# Oakdale Disposal Site *A former industrial waste disposal site in Oakdale, Minnesota, named in the State's PFAS complaint against 3M.* The **Oakdale Disposal Site** is a former industrial waste disposal site in [[Oakdale]], [[Minnesota]]. The State's site fact sheet, published under the 3M settlement, records that liquid and solid industrial waste was disposed of there from 1940 to 1960. It also records that 3M disposed of waste at the site from 1956 to 1960.[^1] The site is one of four named in *State of Minnesota v. 3M Company*. The State filed that complaint in [[Hennepin County District Court]] as No. 27-CV-10-28862, suing as trustee under Minn. Stat. § 115B.04.[^2][^3] The documents set two dates against each other. In June 1980 the State's regulator, the MPCA, wrote to 3M asking which 3M wastes had been disposed at the site.[^4] According to the [[Minnesota Department of Health]], 3M disclosed the site to the MPCA as a PFAS disposal location in 2002–2004.[^5] ## Where The site is in Oakdale, Minnesota.[^1] The State's complaint against 3M names four sites:[^2] - 3M [[Cottage Grove]]; - the 3M Oakdale Disposal Site; - the 3M [[Woodbury]] Disposal Site; - the [[Washington County Landfill]] in [[Lake Elmo]]. The complaint concerns four chemicals: PFOA, PFOS, PFBA and PFBS.[^2] ## When - **1940–1960:** According to the fact sheet, the site took liquid and solid industrial waste. This included drums, containers, bulk solvents, tapes, plastics and resins, which were "buried in trenches, dumped on the ground, and burned."[^1] - **1956–1960:** 3M disposed of waste at the site.[^1] - **1980:** Volatile organic compounds were detected in groundwater.[^1] - **June 1980:** The MPCA wrote to 3M. It asked for a detailed breakdown of the 3M wastes that were, or were likely, disposed at the Oakdale dumpsite. The letter is trial exhibit PTX1232 in the State's case.[^4] - **September 1982:** 3M's own excavation tests revealed buried drum stockpiles at the site.[^1] - **2002–2004:** 3M disclosed PFAS disposal locations to the MPCA, according to the Department of Health. The disclosure listed "the former Washington county Landfill, the 3M-Woodbury Disposal Site, and the 3M-Oakdale Disposal Site."[^5] - **January 1, 2025:** Minn. Stat. § 116.943 took effect. It bans intentionally added PFAS in eleven product categories.[^6] - **2032:** Under the same statute, the ban extends to all products with intentionally added PFAS, except "currently unavoidable uses."[^6] ## In the at-issue record The at-issue record carries three entries on the site. The first rests on the State's fact sheet. It covers the 1940–1960 disposal period, 3M's disposal from 1956 to 1960, the 1980 groundwater detection, and the 1982 excavation findings.[^1] The second rests on exhibit PTX1232. The exhibit places the MPCA's written request to 3M in June 1980.[^4] The Department of Health dates 3M's disclosure of the PFAS disposal locations, including this site, to 2002–2004.[^5] The third concerns Minn. Stat. § 116.943, which the at-issue record calls [[Amara's Law]]. The law is named for [[Amara Strande]] of Oakdale, a Washington County teenager who was diagnosed with a rare liver cancer at seventeen.[^6] ## Notes [^1]: State of Minnesota, 3M Settlement, *Oakdale Disposal Site Fact Sheet* (n.d.) — disposal history 1940–1960, 3M disposal 1956–1960, 1980 groundwater VOC detection, September 1982 excavation findings. https://3msettlement.state.mn.us/sites/3msettlement/files/2024-01/Oakdale%20Disposal%20Site%20Fact%20Sheet.pdf [^2]: Hennepin County District Court, *State of Minnesota v. 3M Company*, Complaint, No. 27-CV-10-28862 — six counts, the State suing as trustee under Minn. Stat. § 115B.04, four sites including the 3M Oakdale Disposal Site, and four chemicals. https://www.ag.state.mn.us/Office/Cases/3M/docs/Complaint.pdf [^3]: Minnesota Attorney General, *State of Minnesota v. 3M* case page (n.d.) — index of the State's case filings and exhibits. https://www.ag.state.mn.us/Office/Cases/3M/ [^4]: Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, *Exhibit PTX1232* (June 1980) — request to 3M for a detailed breakdown of 3M wastes disposed at the Oakdale dumpsite. https://www.ag.state.mn.us/Office/Cases/3M/docs/PTX/PTX1232.pdf [^5]: Minnesota Department of Health, *History of MDH PFAS Activities* (n.d.) — 3M's 2002–2004 disclosure to the MPCA of PFAS disposal locations, including the 3M-Oakdale Disposal Site. https://www.health.state.mn.us/communities/environment/hazardous/topics/history.html [^6]: Minnesota Revisor of Statutes, *Minn. Stat. § 116.943* (current) — ban on intentionally added PFAS in eleven product categories effective January 1, 2025, and on all such products in 2032 except currently unavoidable uses. https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/116.943