St. Paul, MN (KROC-AM News)- Minnesota businesses are being warned of a new environmental scam. 

See Also: Tornado Touchdown Confirmed in Southeast Minnesota 

The warning comes from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA), which says at least one business has been victimized by the scam

Officials say reports of the scheme, involving impersonations of a federal agency, are increasing nationwide. A news release issued by the MPCA calls it a phishing scam. 

Sasquatch 107.7 - The Rock of Rochester logo
Get our free mobile app

The scammer or scammers will send a fake letter via email or U.S. mail that appears to be from the Environment Protection Agency (EPA). 

The letter says the business has committed an environmental violation and demands a payment of thousands of dollars to settle the issue. 

President Trump's Budget Calls For Major Cuts To EPA
Getty Images
loading...

Officials say the letters are written with an urgent tone, includes the EPA’s logo and a case number and cites federal. 

The news release says the fake letters are often full of grammatical errors and include the email address nvoice@epa.services, which is an address that’s not associated with the federal agency. 

MPCA officials say so far they have not received any reports of scammers impersonating the state agency. 

MPCA Land and Air Compliance Section Manager says violation notices issued to businesses by the agency will not also include penalties and will not suddenly appear. 

The news release says businesses will have prior contact with the MPCA before being notified of a violation and penalty. 

More Minnesota News:

Ranking States with Most Online Scams

Here's a state-by-state look, using data available from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), ranking states by total amount of money lost to fraud.

Gallery Credit: Scott Clow

More From Sasquatch 107.7 - The Rock of Rochester