MADDIE ROBINSON, SHAY SCANLAN/MinnPost 兰道夫大道与谢泼德路在圣保罗密西西比河畔交汇，四周被仍服务于工业走廊的铁路轨道包围。越过路口，临近河岸处，一张蜿蜒的土路网和搭建的帐篷形成了一个临时聚居地——圣保罗最大的露营地——数百名无固定住所者在此栖身。
MADDIE ROBINSON, SHAY SCANLAN/MinnPost Randolph Avenue meets Shepard Road in St. Paul near the banks of the Mississippi River, hemmed in by railroad tracks still serving the industrial corridor. Beyond the intersection, nearing the river, a winding network of dirt paths and pitched tents have become a makeshift neighborhood – St. Paul’s largest encampment – for hundreds of people without permanent shelter.
现场张贴着明尼苏达州污染控制局（MPCA）的“禁止闯入”标牌，许多已被涂鸦破坏，警告土壤中含有铅、砷、汞等剧毒物质混合物。标牌称污染程度极高，该区域被列为明尼苏达州永久环境优先场地之一。
Posted around the site are Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) “no trespassing” signs, many of them defaced by graffiti, warning of a stew of toxins in the soil, including lead, arsenic and mercury. The levels are so high, the signs say, that the area is listed as one of Minnesota’s permanent environmental priority sites.
明尼苏达州污染控制局多年来持续追踪毒素情况，并将现为露营地的区域认定为州超级基金场地，意味着其有资格获得州政府资助的清理资金。（该场地并非联邦指定的超级基金场地。）但尽管该局在预算申请中纳入了清理资金，却被州议员以优先级更高的项目为由驳回。
The MPCA has tracked the toxins for years and has labeled the area that is now home to the encampment as a state superfund site , meaning it is eligible for state-funded cleanup. (The site is not a federally-designated Superfund Site .) But while the agency has included cleanup funds in its budget requests, they’ve been turned down by state lawmakers in favor of higher-priority projects.
该场地已成为一场“完美风暴”——本不供人类居住的土地，却成了自称无处可去者的栖身之所。而在圣保罗市和拉姆西县当局纠结如何、何时为居住在此的无家可归者安置新居之际，健康影响与日俱增。
The site has become a perfect storm – land never intended for human habitation has become a home for people who say they have no place else to go. And as St. Paul and Ramsey County authorities wrestle with how and when to rehouse the homeless individuals who live there, the health impacts mount.
土地所有权情况模糊，尤其是考虑到露营地没有具体边界。明尼苏达州污染控制局2022年的一份评估显示，至少部分土地属于圣保罗市公园用地和公共通行权范围。相邻地块则分别归Xcel Energy（卓越能源）和联合太平洋铁路公司所有。
Ownership of the land is murky, especially given that the encampment has no specific boundaries. An MPCA assessment from 2022 shows that at least part of the land is City of St. Paul parkland and public right-of-way. Adjacent portions are owned by Xcel Energy and Union Pacific Railroad.
同一评估报告称，1968年至1989年间，该区域曾是一处汽车拆解场，其经营者用混合了沥青、玻璃、木材和塑料等材料的土壤回填土地，以抬高地面防止洪水淹没。
The same assessment reports that from 1968-1989, the area was an automobile salvage yard whose operator filled the land with soil mixed with materials like asphalt, glass, wood and plastic in order to raise the ground level to prevent flooding.
除了在深达16英尺的地下发现烧焦的汽车零件、建筑废料和电池外壳碎片外，明尼苏达州污染控制局（MPCA）在2010年代初进行的检测还确定了铅和致癌化学物质的热点区域。
Along with charred automobile parts, construction debris and battery casing fragments found on the site as deep as 16 feet underground, MPCA testing done in the early 2010s identified lead and carcinogenic chemical hotspots.
MinnPost于9月下旬在伦道夫营地采集了三份土壤样本，并将其送往明尼苏达大学生物学研究员Emilie Snell-Rood处，她共同领导一个实验室，研究城市污染物如何在双子城地区迁移。
MinnPost gathered three soil samples at the Randolph encampment in late September and sent them to University of Minnesota biology researcher Emilie Snell-Rood, who co-leads a lab studying how urban contaminants move through the Twin Cities.
