'Improperly set': Advocates say Minneapolis trash burner's PFAS limits miss long-term risks

Questions about toxic PFAS emissions are once again sharpening a long-running dispute over a Minneapolis incinerator, as environmental advocates say current federal rules may not fully capture the dangers to nearby communities already bearing heavy pollution burdens.

At the center of the fight is the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center, or HERC, a waste-to-energy facility in downtown Minneapolis that processes about 365,000 tons of trash each year, The Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder reported. 

What happened?

Advocates argue the core issue is whether HERC's permits and the federal oversight behind them are strong enough to protect people living nearby, especially residents of North Minneapolis. 

The controversy is also playing out alongside a lawsuit in which youth plaintiffs and environmental groups are challenging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency over rollbacks to emissions protections.

A review commissioned by the Zero Burn Coalition contends that PFAS from the plant may not be fully captured by current facility-level monitoring and regulation. PFAS, often called "chemicals forever," have been linked to cancer, immune-system effects, and developmental harm.

Former EPA risk assessor Doug Gurian-Sherman, who was involved in the analysis, told MSR the existing approach falls short.

"The permits that they are relying on were improperly set," he said. "They are not based on a full assessment of long-term health risks from residual pollution."

Hennepin County rejects that criticism and says the incinerator is operating within the law. Dave McNary, an assistant director in Hennepin County's Environment and Energy Department, said, "HERC is in full compliance with our current permits from both the EPA and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency."

Why does it matter?

Advocates argue that meeting permit requirements is not the same as proving a facility is harmless, particularly for residents who live for years near several pollution sources at once.

They say weaker federal standards, together with incomplete PFAS monitoring, could leave families facing risks that still have not been fully measured.

Those warnings are especially pointed in neighborhoods that have long carried unequal environmental burdens. Nazir Khan, a Zero Burn Coalition organizer, told MSR, "We're talking about communities that have experienced decades of environmental racism and cumulative harm. People living near HERC are dealing with multiple pollution sources at once."

County officials say HERC is still expected to close eventually under Hennepin County's Zero Waste Plan, but they also argue that shutting it down too quickly could push more waste into landfills and create other problems.

What are people saying?

Opponents of the plant say the science on burning PFAS is still unsettled.

Gurian-Sherman was direct: "To conclude that emissions are safe is scientifically unjustified."

Stephani Booker, a Zero Burn Coalition organizer who lives about a mile from the facility, told MSR, "People hear 'forever chemicals,' and they understand that these compounds don't just disappear. Residents want accountability and transparency about what's being released into the air."

Khan said the dispute is about more than a single incinerator.

"This is bigger than one incinerator," he said. "The question is whether communities should continue being asked to accept pollution that newer science increasingly shows may not be safe."

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