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Duluth, Minn. — Road construction projects usually mean necessary detours
and delays for travelers. Sometimes they may prove hazardous to the
environment, too.
Due to a failure to provide required stormwater controls at the Highway
53 project near Angora in northeast Minnesota, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) penalized
the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT, District 1).
MnDOT, the state agency responsible for operating and maintaining highways
and transportation infrastructure, along with hundreds of other road projects, is
the owner of the ten-mile Trunk Highway 53 project between Virginia and Cook.
Construction work included an upgrade from two to four lanes, grading and surfacing
the highway and adding two bridges.
An MPCA inspector visited the site and found no permanent stormwater
treatment practices incorporated into project, nor were any described in
MnDOT’s pollution prevention plan. Both are violations of the state construction
stormwater permit that regulates discharges to state waterways. The
construction site crosses the Rice River in three places and is surrounded by
wetlands, forests and hay fields. The MPCA has no way to say if an actual
stormwater release took place. Penalties are often based on potential for harm.
By not following the permit’s requirements, MnDOT was required to
performed corrective actions and pay a $31,380 civil penalty.
“Penalties and enforcement actions against state and local government
entities are not that unusual,” says MPCA Land and Air compliance manager Katie
Koelfgen. “Their facilities and projects get the same environmental oversight
as the private sector.”
When calculating penalties, the MPCA takes into account how seriously
the violations affected the environment, whether they were first-time or repeat
violations, and how promptly the violations were reported to authorities. The
agency 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, refer to the MPCA’s Quarterly Summary of Enforcement Actions webpage.
Minnesota law requires governmental units and
contractors to apply for a stormwater permit when construction projects disturb
more than one acre of soil. The MPCA offers outreach and training to help
facilities meet their permit requirements. For more information on stormwater
permits, call Brian Green, MPCA compliance coordinator, at 507-206-2610 or
toll-free at 800-657-3864.
Broadcast version
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency penalized the Minnesota
Department of Transportation for construction stormwater violations at a ten-mile-long
highway construction site near Angora in Saint Louis County. Site inspections conducted
in August 2013 and subsequent permit-related document reviews revealed permit
violations involving permanent stormwater treatment requirements.
MN-DOT performed all required corrective actions and will pay a penalty
of just over thirty-one-thousand dollars.
For more information about stormwater regulations and how they help
protect Minnesota’s lakes and streams, visit the M-P-C-A website at www.pca.state.mn.us.
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The mission of the MPCA is to protect and improve the environment and enhance human health.
St. Paul • Brainerd • Detroit Lakes • Duluth • Mankato • Marshall • Rochester • Willmar
www.pca.state.mn.us • Toll-free and TDD 800-657-3864
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