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HomeMy WebLinkAboutNatural Resources Advisory Board - Minutes - 12/16/2020 NATURAL RESOURCES ADVISORY BOARD TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR December 16, 2020 6:00 – 8:00 pm Via Zoom 12/16/20 – MINUTES Page 1  1. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL 6:01 pm  List of Board Members Present  Danielle Buttke - chair  Bob Mann  Samantha Williams  Drew Derderian  Kevin Krause  John Skogman  Elizabeth Hudetz  List of Board Members Absent – Excused or Unexcused; if no contact with Chair has been made  Hillary Mizia  Barry Noon  Term Completions:  December 31, 2020 - Robert Mann, Kevin Krause, John Skogman, Samantha Williams and Hillary Mizia  December 31, 2021 - Elizabeth Hudetz and Barry Noon  December 31, 2023 - Drew Derderian and Danielle Buttke  List of Staff Members Present  Michelle Finchum, Staff Liaison  Caroline Mitchell, Waste Reduction and Recycling Manager  List of Guests  none 2. AGENDA REVIEW  No changes 3. COMMUNITY MEMBER PARTICIPATION  None 4. APPROVAL OF MINUTES  Bob moved and Kevin seconded a motion to approve the November minutes as presented. - Motion passed unanimously 6-0-0. NATURAL RESOURCES ADVISORY BOARD TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 12/16/2020 – MINUTES Page 2  5. NEW BUSINESS  Wasteshed Update - Caroline Mitchell, Waste Reduction and Recycling Manager The Larimer County Landfill is forecast to reach capacity and close by 2024. The City of Fort Collins has been working closely with regional partners to plan for the long-term future of waste disposal and resource recovery infrastructure in Northern Colorado, including the development, and 2018, adoption of a master plan for regional solid waste infrastructure. Caroline will share an update on the project implementation. Website: https://www.fcgov.com/recycling/wasteshed  Summary of the history of the Wasteshed project:  It is a collaboration among the City of Fort Collins, Larimer County, City of Loveland, City of Estes Park, and City of Wellington  The project began in 2015 when the Larimer County Landfill was evaluated to reach capacity and close in 2024. The project's purpose was to develop a Master Infrastructure Plan for regional solid waste. A Wasteshed Coalition was established, comprised of a Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) , a Policy Advisory Committee (PAC) and a Stakeholder Advisory Group.  In 2018 Larimer County adopted the Master Infrastructure Plan as their master plan.  In 2019, all partner communities adopted an Intergovernmental Agreement that committed the communities to the project and clarified their roles in the project.  In 2019 the City of Fort Collins also adopted an additional policy for flow control for mixed construction and demolition materials.  In 2020 the new north landfill and transfer station began development.  The Solid Waste Infrastructure plan's top priorities are Tier 1 infrastructure projects that are to be funded, built, owned, and managed by Larimer County. They include:  A central transfer station on the current landfill site  A new landfill in a different northern location near the Rawhide Power Plant  A construction and demolition (C&D) debris processing facility for wood, aggregates, metal and cardboard  A yard and food waste composting facility  Via the Intergovernmental agreement, the Regional Wasteshed Partners will make policy and adjust their local codes to guarantee the volume of waste that will be brought to and processed by the new County facilities. They will also educate their citizens about the project. Each government will have at least one elected official participate in the Policy Council. Policies adopted to date are:  Yard waste composting facility - Loveland committed the residential yard waste they currently collect. NATURAL RESOURCES ADVISORY BOARD TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 12/16/2020 – MINUTES Page 3   Food waste composting facility - Fort Collins has not yet developed this policy.  Construction & demolition (C&D) debris sorting facility - Fort Collins has adopted a flow control for mixed loads of C&D debris.  The new landfill and transfer station did not require any code changes in order to be built.  Current status and next steps:  The transfer station and new landfill are currently under construction.  The yard trimmings compost facility has been delayed to 2022, because of several developing issues: decreased business revenue due to COVID; landfill pollution plume remediation; and unanticipated increase in costs.  The TAC and PAC groups will continue their roles  Other challenges to move the project along include revenue uncertainty, changes and vacancies in Larimer County upper management.  Discussion:  Bob - Q - asked for a review of the timeline A - Some of the timeline changes are not clear at present. The transfer station and landfill are currently on target for 2022 and 2023. Their construction is the highest priority. The yard waste composting is slated for 2022, depending on budget and Loveland's schedule. The C&D and food waste composting schedule is currently unclear and are also subject to budget and the transfer station and landfill completion.  Bob - Q - If the transfer station is completed before the landfill closes, can items delivered to the station still be deposited in the current landfill? A - Yes. Also if the new landfill is completed before the current landfill reaches capacity, it could be an alternative to filling the current landfill to capacity. It would be very expensive to have the current landfill close and the new landfill not be completed and open because we would have to pay to take solid waste elsewhere.  