The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) fined Python’s of Saint Cloud, a recycling facility, $17,300 for industrial waste and stormwater permit violations.
On April 23, 2024, the Minnesota Duty Officer received a report of a discharge of liquid industrial waste from cans recycled at the Python’s of Saint Cloud facility into the municipal stormwater system. City of St. Cloud staff visited the site and determined that an underground holding tank intended for the temporary storage of liquid industrial waste was leaking.
The MPCA’s investigation into the incident found that facility staff had failed to complete permit-mandated inspections, recordkeeping, and employee training programs. Python’s of Saint Cloud also did not develop a spill prevention and response procedure and had submitted annual stormwater reports and quarterly compliance monitoring reports late.
In addition to paying the fine, the facility has inspected and decommissioned the faulty holding tank. The facility also submitted necessary reports and prevention plans as mandated by its industrial stormwater permit.
The MPCA is committed to protecting human health and the environment by enforcing rules and regulations and limiting pollution and discharges from facilities. When facilities do not fully comply with regulatory requirements, the resulting pollution can be harmful to people and the environment. Since 2019, the MPCA has issued 8,580 enforcement actions amounting to nearly $25 million in penalties. Penalty payments go into the state’s environmental fund, which is appropriated by the Legislature and enables the MPCA to protect communities and the environment from harmful pollution.
When calculating penalties, the MPCA considers a number of factors including the seriousness of the violation, the potential for harm to human health or the environment, history of noncompliance, and the economic benefit the company gained by failing to comply with environmental laws.