在这三份样本中，一份采自营地边缘，未显示铅含量升高；另一份采自主要通道，铅含量为355 ppm（百万分率）。Snell-Rood表示，长期暴露于任何高于200 ppm的水平都被视为健康风险。
Of the three samples, one collected on the outskirts of the encampment did not show elevated lead levels and another, collected on a main pathway, showed lead levels at 355 parts per million (ppm). Chronic exposure to any level above 200 ppm is considered a health risk, Snell-Rood said.
第三份样本采自营地中心附近，一些居民已在此生活多年，铅含量高达646 ppm，远超安全阈值的三倍。美国环境保护署（EPA）建议，当铅含量超过600 ppm时，应移除居住区的土壤。
The third sample, taken near the center of the encampment where some residents have lived for years, showed lead levels of 646 ppm, well over triple the safety threshold. At anything above 600 ppm, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recommends the removal of soil from residential areas.
Snell-Rood表示，她对每天与土壤接触的人群“非常担忧”。她说：“如果存在裸露土壤，人们在上面行走并产生粉尘并吸入，或者坐在地上接触土壤，沾到手上或进入口中，这些都是我担心的暴露途径。”
Snell-Rood said she would be “very concerned” for people with daily interactions with the soil. “If there is exposed soil and people are walking on it and it gets dusty and they inhale that, or they’re sitting on the ground and touching it, and it gets on their hands or it gets in their mouth, those would be the exposure routes I would worry about,” she said.
铅带来的健康风险取决于个人年龄、铅的吸收方式以及暴露时长等因素。Snell-Rood表示，长期暴露会导致人体将铅误认为钙并将其储存在骨骼中。这可能引发认知、执行功能、心血管和神经系统等多方面的严重问题。
The health risks posed by lead depend on factors such as a person’s age, how the lead is absorbed and how long a person is exposed. Snell-Rood said with long-term exposure, the human body can confuse lead with calcium and store it in the bones. This can lead to multiple serious issues with cognition, executive function, the cardiovascular and nervous systems and more.
铅对孕妇的危害尤为严重，因为它可进入血液并到达胎儿体内，增加流产、早产和发育并发症的风险。在兰道夫营地几乎每天做志愿者的互助工作者瓦妮莎·罗哈斯说，她知道目前有六名孕妇住在该营地。
Lead is particularly harmful to pregnant women, as it can enter the bloodstream and reach the fetus, increasing the likelihood for miscarriage, premature birth and developmental complications. Vanessa Rojas, a mutual aid worker who volunteers almost every day at the Randolph encampment, said she knows of six pregnant women currently living at the site.
罗哈斯探访该营地已有一年左右，目前正在联合创办一家专注于无家可归者外展服务的非营利组织。她估计，在圣保罗官员于8月初清理“猪眼”营地之前，兰道夫营地约有50名居民。罗哈斯说，许多被迫离开的人搬到了兰道夫，使人口增至400多人。
Rojas, who has been visiting the encampment for about a year and is currently co-founding a nonprofit focused on homeless outreach, estimates about 50 residents were living at Randolph before St. Paul officials cleared the Pig’s Eye encampment in early August. Many of the people forced out moved to Randolph, bringing the population to over 400 people, Rojas said.
圣保罗方面给出的估计相对保守，称任何时候约有150至200名居民，但市政府发言人马特·瓦格尼厄斯在10月23日致《明尼波斯特》的电子邮件中表示，现场市政府外展团队正在与约330名居民进行“追踪工作”。
St. Paul has offered more conservative estimates of about 150 to 200 residents at any given time, but city spokesperson Matt Wagenius said in an email to MinnPost on Oct. 23 that the onsite city outreach team is “tracking work” with about 330 residents.
罗哈斯说，“猪眼”营地清理后，涌入的新来者拖着行李、搭建帐篷，扬起尘土并将深层土壤带到地表，导致居民提出更多健康相关担忧。
Following the clearing of Pig’s Eye, the influx of newcomers carting their belongings and pitching tents kicked up dirt and brought deeper soils to the surface, Rojas said, leading residents to voice more health-related concerns.
