Emails Reveal County Staff Tracked Activists Opposing Local Waste Plant

Hennepin County officials quietly monitored environmental justice activists working to close a waste incinerator in Minneapolis, according to newly released emails. Advocacy groups obtained the messages through a Freedom of Information Act request. The documents show county staff gathered information on organizers to help defeat state legislation and anticipate protests.

The Zero Burn Coalition, the Minnesota Environmental Justice Table, and other groups published a report detailing the findings. They allege the county used an employee who was also an activist to gather intelligence. This person is Joe Vital, who served as the county's environmental engagement coordinator starting in 2021. He previously chaired the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Worker-Labor Party Native Peoples Caucus.

In June 2023, advocates held a public Zoom meeting to plan their next steps. Organizers typically screen attendees to check for industry or political opponents. County environmental department manager Angie Timmons saw the invitation and asked Vital to attend. He compiled a dossier on participants, including a state representative and a former city council member. The report says Vital went unnoticed during the screening process.

The information flowed to Rosemary Lavin, the director of the county's energy and environment department. Supervisors met to discuss the findings and report them to Lisa Cerney, a top public works official. Cerney has made public statements supporting the incinerator. A recording also shows Vital attempting to confirm the identity of a whistleblower during a conversation with MNEJT executive director Nazir Khan.

Vital did not respond to a request for comment. When activists confronted him, Khan said Vital claimed he was working for the group. Vital described the arrangement by saying, "You have to offer a pound of flesh to maintain inside the room." Khan said the group does not believe Vital is on their side.

Information from the county also reached industry leaders. In March 2024, county official David McNary forwarded organizing emails from advocates. McNary sits on the board of the Minnesota Resource Recovery Association. County employee Mallory Anderson had joined the advocates' email list without their knowledge. She sent the messages to McNary on March 12.

McNary wrote that he feared a community-backed bill could affect incinerator facilities and other industrial sites in the state. The bill would have allowed cities to phase out polluting land uses. The next day, McNary sent the emails to an industry attorney and Tim Steinbeck, president of the operator of the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center. Steinbeck called the bill "detrimental" and urged representatives to testify against it. The bill was defeated.

At a board meeting this week, Minneapolis organizer Audua Pugh asked county leaders why public resources were used to watch residents. She said the aging trash burner should have closed nearly a decade ago. The facility burns 365,000 tons of trash a year. Seven of the roughly 100 municipal or hazardous waste incinerators operating in the United States are located in Minnesota.

Hennepin County said in a statement that the allegations mischaracterize the county's community engagement work. A spokesperson called the actions "ordinary functions of government." The county, which employs 9,000 people, relies on individuals seen as part of the community to build relationships and pass information up the chain.