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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010-08-04 MINUTES (SPECIAL MEETING) COTTAGE GROVE CITY COUNCIL City of Cottage Grove, Minnesota Special Meeting August 4, 2010 CALL TO ORDER The Cottage Grove City Council of the City of Cottage Grove, Washington County, Minnesota, held a Special Meeting on August 4, 2010, at the Cottage Grove Junior High School, located at 8775 Indian Blvd South, Cottage Grove. Mayor Bailey called the meeting to order at 7:05 p.m. ROLL CALL Present: Mayor Myron Bailey, Council Member Jen Peterson, Council Member Pat Rice, Council Member Justin Olson, and Council Member Mark Grossklaus. Absent: None. Also present were: Ryan Schroeder, City Administrator; Caron Stransky, City Clerk; Robin Roland, Finance Director; Jennifer Levitt, City Engineer; Howard Blin, Community Development Director; and Corrine Heine, City Attorney-Kennedy & Graven. Mayor Bailey presided over the special meeting. 3M Incinerator Operations Mayor Bailey stated that on behalf of the Cottage Grove City Council, he welcomes everyone to this Special Meeting to provide members of the community an opportunity to ask questions regarding the 3M Corporate Incinerator. He stated his intent is to increase the public’s knowledge of the incinerator, history, and its impacts. Mayor Bailey stated that he, the City Council, and Staff, have been working with 3M for the past 18 months on their proposal to burn non-3M owned waste in their incinerator. He stated the City Council has tentatively reached an agreement with 3M on an air monitoring station for heavy metals, particulates, and volatile organic compounds. The air quality monitoring station would allow us to compare the air quality near 3M-Cottage Grove with the rest of the metro area. If air qualities do not meet MPCA or EPA standards, we would address that with the MPCA, Department of Health, 3M, and our consultants. Mayor Bailey introduced the following panel representatives:  Representing the City of Cottage Grove, our Environmental Consultant, Mr. Tom Henning from the SEH Engineering Firm. Cottage Grove City Council 2 August 4, 2010 Special Meeting  Corrine Heine, City Attorney, Kennedy & Graven Law Firm.  Mike Sandusky, Director of the Environmental Analysis and Outcomes, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.  Frank Kohlasch, Manager of Air Assessment and Environmental Data Management Section, of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. Mayor Bailey stated that on the table are index cards and pencils. He asked everyone who had a question, to write it on an index card, and he would address each question to the appropriate panelist. Mayor Bailey asked if there were any questions from the Council at this point. There being none, Mayor Bailey opened the meeting to receive questions and provide answers to the public. Question: What activities must 3M do to demonstrate they are complying with their air permit and operating the pollution control equipment? Tom Henning stated that under their air permit, 3M has a significant amount of recordkeeping and monitoring that is required. For example, they are required to monitor the temperature, the combustion temperature within the kiln itself. They monitor perimeters of their pollution control equipment such as pressure drop and power to the units to make sure they are operating at their optimal level. They also monitor the materials that are loaded into the incinerator. Question: If you cannot burn lead fuel in your car, why should 3M be allowed to burn lead fuel at a much larger scale? Frank Sandusky stated that the difference to note in the question is the 3M incinerator by design, operation and regulation is one of the most controlled point source emissions in the State of Minnesota. The lead constituent of gasoline has been removed so lead no longer is a measurable part of the makeup of gasoline. Question: If air monitoring a mile away is good, would not it make sense to put air monitors directly on the 3M incinerator stack so we know the source of the air monitor results. If not, how will we know whether 3M will take full responsibility? Tom Henning responded that the air monitors would be sited near the incinerator so that if there were impacts monitored, we would be able to assess where the sources would be. Again, the monitor would be located right at the property line of the 3M site. Question: Is there a benefit to having the monitor on the stack versus at the property line? Tom Henning stated that the monitor on the ground is more representative of what the public is being exposed to, so it is better to do the monitoring at ground level. Cottage Grove City Council 3 August 4, 2010 Special Meeting Question: Will the MPCA limit the scope of the permit modification to what was specifically requested by 3M? Mayor Bailey stated he will put the question aside and will have to follow-up on it. He stated that he knows from talking to the MPCA that because the permit is still going through the process, there are some items that have not been fully worked through yet. Question: Did the City consultants really come up with the 40,000 million BTU annual limit? If this is true, we request the basis and calculation used to establish this limit. Tom Henning responded that he did not propose this. He stated he thinks the basis for that actually came from limiting the number of trucks that would be associated with the permit change. The number is attributable to about 2 ½ to three (3) vehicles per day. Question: Can you summarize the results of incinerator evaluations? Tom Henning stated that they looked at past stack tests, emission tests that had been done at the facility and compared them to the permit limits and they passed all the tests. There was at one point, citizen concerns on how the incinerator and control equipment operated. They actually went on site and looked at their monitoring data back as far as five (5) years. We just picked random dates, and we found that the data showed that it was operated, as it should be, continually. Mayor Bailey advised the Council that should you have any questions, please let him know. Question: Please describe how the ambient monitoring