U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced it reached a settlement with the St. Paul Brass Foundry Co., St. Paul, MN, concerning two-year-old allegations of Clean Air Act violations at the St. Paul, MN, plant. According to the agency, the settlement requires the foundry to reduce its lead and particulate matter emissions.
Established in 1869, St. Paul Brass Foundry is among the oldest manufacturing businesses in Minnesota, and is one of the state's oldest manufacturers. It uses sand casting and permanent mold casting to produce parts for commercial, military, and aerospace customers.
No specific legal or financial terms of the settlement were announced, but EPA reported that reductions in lead and particulate emissions have been recorded since St. Paul Brass has installed high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters to two existing baghouses. These filters are foreseen cutting lead and particulate matter emissions from those baghouses by 99.97%.
Also, the foundry is required to limit the maximum lead content of alloys produced, and it must submit a new permit application to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency that includes requirements to operate the new HEPA filters and limit lead content in alloys.
In March 2023, and then in June 2024, EPA inspectors issued violation notices to the foundry, citing its recordkeeping and the effectiveness of pollution filtration systems. EPA also cited St. Paul Brass for its non-compliance with requests for information.
Reportedly, the foundry’s elevated pollution levels were due to insufficient filtration of emissions from the melting and pouring processes for aluminum, brass, and bronze alloys.
EPA stated that it monitored air quality in the vicinity of the foundry between June and December 2024, which data showed compliance with EPA’s air standard for lead.
In June of this year, MPCA established a permanent air-monitoring site near the plant, and the initial results from that placement show lead levels are below EPA’s air standard.
