American Crystal pays $25K pollution fine

American Crystal Sugar Company has paid a fine of nearly $25,000 and taken action to correct air pollution violations.

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency found the company's East Grand Forks sugar factory exceeded standards for fine particulate matter.

MPCA spokesman Dan Olson said the review also found monitoring equipment was not working and daily inspection records were missing.

"The reason those types of daily inspections are important is that they help facilities catch problems early before they perhaps cause excessive emissions," Olson said. "That's why it's important those daily inspections are done and also to make sure that they were recorded to prove that they were done."

In a statement, American Crystal said the company takes environmental stewardship seriously and worked with the MPCA to resolve the issues.