near the 3M plant will work. Tom Henning stated that they would be testing for two (2) groups of chemicals, both metals, particulates (dust) and VOC's (solvents). The testing will be set up to parallel the testing the MPCA does throughout the State of Minnesota so that we can take those results and compare them to other parts of the State. The samples would be taken every 24-hour period so it would be representative of what people would be exposed of over a 24-hour period and the location will be adjacent to the 3M property. Question: Since the request to the MPCA was a permit modification to burn fuel grade regulated hazardous waste as a supplemental fuel, will the MPCA require 3M to produce their tanker receiving records and insert a process to follow so it is not only being used as a supplemental fuel and notification requirement requesting authorization if the limits and volume are going to be exceeded. Mike Sandusky stated that he thinks that is beyond the scope of what we are prepared to talk about tonight. Cottage Grove City Council 4 August 4, 2010 Special Meeting Question: What happens to the metals that are in the material sent to the incinerator – how about solvents and volatile organic compounds? Tom Henning stated that the metals that enter the incinerator, some of them would remain in the ash that is generated by the incinerator. Metals that enter the exhaust stream for the incinerator are controlled by several control devices that are downstream from the incinerator. There is a scrubber and a wet electrostatic precipitator to control those emissions. The VOC’s or solvents that enter are simply burnt. There is a primary chamber and a secondary chamber that is operated even hotter than the first chamber to make sure that there is complete combustion of that material. Question: Please tell us about the operation of the incinerator and the pollution control equipment associated with the incinerator. Tom Henning stated that there are two (2) chambers that actually burn the waste – a primary chamber that needs to be maintained at about 1,620 degrees Fahrenheit and a secondary chamber that is somewhat hotter than that. Then there is a quench chamber that is designed to cool the gas and then the exhaust goes through a scrubber and a wet electrostatic precipitator. Question: If 3M were a commercial incinerator, what additional regulations would they be required to adhere to? Tom Henning stated that 3M would be subject to the same regulations. Mayor Bailey stated he would set this question aside as something we will probably want to check into. Question: Today they are not a commercial incinerator and should the proposal go through, they are not planning on charging others to bring in hazardous waste, is this a way for 3M to get around the rules because 3M does not want to have to comply with more stringent regulations if they are considered a commercial incinerator. Tom Henning stated he thinks it is the same question. There is no advantage for 3M in that regard. The emission standards are the same. Question: Is the Minnesota Department of Transportation aware of this proposal and what concerns do they have regarding all of the additional hazardous waste being transported on our public roadways. Mayor Bailey stated that at any given time, there are numerous amounts of chemicals going through our community on trucks and trains and he would assume that the process would be the same for any of the trucks being monitored by the MNDOT. Cottage Grove City Council 5 August 4, 2010 Special Meeting Question: How much extra waste will be burned if they do end up burning here and where is the waste coming from. Tom Henning stated he assumes that is how much additional waste from solvents. In the agreement, the City has a limit on how much material that 3M could receive that is not 3M generated. As far as where they would get that from, he is not sure. Question: The need to address the amount of lead being released by 3M burner, we know there is no lead in gas today and if we were individuals using leaded gas, we would get a fine. Tom Henning stated this is the same question as before. Question: Based on the incremental increase to an additional tanker, is the City planning to put limits on outdoor fireplaces and/or lawn care equipment? Corrine Heine stated she that this question does not have anything to do with the 3M incinerator noting that this meeting was called to discuss only the incinerator. Question: The article that we put on the table, paragraph 3 says “The PFC’s may or does interfere and cause known cancers.” Mayor Bailey stated this is not the subject of this meeting. Question: How will 3M insure that the hazardous waste being brought in does not contain heavy metals and dioxins? Tom Henning stated that 3M has a protocol to do testing of all material that comes into the facility. As he understands it, 3M would be better to answer this question. They would have a better handle of what is in the material they receive. Question: Would air monitoring be affected by the turning of the compost pile near 3M? Tom Henning stated the compost site is pretty far and he would doubt it would have an impact on it. He stated that when we site it, we would look around to make sure there are no other emission sources that might affect the results. Question: If the incinerator were built to burn 3M's hazardous chemicals, would they be burning the same chemicals, and how would they know or monitor what comes in from the outside to be burned? Tom Henning stated that 3M tests all of the materials that come in and they would be required to do the same testing protocol on non-3M waste. Cottage Grove City Council 6 August 4, 2010 Special Meeting Question: What prevents some untrustworthy company from slipping something that will either cause an unexpected explosion or send out some real toxic chemicals that they cannot control. Are there some safety measures in place to monitor what comes in? Tom Henning stated that 3M would have to monitor all of the material that comes in and one of the parameters they test for is the heat content or BTU value. They would be careful not to overload the incinerator. Question: Why are we even considering allowing 3M to go