丹·坎贝尔在兰道夫营地断断续续住了约15年。人称“路易吉”的他比任何人都熟悉该地区，罗哈斯和其他志愿者说，他赢得了其他居民的尊重。
Dan Campbell has lived at Randolph on and off for about 15 years. Known as “Luigi,” he is more familiar with the area than anybody, Rojas and other volunteers said, and has earned the respect of fellow residents.
坎贝尔需要做背部手术和髋关节置换，但他将呼吸系统恶化、双腿双脚肿胀以及因碎片和刺激物受伤归咎于受污染的土地。
Campbell needs back surgery and a hip replacement, but he blames the polluted land for contributing to his worsening respiratory system, swollen legs and feet injured by debris and irritants.
“我的狗总舔它们的脚，”坎贝尔说，“它们也出了问题，也是因为土壤。”另一位居民蒂法尼·韦伯在兰道夫营地断断续续住了10年。她告诉《明尼波斯特》，她回忆起多次躺在地上后呕吐——她认为这可能与土壤健康状况有关。
“My dog’s constantly licking their feet,” Campbell said. “Got something going on with them because of the soil, too.”Tiffany Weber, another resident, has lived at the Randolph encampment on and off for 10 years. She told MinnPost she recalls several instances of vomiting after lying on the ground – a symptom she thinks could have to do with the soil health.
她对市政府和州政府官员表达了深深的不信任，称他们对居住在受污染土地上的人们视而不见，却几乎未采取任何措施减轻环境危害。“他们知道这会让我们生病，甚至可能要了我们的命，”韦伯说。
She expressed deep distrust of city and state officials, whom she said have turned a blind eye to people living on the polluted land while doing little to mitigate the environmental dangers. “They know that it’s gonna make us sick or perhaps kill us,” Weber said.
圣保罗市和拉姆西县官员予以反驳，指出明尼苏达州污染控制局（MPCA）的警示标志已张贴在整个区域，外展工作人员也定期在现场，帮助居民联系可用资源。
St. Paul and Ramsey County officials pushed back, pointing out that MPCA’s warning signs are posted throughout the area and outreach workers have been onsite regularly connecting residents with available resources.
当被问及污染问题时，拉姆西县发言人卡斯珀·希尔通过电子邮件表示，该县知晓污染情况，并已“针对土壤污染担忧，为在现场工作的员工实施了安全规程”，同时“专注于将营地居民与福利、服务及其他资源联系起来，以改善他们的福祉，并帮助他们离开营地，进入收容所和住房。”瓦格尼厄斯在给《明尼苏达邮报》（MinnPost）的电子邮件中表示，市政府外展工作人员“几乎每天”都在现场分发水、食物和其他基本必需品，以及毒品检测试纸、伤口护理包等健康用品。
When asked about the contamination, Ramsey County spokesperson Casper Hill said via email the county knows about the pollution and has “implemented safety protocols for staff working onsite related to concerns about soil contamination,” as well as “focused on connecting encampment residents to benefits, services, and other resources that can improve their wellbeing and help get them out of the encampment and into shelter and housing.”Wagenius said in an email to MinnPost that city outreach staff are onsite “nearly every day” distributing water, food and other basic necessities, as well as health supplies like drug testing strips and wound care kits.
他补充说，现场团队还帮助居民申请食品和现金援助项目，如补充营养援助计划（SNAP），进行住房评估，并协助清除通缉令。
He added the onsite teams also help residents get approved for food and cash assistance programs, like Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), perform housing assessments and assist with clearing warrants.
瓦格尼厄斯说，由于土壤状况，市政府外展工作人员在兰道夫工作时被鼓励佩戴口罩、一次性鞋套等防护装备。
City outreach staff are encouraged to wear protective gear such as face masks and disposable shoe coverings when at Randolph due to the soil conditions, Wagenius said.
