Minnesota appeals court orders hearing on PolyMet permit

MINNEAPOLIS — A district court must determine if state environmental regulators improperly sought to suppress a federal agency’s serious concerns about the pollution risks arising from a proposed copper-nickel mine in northern Minnesota, the state Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday. The St. Paul-based Ramsey County District Court must hold a hearing “as soon as practicable” on the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency’s dealings with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in the issuance of a major water permit for the PolyMet mine. “And there will be an opportunity for the district court to find out the truth, and make sure the public knows the truth, and make sure that Minnesota doesn’t issue PolyMet a weak permit that fails to protect the environment and human health.” An MPCA spokesman did not immediately return a message seeking comment on the order. The agency has previously defended its permitting process as rigorous and said that it made “substantive changes” to the draft permit in response to EPA officials’ concerns. PolyMet spokesman Bruce Richardson said the company views Tuesday’s order as procedural to make sure that the record is clear before the Court of Appeals addresses broader challenges to the permit.