beyond the original intent in accepting non-3M materials? Mayor Bailey stated from a City standpoint, he knows there is a lot of information that relates to what the intent of the original permit was many years ago. He stated that we have gone back through tons of Council meeting minutes and newspaper articles. We have interviewed two (2) former Council Members who were on the Council at the time that the original permit was approved and in none of these situations did we get any information to state that there was an intent that 3M was not allowed to burn anything but 3M waste. There is no record to show that there was any type of agreement between the City of Cottage Grove and 3M and that is part of the reason we are here today, is to work with 3M and to put something into place. Question: What safety procedure would be in place for transporting these hazardous chemicals if this permit expansion is allowed? Mike Sandusky state it is not really an air question but he knows for hazardous wastes there are strict regulations for storage, transportation, and handling of materials. The additional materials would be covered under the same regulations as the other they are already handling. Question: What emergency procedures will be place if there is a spill or an escape from the 3M premises? City Administrator Schroeder stated that as it relates to a public safety response, we train on emergencies that relate to catastrophic events that occur at plant sites, on the rail, and on the highway. Question: How will Cottage Grove and/or 3M monitor if the air station is shut off due to a power failure. Tom Henning stated that we would be visiting the ambient monitor regularly, so if there is a power failure, we will know about it quickly and we can recalibrate and reset the equipment to resume operation. Mayor Bailey stated he is assuming if something were to happen, is there a way to make sure nothing escapes. Tom Henning stated that under the air permit there are requirements for start Cottage Grove City Council 7 August 4, 2010 Special Meeting up and shut down malfunction activities and training requirements for their staff. 3M would be a better group to answer this question. Question: Do we know how much lead will be released from the incinerator? Tom Henning stated we know how much they are limited to and 3M is required to meet their permit requirements. Question: Why is 3M not here today and were they invited? Mayor Bailey responded that 3M was invited. It was 3M and the Coalitions decision not to participate in this meeting. Question: What role does the City Council take in listening to the results of the Decision Resources survey of Cottage Grove citizens? Council Member Grossklaus stated he is speaking only for himself and not on behalf of the Council and stated he takes all of the information from everyone, not just from one (1) group, and then makes a decision. Mayor Bailey commented over the past 18 months, that the City has met with 3M, our Legislative groups, created an Environmental Commission, and hired an independent consultant, to try to understand this process to the best of his ability. He stated he knows there has been a trust issue out there with the data, whether it is the data coming from 3M or the data from the MPCA, so that is why we opted to hire SEH or somebody that will be answer to and answer questions of the Council. He stated that we consider everything before we make any decision. Question: How many people have been employed in the 3M Cottage Grove plant and how many union members are working at the plant. Mayor Bailey stated these are two (2) questions unrelated to the topic. Frank Kohlasch stated that 3M will be participating in the public hearings that the MPCA will be holding and many, if not most of the question that have gone unanswered by the MPCA that relate to details about the permits and incinerator operation, will be answered and presented in great detail during the public meetings. Mayor Bailey read aloud the memorandum of understanding between 3M and the City of Cottage Grove. Question: Are F001, F002, F003, F005, and D001 the only waste codes allowed? Cottage Grove City Council 8 August 4, 2010 Special Meeting Tom Henning stated that those are the only waste codes that would be allowed for the non-3M wastes. Those were selected because they are bulk solvents, relatively clean burning solvents. P008 (lead) would not be allowed. Question: What happens to air quality after the three (3) years of monitoring is completed? Tom Henning stated that during the monitoring period, it should show the public exposure. Mayor Bailey asked if there are any other questions by anybody in the audience. He stated that there are some items that he put aside because they were not relevant to the incinerator. Mayor Bailey commented that he would have like to have had 3M attend this meeting but he cannot force them or the Citizens Coalition to be on the panel, it is their choice. He stated that as the MPCA representative stated earlier, 3M would be required to be at all of the upcoming MPCA meetings and respond to every question posed to them. Question: Do we have any of the dates for when these meetings are going to start taking place? Mike Sandusky stated that the public meetings would be held by the end of the year. Mayor Bailey stated that the City would make sure that through our publications, i.e. website, Facebook, and the official newspaper, that the information is published. Mr. Sandusky stated they have an extensive prodigal for notifying the public about all of these opportunities. Mayor Bailey stated he wants to make sure that everyone will have an opportunity to ask questions that might be very specific in nature that we cannot answer here this evening. Mike Sandusky committed to holding a public meeting in Cottage Grove. Mayor Bailey asked for confirmation that at the table will be 3M, MPCA, and the City Council will be present for that meeting as well. MOTION BY COUNCIL MEMBER GROSSKLAUS, SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER OLSEN, TO ADJOURN THE SPECIAL MEETING AT 8:04 P.M. MOTION CARRIED. 5-0. Prepared by, Caron M. Stransky City Clerk Cottage Grove City Council 9 August 4, 2010 Special Meeting