Minnesota Pollution Control Agency

Contact:  Forrest Peterson, 320-441-6972 forrest.peterson@state.mn.us

Willmar, Minn. --  Minnesota Valley Alfalfa Processors of Priam and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) recently entered into an agreement resolving alleged violations of air quality regulations.  The company will pay a $50,000 civil penalty, and will also pay at least $52,000 for an improvement project.  Up to $26,000 of the $50,000 civil penalty may be allocated to the cost of the improvement project.

In January 2009, public complaints prompted an inspection that revealed malfunctioning emissions control equipment, resulting in the release of large amounts of dust and particles.  The company did not immediately notify the MPCA about the breakdown, which is required.  In addition, since 2006, semi-annual monitoring reports show that one or more fabric filters in the air emissions control system did not meet requirements, and from 2006 to 2008 most required reports were submitted late.

The improvement project will be the construction of an air monitoring and emission reduction system for the load-out building. 

The stipulation agreement is one of the tools used to achieve compliance with state and federal environmental laws.  When calculating penalties, the MPCA takes into account how seriously the violation affected the environment, whether it is a first time or repeat violation, and how promptly the violation was reported to appropriate authorities.  It also attempts to recover the calculated economic benefit gained by failure to comply with environmental laws in a timely manner.  For a comprehensive list of enforcement actions by the MPCA, go to www.pca.state.mn.us/pyri5fb.