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12/18/2001 - 00010488CITY OF FRIDLEY ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY & ENERGY COMMISSION MEETING DECEMBER 18, 2001 CALL TO ORDER: Chairperson Johns called the December 18, 2001, meeting to order at 7:37 p.m. ROLL CALL: Members Present: Barb Johns, Jack Velin, Rich Svanda, Michelle Maher Members Absent: Pete Panchyshyn, Barbara Kovacic, Mary Gliniany Others Present: Julie Jones, Environmental Planner APPROVAL OF OCTOBER 16, 2001, ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY & ENERGY COMMISSION MINUTES: MOTION by Mr. Svanda, seconded by Mr. Velin, to approve the October 16, 2001, Environmental Quality & Energy Commission minutes. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON JOHNS DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Ms. Jones stated there was no November meeting due to a lack of a quorum; therefore, there were no November meeting minutes to approve. Prior to the start of the meeting, Mr. Velin and Ms. Jones announced that Pete Panchyshyn has been having difficulty attending the meetings due to his wife's and son's health. He has decided to resign from the Commission due to his needs as a caregiver. NEW BUSINESS: a. Discussion Regarding State Medical Waste Regulations Ms. Jones reported that the Mayor had suggested at the last meeting that the EQEC investigate the locating of a medical waste processing business in Fridley, Metro Safety Solutions, and determine if any City codes need to be adjusted regarding this type of operation. She clarified that the purpose of this discussion is not to prevent Metro Safety Solutions' medical waste processing operation from locating in Fridley, because it is an approved use for the property they have purchased, and there are no legal means for the City to prevent them from locating in Fridley. Metro Safety Solutions has obtained the required County and State permits. In an effort to learn more about the topic of inedical waste regulations, Ms. Jones stated she had invited someone from the MPCA to attend the meeting to explain State controls on this type of business. However, due to additional work tasks related to the September 11 attacks, the MPCA had to delay its appearance until after the first of the year. Ms. Johns voiced concern that the County will not do a thorough job of enforcing regulations regarding this industry, as they have seen happen at the scrap yards in Fridley. ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY & ENERGY COMMISSION MINUTES DECEMBER 18. 2001 PAGE 2 Ms. Jones explained that the business' license is up for renewal in June 2002. MOTION by Mr. Svanda, seconded by Mr. Velin, to obtain County inspection reports on this business as has been done with the scrap yards. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON JOHNS DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Ms. Jones questioned if the Commission still wants someone from the MPCA to come to the January meeting. The Commission members seemed to be in agreement to wait until after the business' license comes up for review in June and then determine if it is appropriate for an MPCA representative to address the Commission. Ms. Maher questioned if this type of business is one where other related businesses may want to locate next to it. Ms. Jones stated that the only related business would be hospitals and landfills, and they would not be able to locate nearby. b. Discussion Regarding Artificial Turf Grass Usage in Fridley Mr. Svanda felt that due to the high cost, he did not see artificial turf becoming an issue. Ms. Jones questioned how the Commission members felt about the product being used in City parks for high use areas. The Commission members decided to first wait and see if the use of artificial turf does become widely used. c. Discussion Regarding Rice Creek Watershed District Ms. Jones reported that she had consulted various people about the Rice Creek Watershed operations and had concluded that the best way for the EQEC to learn more about the operations of the RCWD would be to attend the Advisory Committee meetings. This group has not been fairly represented by Fridley in the past, so Fridley representation is needed. Ms. Johns asked if Advisory Committee minutes are available for the Commission to review. Ms. Jones stated she would check, but she suggested that Fridley seek representation at the meetings. Ms. Maher asked if the City could advertise for a representative on the Rice Creek Watershed District Advisory Committee. Ms. Jones stated she would pursue options on that. Ms. Jones questioned if the Commission wanted to continue to receive copies of the Rice Creek Watershed District Board meeting minutes since they are quite lengthy and difficult to understand. ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY & ENERGY COMMISSION MINUTES DECEMBER 18, 2001 PAGE 3 The Commission members agreed they would prefer not to receive the minutes. d. Discussion of Phosphorus Restrictions in Fertilizers Ms. Jones summarized that the City of Shorewood wants Fridley to support State legislation that would restrict a retailer's ability to sell lawn fertilizers that contain phosphorus in Minnesota. After hearing testimony at the Senate Environmental Protection Subcommittee hearing on November 14, she recommends that the Commission encourage the Fridley City Council to support the State legislation proposed. It is likely that Fridley will be joining the list of inetro area cities that have phosphorus bans in the near future due to work on the Springbrook Watershed project. Ms. Jones stated it was made clear