and tomorrow, individuals, communities, businesses, and governments are all stewards of the environment.

History of the MPCA

In 1967, a growing awareness of the environment's fragile nature led the Minnesota Legislature to create a new state agency, one with a unique challenge and a demanding responsibility: to protect the air, waters and land of our great state.

The Minnesota Legislature gave authority to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency to begin controlling pollution problems in the state three years before the first Earth Day and the creation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Organization

The MPCA Citizens’ Board sets agency policy and direction and takes action on certain other significant or controversial issues. Under the authority of delegations from the Board, the commissioner directs the day-to-day work of the agency.

Accomplishments

MPCA has made Minnesota a national model for environmental protection. The results are obvious: the air, land and water are cleaner now than they were 40 years ago, in spite of a growing population and rising industrialization. These results were possible because the agency partnered with the state legislature, the U.S. EPA, local governments, industry, environmentalists, educators and the public.

Looking Ahead

Now, as then, the MPCA serves Minnesota by: examining the quality of the state's environment; developing rules that protect the public's health and the environment; and helping local government, industry and individuals meet their environmental responsibilities.

Contact the MPCA

The MPCA has offices in eight cities across the state of Minnesota. Information about these offices is available on the MPCA Offices Web page. To contact MPCA by phone, call 651-296-6300 in the Twin Cities area, or toll free at 800-657-3864. TDD: 651-282-5332.

Report a spill

To report spills or environmental emergencies, call the State Duty Officer at 651-649-5451 or toll free 800-422-0798. The MPCA's TTY number is 651-282-5332. The State Duty Officer's TTY number is 651-297-5353, or toll free 800-627-3529.