Cleanup plan for toxic Ford Area C dump finally moves forward
You might be familiar with the main Ford site and its redevelopment, but the hazardous waste dump site at Area C on the river's edge is less well-known. Three beloved parks, Hidden Falls Park in St. Paul and Minnehaha Falls Park and the Minnehaha Dog Park in Minneapolis, lie immediately downstream of this site.
Update: Nov. 7, 2025
We've finally got the Ford Area C Feasibility Study. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency released the massive document this week. Its proposed plan ("Alternative 4") is not the full cleanup FMR is advocating for and does not hold Ford accountable for its mess. Check out the study here, and sign up for our monthly newsletter to learn about opportunities to weigh in soon.
For the past few years, FMR and community advocates have been waiting to see a cleanup plan for Ford’s Area C hazardous dumpsite on the Mississippi River in St. Paul. (Read more about Area C.)
During that time, Ford installed additional groundwater monitoring wells, which FMR and its partners requested in order to gather more pollution data. We also needed to know what waste leaches from the dumpsite in high water. Crucially, monitoring wells were able to obtain data during the 2023 and 2024 floods.
Based on this information, Ford prepared and recently submitted to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) its draft cleanup plan for the toxic site.
The draft plan, or feasibility study, will be released for public review soon. It offers the MPCA — the agency responsible for designating the extent of cleanup and overseeing the process — an assessment of full and partial cleanup scenarios.
As the MPCA evaluates how much cleanup Ford should be required to do, the agency will take into consideration community input about different cleanup scenarios.
We also hope the city of St. Paul’s elected leaders will speak up during this process. The city has a vested interest in the success of the ongoing Highland Bridge redevelopment (of Ford’s assembly plant site) just across the street from the dump. The city should be eager to secure a clean, healthy riverfront for the generations to come.
How you can help
Once we've received and fully reviewed the study, we'll share our analysis and encourage our advocates to weigh in.
In early 2026, the MPCA will hold a community meeting and public comment period to gather feedback on Ford's plan. We hope to see hundreds of people submit comments and attend that community meeting this winter.
In the meantime, if you’ve never visited the Area C dumpsite, you can join one of FMR’s walking tours scheduled for Oct. 28 and Nov. 22 to learn more.
FMR believes that Ford should be held responsible for fully cleaning up its riverfront mess. If you agree, you can sign our petition, which will also sign you up for email updates in the months to come. (You can also sign up to be a River Guardian to receive local river advocacy notices and event invitations without signing the petition.)
Ford Area C updates
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