FMR Strib commentary: 'The public wants cleanup at the St. Paul Ford site. Do regulators?'
Elected leaders, community members and Friends of the Mississippi River are all calling for a full cleanup of Ford Area C. (Photo by Anna Botz for FMR)
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency will soon decide how extensively Ford Motor Company must clean up the riverfront dumpsite it left behind in St. Paul.
In a featured Star Tribune commentary published March 4, FMR Land Use & Planning Director Colleen O'Connor Toberman makes the case for a full cleanup.
But FMR's voice isn't the only one in this commentary. The list of elected leaders supporting a full cleanup alongside FMR is long: the St. Paul City Council, St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her, Minnesota Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy, Minnesota Rep. Dave Pinto and U.S. Rep. Betty McCollum.
Colleen writes, "These leaders are responding to the voices of everyday people who have spoken up for accountability. Community members have stood outside with signs on a cold winter night, sent hundreds of letters to the MPCA, elected officials and local media, and signed a petition (more than 700 names strong), all calling for full accountability for Ford."
With such public pressure, will the MPCA still recommend only a partial cleanup? FMR's commentary concludes: "If the agency wants the community's trust, it must show it is listening and holding polluters accountable. When it comes to Ford's mess, so far, it has not."
Read the full, published commentary at the Star Tribune.
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