Minnesota Pollution Control Agency

Contact: Colleen Coyne, 651-297-7363 Saint Paul, Minn. -- In the first of several environmental education tours, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) Citizens' Board will visit mining operations in northern Minnesota on May 23-24. The sites on the agenda include Minnesota Steel, USS Minntac, Cliffs-Erie, Mesabi Nugget, Polymet Mining and Northshore Mining. MPCA Commissioner Brad Moore, also a board member and tour participant, says that the visits will provide important additional background on mining issues. "The world steel market is very interested in Minnesota's mining resources, making this a perfect time for board members to learn more about these operations," says Moore. "Mines operate on a scale that is very different from most industrial activity, and seeing them will give the board a better understanding of the complex environmental issues to come." Moore says he hopes to schedule more board tours later in the year, to sites such as lakes and streams that do not meet water quality standards, ethanol plants and feedlots. The Citizens' Board is an eight-member decision-making body appointed by the governor that meets monthly to deal with facility permitting, air and water monitoring, emerging contaminants and many other MPCA projects. For a copy of the tour agenda, or to inquire about the limited potential for joining the tour (at cost), contact Darlene Sigstad at 651-285-8539 or toll-free at 1-800-657-3864. For more information on the Citizens' Board mission, members and meeting dates, go to www.pca.state.mn.us/about/board/index.html.