2. EPA stepped in on Smith Foundry, where the MPCA failed

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Written By Devon Cupery

Minneapolis Earth Day march in April 2023 next to Smith Foundry. Photo by Devon Young Cupery.

Issues: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) did a surprise inspection of Smith Foundry in Minneapolis in the spring of 2023 and found air quality violations — issues the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) had not identified. Smith Foundry in the East Phillips neighborhood had been violating its air quality permit since 2018, emitting unsafe levels of lead and asthma-inducing fine particle pollution, the EPA said. East Phillips is a low-income and racially diverse neighborhood with high asthma rates. Nearby residents, bicyclists on the Midtown Greenway, and children at a nearby child care center have been breathing these pollutants for at least five years.

MPCA’s shortcomings: After the EPA report became public, MPCA Commissioner Katrina Kessler said that “the state has no evidence Smith Foundry sent elevated levels of lung-damaging fine particulate matter into the neighborhood,” the Star Tribune reported. Providing no further information, the comment undermined the EPA’s findings. In response to the EPA notice of violations, Smith Foundry did repairs, including replacing three major filters (called baghouses). An air test done after the pollution upgrades showed the company was complying with its permit. The MPCA issued a media release saying the foundry’s recent air pollution test results “verify” that the foundry “is not emitting more particulate matter than allowed by its permit.” The tests didn’t verify anything other than that pollution control improvements triggered by the EPA’s warnings reduced the air pollution. This likely would not have happened but for the EPA’s inspection.

Update: The EPA announced June 4, 2024 that it reached an agreement with Smith Foundry to significantly reduce emissions. Under the agreement, the company will:

  • Immediately shut down two of the foundry’s pouring and cooling lines

  • Shut down its furnace and casting processes within 12 months

  • Convert the facility to do metal finishing, a less polluting process

  • Pay an $80,000 fine

The EPA stated it has “worked closely” with the MPCA to improve air quality in the East Phillips neighborhood and ensure Smith Foundry’s compliance with the Clean Air Act. This is confusing. The MPCA seemed to contradict the EPA’s initial findings that Smith Foundry violated the Clean Air Act, and has yet to explain why it did not catch these violations much sooner.

The East Phillips Neighborhood Institute (EPNI), Little Earth Protectors, and Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy (MCEA) applauded the settlement, but issued a joint statement that the proposed changes need to happen immediately, instead of waiting a year. The “pollution from the casting operations remains uncontrolled and poses a daily risk to the community,” it said.

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Devon Cupery
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