Minnesota Pollution Control Agency

Periods of reduced air quality due to wildfire smoke are expected for the rest of the warm season as fires continue to burn in Northern Minnesota and Canada.

Forty-six lakes, rivers, streams and wetlands were added, including Big Stony Lake near Park Rapids, Emily Lake in Crow Wing County and Birch Lake in Hackensack.

The group works to inform the PCA on environmental justice issues. Applications are due July 22, 2026.

A 2025 inspection found the company failed to maintain equipment that monitored and reduced air pollution.

The Hibbing Gas Manufacturing Plant was torn down in 1980, but the industrial processes of the past left contamination in the soil, groundwater and nearby surface water.

Individual grants will range from $1,500 to $150,000. Eligible applicants include farmers and livestock producers and organizations that train or support farmers.

MPCA meteorologists are predicting an active air quality season for 2026, comparable to 2024. A strong El Niño cycle is expected to bring warmer and drier conditions.

Leanna Goose and Annie Humphrey from the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe and Emma Needham from the Red Lake Nation advocated for uncultivated wild rice beds left in the state.

Over 250 people attended the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's public meeting. Permits could be issued as soon as April, with the mine aiming to open in June.

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency will host an informational open house for the mine's air, water and wetlands permits, one of the last regulatory steps for the company.