“该土地上的污染是我们敦促人们使用收容所空间而不是搬到这一地点的主要原因，”这封电子邮件称。“在营地形成之前，明尼苏达州污染控制局已在该场地周围张贴了警示标志。”尽管近几个月人数激增，但证据显示人们已在兰道夫居住多年。一份发送给明尼苏达州污染控制局水文地质学家的2014年明尼苏达州卫生部健康评估指出，当年5月下旬实地考察期间，该地产上搭建了一个大帐篷。
“The contamination on this land is a main reason we urged people to use shelter space rather than move to this location,” the email said. “The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency posted warning signs around the site before the encampment formed.”Though numbers have swelled in recent months, evidence shows people have lived at Randolph for years. A 2014 Minnesota Department of Health health assessment sent to an MPCA hydrogeologist noted that a large tent was set up on the property during a site visit in late May of that year.
“…… 可能有人住在那里，而不仅仅是露宿一晚。没有标志提醒人们注意污染，也没有标志或围栏劝阻人们进入该地产，”2014年的信件陈述称。
“… It is possible that a person(s) may be living there rather than just camping for the night. There was no signage to alert people to the contamination, nor was there signage or fencing to encourage people to stay off of the property,” the 2014 letter stated.
圣保罗市在被问及何时知晓有人在该场地居住时，拒绝进一步置评。
The City of St. Paul declined to comment further when asked when they became aware of people living at the site.
根据明尼苏达州污染控制局记录，该场地自1992年起被列为州超级基金场地，此前圣保罗市通过税务没收取得了该地产。根据州法律，污染者须支付清理费用。但当污染者不愿配合或已不存在时（如兰道夫场地的情况），州政府可动用“修复基金”支付清理费用。圣保罗市还有其他七个场地在同一“永久优先”名单上，包括曾容纳前一个营地的猪眼垃圾填埋场。
The site has been listed as a state superfund site since 1992 , according to MPCA records, following its acquisition by the City of St. Paul through tax forfeiture. Under state law, polluters are required to pay for cleanup. But when, as at Randolph, the polluter is unwilling to cooperate or no longer exists, the state has access to a “remediation fund” to cover cleanup costs. Seven other St. Paul sites are on the same “permanent priority” list, including the Pig’s Eye Landfill which was home to the previous encampment.
2016年，美国环保局的一项评估发现，兰道夫场地（正式名称为“圣保罗堤坝场地”）需要短期稳定化和清理。但自那以后，该场地基本未被处理，仅进行了土壤采样和地下水监测井安装。鲁伊特称，2022年的一项评估估计，包括挖掘受污染土壤在内的清理工作将耗资约400万美元。
In 2016, an EPA evaluation found that the Randolph site, officially called “St. Paul Levee Site,” needed short-term stabilization and cleanup. But the site has largely gone untouched since then aside from soil sample collections and the installation of groundwater monitoring wells. A 2022 assessment estimated that cleanup, including excavating the tainted soil, would cost about $4 million, Ruiter said.
该州的修复基金规模可观但并非无限：根据该机构批准的两年期预算，2022年明尼苏达州污染控制局（MPCA）在修复项目上的支出略超5900万美元。这一数字在2024年跃升至逾1.11亿美元，而2027年批准的预算约为1.64亿美元。其他规模较小的基金也被用于各类土地清理工作。鲁伊特表示，MPCA根据项目对人类健康和环境的风险程度来确定优先顺序。
The state’s remediation fund is sizable but not unlimited: In 2022, the MPCA spent just over $59 million on remediation projects, according to the agency’s enacted biennial budget . This jumped to over $111 million in 2024, and the enacted budget for 2027 is roughly $164 million. Other, smaller funds also are used for various land cleanup efforts. Ruiter said that MPCA prioritizes projects based on their risk to human health and the environment.
“谢泼德-兰道夫场地没有建筑物或饮用水水源，并设有标识警告人们因污染问题勿入。如果遵守警示，这会降低该场地的风险，”鲁伊特说。
“The site at Shepard and Randolph does not have buildings or drinking water sources and has signage to warn people to stay off the property due to contamination. If followed, this reduces the risk at the site,” Ruiter said.
