TEAM Industries, with machining operations in Audubon, Bagley, Cambridge, Detroit Lakes, and Park Rapids, paid $80,000 in fines for air, hazardous waste, and industrial stormwater violations. A Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) investigation found that TEAM failed to get an air permit and failed to submit and properly report emissions data. The MPCA identified waste oil storage issues and industrial stormwater violations at all five locations, including a series of petroleum-based releases. Many of these petroleum releases were not immediately responded to and were left to soak into the ground.
The company has agreed to take several steps to return to compliance by completing the following corrective actions:
- submit required permit applications for TEAM facilities
- submit emissions inventories
- resubmit correct emissions inventories
- submit photographic evidence of oil storage corrections across all facilities
- update the stormwater pollution prevention plans for the five facilities
- remediation of petroleum spill sites
- resubmit accurate hazardous waste license applications
The MPCA remains committed to protecting human health and the environment by enforcing rules and regulations and limiting pollution emissions and discharges from facilities. When companies do not fully comply with regulatory requirements, the resulting pollution can be harmful to people and the environment.
When calculating penalties, the MPCA considers how seriously the violations affected or could have affected the environment, and whether they were first-time or repeat violations. The agency also attempts to recover the economic benefit the company gained by failing to comply with environmental laws in a timely manner.