With the installation of new charging stations, you can now travel by electric vehicle (EV) from the Twin Cities metro area to Duluth. Interstate 35 now has a series of fast-charging stations that can charge an EV in about 30 minutes.  Forest Lake, Pine City, Sturgeon Lake, and Duluth all host stations.  EV drivers can travel with confidence knowing an opportunity to charge is not far away.  Plans are in the works for additional charging stations beyond Duluth to allow eventual travel by EV along the North Shore. 

In October, the final link in Minnesota’s first EV “charging corridor” was completed with the opening of the Sturgeon Lake station.   Representatives from project partners – MPCA, ZEF Energy, Lake Country Power, Great River Energy, and Doc’s Sports Bar & Grill (where the station is located) – were on hand to mark the occasion.

This spring Minnesota Power installed a 54-kilowatt solar carport along with charging stations in Canal Park in Duluth.  The carport hosts eight Level 2 stations that can charge an EV in 2 to 6 hours and one fast charging station that can charge an EV in 30 minutes.  Electricity from the solar array feeds directly into the charging stations when charging an EV.  Excess power is fed back onto the grid.

Minnesota has plans for highway charging corridors that will eventually allow drivers to travel by EV throughout the state.  The U.S. Department of Energy is also designating national charging corridors to encourage travel by EV nationwide. To learn more about Minnesota’s first EV charging corridor and other upcoming corridors, visit PlugIntoMN.com.

The MPCA is committed to making sure that pollution does not have a disproportionate impact on any group of people — the principle of environmental justice.  This means that all people — regardless of their race, color, national origin, or income — benefit from equal levels of environmental protection and have opportunities to participate in decisions that may affect their environment or health.

The MPCA’s approach to integrating environmental justice into its work, as outlined in our Environmental Justice Framework, begins with an assessment of where low-income Minnesotans, people of color, and others may be experiencing more harm or may be more susceptible to environmental conditions.  

To aid in this process, and only as an initial step, the MPCA uses demographic data to identify census tracts that may be areas of elevated concern for environmental justice issues. Specifically, an area of concern for environmental justice is a census tract that meets one or more of these criteria:

• The number people of color is greater than 50%.
• More than 40% of the people have an income of less than 185% of the federal poverty level.
• Additionally, the MPCA considers communities within tribal boundaries as areas of concern.

The MPCA has developed an online screening tool to allow staff, the people we regulate, our partners, and community members to identify areas where additional consideration or effort is warranted to evaluate the potential for disproportionate adverse impacts, consider ways to reduce those impacts, and ensure meaningful community engagement.

Examples of how the MPCA is using this screening tool in the air program include:

• Targeting grants and technical assistance to reduce air emissions from sources located in these areas.
• Including environmental justice concerns and increased air pollution concentrations as a criterion when selecting which facilities to inspect.
• During air permitting, involving community members earlier in the permitting process and looking for ways to strengthen established permit limits or change practices to diminish impacts.
• Consider prioritizing review and evaluation of expired permits for facilities located in areas of concern.

To learn more about the MPCA’s work towards environmental justice, visit our website.

The results of a statewide air modeling effort using Minnesota’s 2011 emission inventory are now available on the MPCA website. Users can explore interactive maps to see statewide and local air pollution modeling results for fine particles and pollutants known as air toxics.

Use the pollutant priority tool to:

• Explore potential health risks due to air pollution in your community
• Compare the health risks of pollutants between different cities and communities.

Use the source priority tool to:

• Identify primary sources of fine particles and air toxics in your city or community
• View the impact of busy roads and other sources on pollutant concentrations near you
• Compare health risks in areas of environmental justice concern.

Visit the MPCA’s air modeling and human health webpage to start exploring air pollution in Minnesota.

