St. Anthony: Electronics recycler gets whacked by state pollution authority

Materials Processing of Mendota Heights, a big collector of electronic waste, this month agreed to a $125,000 fine by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) for improperly storing 5 million pounds of crushed cathode ray tubes in 2013-14.

The glass-and-lead tubes from TVs and computers dating back to the 1960s were stored in 128 semitrailers at several sites around the Twin Cities without permission of MPCA or without a waste-contingency plan. This is the largest sanction since Minnesota changed its law in 2007 to require reuse, recycling or proper disposal of 70 million tons or so annually of consumer-and-office electronics.

Tod Eckberg, MPCA state program administrator for electronic waste, said a tipster put MPCA on to the situation and that Materials Processing cooperated and sent the material to a hazardous-materials storage facility in Illinois last year, after talks with MPCA.

"They should have contacted us if they were in a pinch, and we would have figured something out," Eckberg said. "The risk is that the trailers weren't secure and there was potential for releases and spills when nobody is keeping an eye on this.

"After we found out about this, we told [Materials Processing] that we needed to locate, inspect, document violations and move forward with enforcement. We send it to a recycler or hazardous waste landfill."

Materials Processing President David Kutoff said last week: "We've dealt with it and moved on. At no time was there a member of the public or the environment at risk. We worked with MPCA to make sure things were taken care of properly."

Kutoff said he was holding the inventory pending results of tests with a smelter operator to extract the lead from the glass through a process they hoped would make the embedded components easier and more valuable to recycle.

Several Twin Cities-area recyclers of electronic junk have folded or closed local operations in recent months as a result of declining prices for commodities yielded from the recycling process, while others have picked up market share in a down market.

Kutoff said Materials Processing is stable and has grown from 17 employees in 2007 to 75 today.

Step-Up program connects with business pros

More than 1,600 job-hungry Minneapolis teenagers in the Achieve Step-Up internship program learned how to interview, thanks to 400 Twin Cities business professionals, over four nights earlier this month at the Minneapolis Convention Center.

"The Step-Up program is one of the top initiatives in the country for preparing students for tomorrow's jobs," said Todd Klingel, CEO of the Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce. "By participating in the mock interview process, you are not only providing a wonderful service to some incredibly courageous young people, you also ensure a bright future for our entire community."

Earlier in April, 50 Step-Up participants spent a day with technology geeks and entrepreneurs at CoCo, the former Minneapolis Grain Exchange trading floor that has become an innovation center for many tiny companies.

Step-Up, started in 2002 by then-Mayor R.T. Rybak and key public and private partners, has created 20,000-plus internships for Minneapolis students. The program is administered by AchieveMpls, the nonprofit support organization for the schools that works with business and nonprofits to provide training and work, particularly for low-income and minority kids.

A new administrative judge has been assigned to review the route of Enbridge Energy's proposed $2.6 billion Sandpiper crude oil pipeline across northern Minnesota.

Judge James E. LaFave will hear public testimony and evidence about the proposed route, replacing Judge Eric Lipman. Earlier this month, Lipman issued findings that the pipeline is needed, and rejected environmental groups' arguments against it.

Tammy Pust, chief judge of the Office of Administrative Hearings, said the switch was strictly a scheduling matter. Administrative judges work on cases across state government, and Lipman was needed for a special education hearing in early May, she said.

Assigning that job to LaFave, who will be available in the future, keeps "current cases moving in a just and impartial manner," Pust told the Star Tribune.

David Shaffer

Job prospects and salaries are improving for college graduates, according to CareerBuilder.

Sixty-five percent of employers plan to hire 2015 graduates, up from 57 percent last year, the best outlook since 2007. One third will offer higher pay, and 25 percent of the jobs will fetch at least $50,000.

Rosemary Haefner, CareerBuilder's chief HR officer, said challenges remain: "One in five employers feel colleges do not adequately prepare students with crucial workplace competencies, including soft skills and real-world experience … through things like internships. Job seekers with a good mix of both technical and soft skills will have the best prospects right out of college."

Land O'Lakes CEO Chris Policinski addressed the issue of sufficient food to feed a growing world at the "Feeding the Planet Summit" at George Washington University last week. Policinski, accompanied by several college interns who are engaged in researching the subject through Land O'Lakes, says feeding an additional 2 billion people by 2050 means empowering a lot more tiny farmers in developing countries, and producing more elsewhere with less energy, water and environmental impact.