Minnesota Pollution Control Agency

Contact: Ralph Heussner, 651-296-6977 Toll-free: 1-800-657-3864 St. Paul, Minn. -- Minnesota has met outdoor air quality standards and maintained relatively low levels of toxic air pollutants, but greenhouse gas emissions are of increasing concern, according to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's (MPCA) report, Air Quality in Minnesota: Challenges and Opportunities. Every two years, the MPCA submits a report to the legislature to provide an update of Minnesota's air quality, air issues of primary concern and opportunities to make improvements. The current report focuses on pollutants and climate change issues relating to energy production, with electricity and transportation being the two biggest contributors of air emissions. A key message is that moving toward an economy that is less dependent on burning fossil fuels will help ensure a healthier environment for all Minnesotans. The report also shows that despite a 93 percent increase in Minnesota's gross product, the total amount of pollutants emitted, such as nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide and particulate matter, actually decreased by 15 percent from 1985 to 2004. Much of this decrease is a result of applying federal and state regulations to vehicles and industry. While Minnesota meets all air quality standards, the report notes that the MPCA continues to be concerned about the health and visibility issues associated with fine particulate matter, most of which comes from burning fossil fuels. In addition, energy use and greenhouse gas emissions have increased as Minnesota's population and economic activity have expanded. For example, from 1985 to 2004 the state's population grew 23 percent, but electrical energy consumption doubled to 46 percent, and the number of miles traveled grew by 70 percent. During this same period, Minnesota's emissions of carbon dioxide (a primary greenhouse gas) grew by more than 50 percent. The agency recommends that more effort be focused on education and partnerships -- as well as specific actions to encourage conservation, efficiency and the use of cleaner renewable energy sources -- to begin to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Increasing renewable energy production and reducing energy use will not only reduce carbon dioxide, but will also reduce many other pollutants such as fine particles, ozone, nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide. To address these issues, Governor Pawlenty has introduced his Next Generation Energy Plan that includes more renewable energy, more energy conservation, and less carbon emissions for Minnesota. The governor's proposal will move the state closer to his goal of 25 percent of all types of our energy coming from renewable sources by 2025, and reducing the use of fossil-fuel energy by 15 percent by 2015. The Next Generation Energy Plan also addresses Minnesota's climate change contributions by requiring any new fossil fuel electric generation facility serving Minnesota to offset its greenhouse gas emissions. It also specifies that a state climate change action plan be developed by 2008. The Air Quality in Minnesota: Challenges and Opportunities report can be found on the MPCA Web site at /hot/legislature/reports/index.html. Questions about the report should be directed to Kari Palmer at 651-296-7921; 1-800-657-3864 (toll free/TTY).