at a recent State Capitol hearing that cities are unable to reach their goals of eliminating the use of phosphorus in lawn fertilizing, because the ordinances are impossible to enforce, and making phosphorus-free fertilizers available is a very difficult task for cities who cannot begin to compete with the millions of dollars large fertilizer manufacturers can spend on television advertising. Ms. Jones summarized the position of the University of Minnesota Extension Service regarding the proposed legislation, stating they are not opposed to the legislation, but are unsure of how much change it will affect on phosphorus levels in area bodies of water. Ms. Jones asked if any commission members have had their lawn soil tested to find out the current phosphorus content. None of the Commission members had sent in lawn soil to be tested yet. Ms. Maher questioned if the proposed legislation includes commercial lawn fertilizer applicators. Ms. Jones stated she would check on that. Ms. Jones was unsure what to recommended to Council regarding the exemption for organic lawn fertilizers from the legislation. It may be impossible to lower the phosphorus content in them. If the Commission wanted to encourage the City Council to support the State legislation restricting phosphorus content in lawn fertilizers, she encourage the Commission to act quickly because the legislative session opens next month. Mr. Svanda raised the issue that cities need to sweep the streets more frequently also to address the issue of leaves and other waste going into the storm sewer. Ms. Jones stated this would be a good time to make that recommendation. The Commission members decided to continue this discussion until the next meeting after staff finds answers to the commercial and organic fertilizer questions. e. Consideration of Proposed 2002 Meeting Schedule Ms. Jones requested the Commission to consider the proposed meeting schedule. She did not foresee any conflicts with holidays or other events. MOTION by Mr. Velin, seconded by Mr. Svanda, to approve the proposed 2002 meeting schedule. ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY & ENERGY COMMISSION MINUTES DECEMBER 18. 2001 PAGE 4 UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON JOHNS DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Explanation of New Your Eco Home Cable TV Program Ms. Jones explained that she has created a cable television series that gives residents environmental tips on various topics. A holiday version of the show is currently airing on Channel 17. The plan is to create a new show every other month. She plans to seek out ways for the Commission to be involved in this show when appropriate. One way would be to do a PSA recruiting new members. She suggested that if the program is successful, it would be good to make this the thing that the Commission would promote in the 2002 Fridley parade. She thought litter bags could be custom- printed with a message about when the program airs. She said she has been searching for plastic litter bags that contain post-consumer content plastic; however, she has found no such thing exists. She questioned the Commission if they still wanted to pursue distributing plastic litter bags in the parade since they would be handing out something that is not recyclable. The Commission members were in favor of ordering 12-inch plastic rulers in place of the litter bags. 2. OLD BUSINESS: a. Staff Update on Proposed Rewrite of Solid Waste & Recycling Code Ms. Jones reported that the City Council approved the second reading of the repeal and rewrite of Chapter 113 of City code on November 19. The new code was published in the local paper on November 28 and became effective December 14, 2001. Changes included in the code were summarized in the current issue of the City newsletter. Ms. Johns noted that Ace Sanitation is delivering 65-gallon refuse carts to its customers. b. Update on Springbrook Watershed Implementation Project Grant Applications Ms. Jones reported that four separate grant applications have been submitted for the Implementation Phase Springbrook Watershed Project. The City did not receive a federal WAG grant. The City's application for a McKnight Foundation environmental grant will be decided upon on December 21. The City has received an $88,807 grant from the Metropolitan Council for the project; however, nothing will happen with the project unless an MPCA grant is received, and all State grants are on hold indefinitely. Ms. Jones encouraged everyone to read this week's Star Tribune series on water quality, which included a section on Springbrook. c. Update on Manufactured Home Park Recycling Ms. Jones reported that she has conducted another recycling set-out survey at Fridley's two manufactured home parks. She reported that set out rates this fall were identical to findings last spring. As a result, she submitted an article to management of each location for inclusion in their next newsletters. Since she recently found out that there is a high number of Hispanic households at Fridley Terrace, she is also planning on submitting something to them in Spanish in a few months. ADJOURNMENT MOTION by Mr. Svanda, seconded by Ms. Maher, to adjourn the meeting. ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY & ENERGY COMMISSION MINUTES DECEMBER 18. 2001 PAGE 5 UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON JOHNS DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED AND THE DECEMBER 18, 2001, ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY & ENERGY COMMISSION MEETING ADJOURNED AT 8:54 P.M. Respectfully submitted, Julie A. Jones Staff Laison