除了修复基金，MPCA等机构还可通过立法机构的债券法案申请额外拨款。2024年，MPCA请求拨款700万美元，用于敲定“挖掘、稳定化和处理”该场地大部分土壤的方案。兰道夫营地的清理工作原定2025年启动、持续至2028年，但这笔资金未被纳入蒂姆·沃尔兹州长的推荐预算中。
In addition to the remediation fund, agencies like MPCA can request additional dollars through the Legislature’s bonding bills. In 2024, the MPCA requested $7 million to finalize plans to “excavate, stabilize, and treat” the majority of the soil at the site. Cleanup for the Randolph encampment would have begun in 2025 and continued through 2028, but the funds did not become part of Gov. Tim Walz’s recommended budget.
沃尔兹州长办公室未及时回应《明尼苏达邮报》（MinnPost）的置评请求。
Walz’s office did not respond in time to MinnPost’s request for comment.
参议员桑德拉·帕帕斯（Sandra Pappas，民主-农民-劳工党-圣保罗），立法机构资本投资委员会主席，其选区包含该营地区域。她表示，在“猪眼”营地关闭前，她并不知情有人居住在兰道夫大道，也不了解其土壤状况。
Sen. Sandra Pappas (DFL-St. Paul), who chairs the Legislature’s Capital Investment Committee and whose district includes the encampment area, said that prior to the closure of the Pig’s Eye encampment, she was not aware people were living at Randolph Ave., nor of its soil conditions.
她表示，立法者往往通过地方层面的倡导者获悉相关问题。例如，市级领导可能会向其辖区立法者陈述理由，争取将修复资金或清理资金纳入MPCA预算。随后，立法者会将该请求带入预算磋商和博弈中。帕帕斯说，就兰道夫大道场地而言，这一过程并未发生。
Oftentimes, she said, legislators learn of issues through advocates at the local level. City leaders, for example, might make a case to their legislators for remediation funding or cleanup funding included in the MPCA’s budget. Then, the legislators might take that request into budgetary discussions and dealings. In the case of the Randolph Ave. site, that didn’t happen, Pappas said.
“我当然没听他们说过，‘我们需要在这方面得到帮助。你能不能争取把钱投入整治基金？’”帕帕斯说。“这处房产可以说一直被忽视。”圣保罗市政府在被问及是否曾申请资金或为清理营地争取支持时，拒绝发表评论。
“I certainly haven’t heard from them that, ‘We need help with this. Can you advocate to put money in the remediation fund?’”Pappas said. “It’s been kind of a neglected property.”The City of St. Paul declined to comment when asked if they had requested funding or advocated for an encampment cleanup.
随着冬季临近，圣保罗市议会于10月21日讨论了该市应如何应对营地问题。他们一致通过了一项决议，确立对营地清理实施60天暂停，并确保现场设有“导航帐篷”以协助居民。该决议还制定了在冬季月份运营临时室内收容所的计划，以及设立单独的永久性室内收容所。
On Oct. 21, with winter fast approaching, the St. Paul City Council took up the question of how the city should respond to encampments. They unanimously passed a resolution to establish a 60-day pause on encampment closures and ensure a “navigation tent” onsite to assist residents. The resolution also established plans for a temporary, indoor shelter to operate during the winter months and a separate indoor, permanent shelter.
数十人出席市议会会议，主张延长暂停期限。市议员绍拉·约斯特称该决议是第一步。
Dozens of people showed up to the Council meeting to advocate for a longer pause. Councilmember Saura Jost called the Council’s resolution a first step.
“我们目前有数百名居民夜宿在受污染的土地上，而且我们知道，我们的首批响应人员的时间也被占用在前往同一地点的出警任务上，”约斯特说。“但我们市政府8月份的营地清理行动显然没有产生任何人所期望的结果……任务的艰巨性不能成为我们免除解决责任的借口。”
“We currently have hundreds of residents that are spending their nights sleeping on contaminated ground, and we know that our first responders’ time is also occupied with calls to that same site,” Jost said. “But our city’s encampment clearing in August plainly did not produce the results that anyone was hoping to see … The magnitude of this task does not excuse us from the responsibility of trying to solve it.”