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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2013-10-09 PACKET 07. Environmental Commission City of Cottage Grove Wednesday, May 8, 2013 The Environmental Commission held a workshop at Cottage Grove City Hall, 12800 Ravine Parkway South, Cottage Grove, Minnesota, on May 8, 2013, in the Council Chambers. Attendees Members Present: Ryan Fleming, Rita Isker, Shauna Klug, Patrick Lynch, David Olson, Rosemary Palmer Members Absent: Karla Bigham, Thaddeus Owen Others Present: Jennifer Levitt, City Engineer Derrick Lehrke, City Councilmember Call to Order Acting Chair Olson opened the meeting at 7:00 p.m. Approval of Agenda Isker made a motion to approve the agenda. Palmer seconded. Motion passed unanimously (6-to-0 vote). Open Forum/Additional Agenda Items None New Business 5.1 Environmental Display – Review and Comment Levitt summarized the memorandum and displayed the updated versions of the environmental banners. Staff is looking for additional feedback prior to authorizing the banners’ production. Lynch suggested that the second bullet on the rain garden banner should have something more in line with the second bullet on the rain barrel banner where it says “70 percent of pollutants comes from stormwater runoff” and then we could say “rain gardens capture stormwater impounding the pollutants.” That second bullet does not follow the line of cleaning up water; it just says we use less water on rain gardens. Olson agreed with the suggestion. Levitt stated that there has been some discussion on the rain barrel banner, especially revolving around the heading; it does not stay consistent with the trend with the other two banners, so there was recommendation to change it to “Buy a rain barrel today; save money and lakes tomorrow.” Lynch stated on the “sip today, slide tomorrow” banner, he does not like the waffling between water bottles and milk cartons. He suggested the second bullet should say “playground equipment made from recycled materials includes bench slats, slides, etc.” and then “nationwide, millions of water bottles and milk cartons are deposited in landfills.” Levitt asked if the Commission does not like the intermixing of the images of water bottles and milk cartons but then having a statement about milk cartons. Olson stated that it does seem Environmental Commission May 8, 2013 Minutes Page 2 of 5 inconsistent. Fleming stated that the only comment that does not resonate with him is “start today, recycle more” and suggested “enriching tomorrow’s youth by recycling today.” Levitt stated that staff had similar comments regarding those statements as it does not portray a strong enough message. Olson asked if the banners would be ready by the Strawberry Festival. Levitt responded that she is hoping to have the final proof by Monday, approve that based upon these changes, and have it into production by Memorial Day. She has also approved the proof for the display table skirt. 5.2 GreenStep Cities – Presentation by Emily Schmitz Schmitz summarized the staff memorandum regarding the GreenStep Cities Inventory. She reported that the City of Cottage Grove is a Step 2 City and displayed the GreenStep Cities’ website to the Commission. She passed out information showing what the City needs to do to get to the next Step. Olson asked if there was anything the Commission could to do assist. Schmitz responded that she can provide ideas on how the City can continue to improve and different policies. Also helpful is communicating to the public what the City is doing. Olson asked how Council feels about this progress and is there anything additional Council would like from the Commission. Lehrke stated that since his tenure started, this has not been discussed. He stated that this sounds like something the City would just implement. Levitt stated that Schmitz could come back in the fall to outline which benchmarks have been achieved, talk about which ones are most achievable, and develop a work plan for those goals. That work plan could then be shared with the Council for their support and endorsement towards the next step in the GreenSteps City cycle. The Commission concurred. Levitt also noted that following the presentation of the second step award, staff will be publicizing this achievement. It was asked if a banner could be created for the booth at Strawberry Fest. Levitt responded that Strawberry Fest is the weekend prior to the award ceremony. She suggested putting together an informational piece showing the First Step cities and the Second Step cities and how Cottage Grove compares. 5.3 Industrial Facility Summary Assessment Jesse Carlson, WSB, summarized the memorandum in the packet, which provides an overview of the industrial permitting process to provide background on how it relates to the businesses in Cottage Grove. Levitt asked how 3M’s permit works because there are two benchmarks and they have six different sectors. Carlson responded all those different sectors they fall under have a list of parameters that need to be sampled for. 3M’s list of what they need to sample for is pretty large. He only listed the one they exceeded. They go to the benchmark monitoring locations to sample for the different parameters that are identified with that sector. The sample would be sent to a lab and analyzed for all those parameters at the same time. Olson asked how the Commission would know if an industrial facility needed a permit. Carlson stated that a knowledge and understanding of which facilities might need to have a permit. Appendix D in the memo identifies sectors of industrial activities that are authorized and identifies all the different industrial facilities. There are different 29 sectors. Levitt noted that Appendix C has the MPCA’s list of potentially unpermitted facilities, which are probably the Environmental Commission May 8, 2013 Minutes Page 3 of 5 ones Olson is interested in. Carlson stated that Appendix D identifies all the potential SIC codes. Olson stated that if they want help tracking them down, the Commission needs names and addresses. Carlson responded that part of the outreach effort is Appendix C. MPCA provided a list of potentially unpermitted facilities. Levitt asked if gas stations are exempt. Carlson stated that gas stations fall under a different category as their tanks have to be licensed but the gas stations themselves don’t need industrial permits. Levitt stated that it seems counterintuitive for a business with a fueling station needs to have an industrial permit but gas stations would not fall under that category. Carlson is not sure why gas stations don’t have to have an industrial permit. MPCA told him that gas stations are designed with canopies over the fueling area and typically the fueling area is supposed to be raised or constructed in a way that water is not supposed to be able to flow across that surface so it can’t mix with stormwater and discharge down the stream. Levitt stated that the group could look at the permitted list and figure out which businesses should