In 2015, the MPCA and Minnesota Department of Health released the Life and Breath report on the health impacts of air pollution in the Twin Cities metropolitan area.  This report was part of a larger collaboration between the two agencies to study and inform the public and other stakeholders about the health impacts of air pollution.  The BeAirAwareMN.org website was another key product of this joint initiative. 

This summer, the MPCA and MDH completed additional analyses with more recent (2012) air quality and health data to update the estimates of air pollution-attributable deaths in the Twin Cities metro area and included these results in a new appendix in the report.  Additionally, the authors of the report published an article in the September/October issue of the Journal of Public Health Management and Practice describing the collaboration, how the study was done, and key results.  This helps to inform a broader public health audience about the relationship between air pollution and health.

Now, the two agencies are working to extend the Life and Breath analysis statewide.  Including greater Minnesota is an important next step for characterizing the health impacts of air pollution for all Minnesotans.  The findings of the statewide analysis will be used to build broader awareness about the health impacts and risks of air pollution, identify vulnerable populations and areas, and inform pollution prevention and health promotion policies and actions at both state and local levels.  You can expect to see the report by late 2018.

The MPCA will soon have $200,000 available to fund projects that take old diesel vehicles and equipment out of commission and replace them with new, less-polluting versions.  We expect the 2018 Diesel Emission Reduction Act grant will be open by the end of November.  All application materials will be found on our Clean Diesel website.  There you can also find examples of past projects that received funding.  Watch for an Air Mail announcement when the grant is posted.

The MPCA recently finished administering the 2017 round of clean diesel grants, which replaced 17 old diesel engines.  Projects included a crane, a commercial boat, and 11 trucks. These projects reduced emissions of fine particles and nitrogen oxides by about 95 percent

Older diesel engines produce substantial amounts of particulate pollution which can work their way through the lungs and into the circulatory system.  The particles cause increased risk of heart attacks, strokes, and asthma attacks.  Diesel exhaust also contains nitrogen oxides, a major pollutant which can aggravate respiratory conditions such as asthma. New heavy-duty engines are significantly cleaner than older versions, so replacing these old trucks and equipment with new models results in major emissions reductions. 

This summer, automotive shops in Minneapolis’s Phillips neighborhood  got an opportunity to improve worker safety and public health by switching to safer cleaning and degreasing products. Standard cleaning and degreasing products emit hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which contribute to poor air quality. To address these common pollutants, the Minnesota Technical Assistance Program (MnTAP) developed an intern project to provide technical assistance to auto shops to promote adoption of safer cleaning and degreasing products. 

After identifying interested businesses, the MnTAP intern analyzed the products in use at the shop, provided samples of cleaner alternatives, and worked with owners on their use. If the shop mechanics liked the products and agreed to change, MnTAP provided a case of them to encourage the switch. As a result, participating shops will cut over 450 lbs. of VOCs and 860 lbs. of HAPs  emissions annually.

This winter MnTAP is expanding the program to facilities in North Minneapolis. To learn more or participate in this program contact Jane Paulson (612-624-1826, janep2@umn.edu).

Next summer, interns will continue working in local communities to address air quality by improving energy efficiency, water conservation, and waste reduction through pollution prevention. Focus areas include food processing and water savings, or any other environmental challenge a host business may have. To learn more about the Intern Program and how to apply for a 2018 MnTAP intern, contact Nathan Landwehr, Intern Administrator (612-624-4697 or landw021@umn.edu), or visit MnTAP’s website.

On October 2, 2017, the parties in the Volkswagen settlement negotiation filed the final, signed documents with the court.  You can find the final settlement documents here.  On November 6, 2017, Minnesota submitted our paperwork to officially become eligible to receive our $47 million allocation.

The MPCA will soon be hosting additional public meetings around the state to hear more from Minnesotans on what matters to them and what types of projects are most important to them.  The funds can be used for projects that replace old heavy-duty diesel equipment and vehicles with new equipment or to install electric vehicle charging stations.  We have not yet finalized meeting dates and times.  Watch for an announcement in the coming weeks.

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