Danielle - Q - Has the timeline for the closing of the current landfill changed? A - no. Bob recalled it was initially slated to close in 2025. A - There could be reasons the landfill could close sooner than that, but Caroline has not heard about any impact to the landfill from the fires. Larimer County evaluates capacity several times a year. The end of 2024 is the most recent estimate for closure.  Danielle - Q - Has there been any decrease of volume due to COVID? A - Larimer County has not reported as such.  Danielle - Q - would like more information about the groundwater pollution plume. A - The current landfill is unlined, but that is grandfathered in. The pollution began in the landfill's early days when a trench punctured the groundwater table. The County has done various types of remediation over time. Currently all landfill owners are currently discussing how to go forward with remediation, which will most likely also NATURAL RESOURCES ADVISORY BOARD TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 12/16/2020 – MINUTES Page 4  affect the timeline of the new landfill.  Q - Will the C&D and food composting facilities extend the life of the landfill? A - They should extend the life of the north landfill, but their timelines will not overlap and they will not be operational fast enough to affect the current landfill.  Danielle - Q - What is anerobic digestion and can it be used for food waste composting? Also what about using human waste biosolids? A - Anerobic digestion is a way to break down organic material with methane as a byproduct which is then used to make power. The City's wastewater treatment plant uses this process. It was considered in the initial plan, but determined to be not feasible until after Tier 1 facilities are built. Use of biosolids is not being considered at this time.  Bob - Q - thought it would still be helpful for citizens to contact the County to support this project. Also, it was his understanding that a citizen group was supposed to have been formed. Has it been formed? A - The Policy Council does exist and has 2 members from every community, one of which needs to be an elected official. Their meetings are open to the public if you want to participate, their next meeting is in January. Wade Troxell and Ross Cunniff are Fort Collins' representatives  Elizabeth - Q - She is also in the Fort Collins Sustainability Group that is working to shut down the coal fired power plants here because of air quality issues. However, they are looking for letters of support for this. Today is the deadline.  Kevin - Q - How can the NRAB support this project? A - Currently, nothing other than completing the new Larimer County landfill and transfer station is being moved forward.  Staff follow up: Caroline will notify the NRAB if there is an opportunity for them to weigh in to support this project.  Annual Report - Danielle Buttke  Because of the pandemic and reduced number of meetings in 2020, the NRAB's activities were less than what was initially anticipated in the 2020 work plan. Danielle will compile actions taken in 2020 into the NRAB 2020 annual report due to Council in January, 2021. Danielle asked the board to contact her with any specific inclusions they would like to put into the report. 6. OTHER BUSINESS/UPDATES  Board Member Reports  Elizabeth attended a December 5 Medical Symposium regarding the effects of fossil fuels on health and said she will send a link to the group if they want to see videos of it. NATURAL RESOURCES ADVISORY BOARD TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 12/16/2020 – MINUTES Page 5   As this was Bob's last board meeting, he stated he was happy to have served on the NRAB for the last several years and commended them on their dedications and actions.  Six Month Calendar Review  Michelle reported that in the December 15, 2020, Council meeting, the Plastic Pollution Ballot Measure was voted 5 - 2 by Council to be put on the April, 2021 ballot initiative for a plastic bag ban and paper bag fee.  There will be five Council vacancies, including the mayor, to be filled by the April election.  Danielle pointed out that the NRAB still has time to weigh in on the revised Parks and Recreation Master Plan.  Danielle pointed out that in January Council will discuss the direction and challenges of the City's Wastewater Utility and its possible connection to NISP.  Action item: Michelle will inform the NRAB of details of January 16 Council meeting item: Regulatory Options for Siting New Oil and Gas Development.  Superboard Meeting Jan 11 - Our Climate Future  Danielle pointed out that the upcoming Superboard meeting will be discussing items important to the NRAB's mission. Elizabeth moved and Bob seconded a motion for the NRAB to attend the January 11, 2020, Boards and Commission Super Issues meeting as their regular January board meeting. Motion passed unanimously - 7-0-0  Revisit action items from previous meetings - Danielle and Kevin  Danielle stated the NRAB's memo regarding the Parks and Recreation Master Plan will be forthcoming.  Exterior Lighting Code Action Item  John moved and Drew seconded a motion that the NRAB should write a simple memo of support for the Exterior Lighting Code revisions presented to them at the November meeting. Motion passed unanimously 7-0-0  Other  Danielle suggested the board keep apprised of the City's 2021 budget with an eye as to how the NRAB can weigh in on items of interest to the board. 7. ADJOURN 7:32 pm