be classified as an industrial facility and have to obtain this permit, such as Aggregate Industries, the tank farm, and transport hauler at the marshaling yards. Olson asked about municipalities. Carlson responded that because of the way the SIC code is written, they are not required to have one unless it is for a wastewater treatment plant. Golf courses are also not required to have one. Olson asked if the City should do it anyway. Levitt stated that, as part of the MS4 permit, the City is meeting many of the regulations that are outlined in this permit and we have our SWPPD on file. Carlson agreed. Palmer asked about areas that are being developed and graded, such as Walmart. Levitt responded that they have an MPDS permit for their site and a SWPPD on site, so someone who is monitoring that. The City, as the local unit of government, is also inspecting the site to ensure they are in compliance with their MPDS permit and that the SWPPD is being adhered to. Any site over one acre of disturbance has an NPEES permit. She described the inspection process. Lynch asked if the permit process is in a constant cycle of modifying and sampling or is it a five-year permit that starts over again. Carlson responded that it is a five-year permit cycle. This industrial permit expires in 2015. In year five they would have to make modifications to their site, but the new permit will spell out the new requirements for facilities that did not meet the threshold and timeframe. The new permit typically is a little more stringent. Lynch asked if they expect another gap between permits. Carlson responded that is always possible. Olson asked if the City would have exposure from facilities that are illicitly discharging and what are the penalties. Carlson stated that there is no language in the current MS4 permit that specifically states that cities need to regulate industrial permittees, so currently there is no exposure. The new draft permit also does not have that language but it will require prioritizing, identifying, and tracking illicit discharges. Levitt stated that staff is bringing this to the Commission because the City is interested in working to identify other businesses in the community as an incremental step as permit regulations may tighten in the future. Staff is looking for a recommendation from the Commission on whether this is a worthy goal to work towards. Environmental Commission May 8, 2013 Minutes Page 4 of 5 Palmer asked how the sampling is done and how the locations are selected. Carlson explained the process. He also discussed ways to search for sites that need to get an industrial permit. The Commission believes that outreach is necessary. There was a question about enforcement for those don’t apply for the industrial permit or don’t comply. Carlson described the MPCA’s enforcement policy, which includes escalating fines. Levitt stated this report was a starting point to make the Commission aware of the situation. She asked for feedback on if the city should send first send out education material to inform businesses of the permitting process. There was a question about how to handle a new business versus an existing business. Levitt responded that would require some research. Palmer expressed concern about possibly driving businesses out of the city. It was noted that the permitting system is statewide. Olson asked if it is the City’s responsibility to determine if a business should have a permit. Levitt stated that the first step is to educate businesses about this issue. Olson asked if the Commission could receive a copy of the letter that is sent out to the businesses. Palmer asked what the timeframe is for businesses to make changes so they are within the limits. Carlson responded about a year to make changes. Palmer asked for an update on the businesses that are currently not in compliance. Lynch asked if this would help the City reach Step 3 in the GreenStep Cities Program. Schmitz will check to see if that is covered. 5.4 Strawberry Festival – Environmental Commission Booth Discussion Levitt reported that the Environmental Commission will have a booth at the Strawberry Festival on Saturday, June 15, from at 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. It will be a 10-foot by 10-foot tent with three sides that could be dropped if the weather is poor. Inside would be the three banners and an eight-foot table to hold items to give away including color books, wrist bands, recyclable bags, pencils, and hacky sacks. She asked if there are other handouts or pieces of information that the Commission wants to have available at the booth. Lynch suggested having a handout on installing rain gardens and how to apply for a grant to do so. He asked about offering rain barrels at a discounted price. Levitt stated that has been done in conjunction with Arbor Day and the Public Works Open House. She will send out an email asking for volunteers to staff the booth throughout the day. She stated that staff would set up and take down the display and asked that there be two Commissioners working each shift. Introductions Olson welcomed the two new members to the Environmental Commission, Ryan Fleming and Shauna Klug. They both provided background information on themselves. Levitt offered a proposed schedule for the next four meetings: the June meeting is the Strawberry Fest event, the July meeting would be cancelled, going on a tour in August, and in September it will be the joint meeting with other Environmental Commissions in Washington County. The Commission agreed with the proposed schedule. Approval of March 13, 2013 Environmental Commission Minutes Isker made a motion to approve the minutes of the March 13, 2013, Environmental Commission meeting. Palmer seconded. Motion passed unanimously (6-to-0 vote). Environmental Commission May 8, 2013 Minutes Page 5 of 5 Reports City Council Update Lehrke stated that if any of the Commissioners have questions regarding anything on the City Council agendas, which are included in the packet, to give him a call or email or ask him questions at Commission meetings. He highlighted that there will be a bike park in the West Draw under the utility lines, which was started by an outside group who will do most of the maintenance. Olson asked that the Council agendas continue to be sent to the Commissioners during the hiatus in the meeting schedule. Response to Commission Inquiries None Environmental Commission Comments and Requests Isker asked where prescriptions drugs are being collected. Levitt responded that they can be dropped off at the Washington County South Service Center, 13000 Ravine Parkway. It was suggested that information on that program be included as a handout during Strawberry Fest. Palmer suggested providing a hand out encouraging people to take action on the topics noted on the banners, such as how to plant a rain garden, where to find rain barrels, and general recycling information. Adjourn Lynch made a motion to adjourn. Fleming seconded. The motion passed unanimously, and the meeting adjourned at 8:28 p.m.