Northshore Mining Co. sued by environmental groups over asbestos levels in the air

Silver Bay, MN – A court decision has ruled that a lawsuit filed by environmental groups against Northshore Mining Company can proceed.

On February 11, Federal Judge Paul Magnuson ruled in favor of the Sierra Club and Save Lake Superior Association in their attempt to seek federal enforcement of air quality standards for asbestos-like particles. For the lawsuit, the two groups are seeking a federal court decision that will uphold the air quality standard when comparing asbestos fiber levels in the air around Silver Bay to the air in St. Paul.

The environmental groups are claiming that Northshore Mining is violating both the control city air standard and the Environmental Protection Act after air quality tests proved that the air in Silver Bay contained higher levels of asbestos fibers than the air in St. Paul.

Judge Magnuson’s ruling last month lifted a stay that he placed in his December ruling, in which he stated that the control city standard was a viable state regulation. The mining company is currently appealing Judge Magnuson’s new decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals.

Northshore is also fighting a ruling in another similar state court case. The company has appealed to the state’s Court of Appeals, demanding that the state of Minnesota remove the control city air standard from its operating permits. Because there are no other regulations to measure the risk of exposure to asbestos for Silver Bay residents, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency insists that the only fair way to assess the risk is to compare Silver Bay’s air quality levels to those of St. Paul.

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