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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAir Quality Advisory Board - Minutes - 06/12/1995V MINUTES CITY OF FORT COLLINS AIR QUALITY ADVISORY BOARD REGULAR MEETING CITY HALL WEST - SECOND FLOOR CONFERENCE ROOM JUNE 12, 1995 For Reference: AQAB Chair, John Fooks - 229-5225 Will Smith, Council Liaison - 223-0425 Brian Woodruff, Staff Liaison - 221-6604 Board Members Present Susan Bilo, Harry Edwards, John Fooks, Bill Eckert, Eric Levine Board Members Absent Lynne Baker, Pete Perkins, Rob Cagen Staff Present Brian Woodruff, Sally Maggart, Linda Devocelle Guests John Scanlon, citizen asked by council to replace Tom Wyatt as the ninth member of the board, and Will Smith, Council Liaison. The meeting was called to order at 4:35 p.m. While waiting for a quorum, the board viewed the Congestion Management Plan video. Review and Approval of Minutes On a motion made by Harry Edwards and seconded by Bill Eckert, the minutes of the May 15, 1994 meeting were unanimously approved with the following changes: On Page 2, second paragraph, Susan Bilo clarified that the Loveland and Larimer County data was not included in her memo, but she did have that data. Committee Reports a. Air Quality Plan: Eric Levine reported that the committee had not met since the last regular meeting of the board. Brian Woodruff said that the I&M Study Committee has not yet convened. He noted that Eric Levine has expressed interest in being a representative from the board. b. Advisory: Susan reported that Brian is working with Pete Perkins on setting up a meeting the first week in July with Eric Bracke, City Transportation Planner. C. Ad -hoc: John reported that the committee had not met, but will reevaluate the PM-10 portion of the Air Quality Policy Plan at its next meeting. Eric requested copies of the Air Quality Advisory Board June 12, 1995 Page 2 summary sheets from the 1989 Denver Brown Cloud study. Brian said he will get copies for the board. Transit Development Plan: Susan noted that a recent TDP newsletter was included in the meeting packet. She said the committee is continuing to work on the vision statement and goals. Susan reported that the next meeting will be held Wednesday at the Streets Facility; the topic will be para-transit. John asked what key indicators the committee has set for success. Susan said the end result will be a transit plan for the city that will reduce air pollution by means of a ten percent reduction in SOV (single -occupant vehicles). Brian noted that the federal government requires that the plan be updated every five years. Staff Reports Brian distributed copies of the final summary of legislative bills. He noted that staff is rewriting the legislative policy agenda on air quality to assist in determining what bills to work on and what position to take. Brian noted that staff is working on the Air Quality Monitor Plan and it will be ready for the board to review in July. He said it will first go to the Ad -hoc Committee. Brian reported that Anheuser Busch is involved in an air permitting issue involving the treatment and disposal of spent liquids with ethanol. He said that the state is looking at amending A-B's permit, for review by the Air Quality Control Commission. Brian added that the state will have a formal public comment period before modifying the permit, and board members may be asked for comments. John asked Brian to provide more background information on the issue. Brian said he will make information available and offered to invite someone from the A-B engineering staff to provide a presentation. NEW BUSINESS Wood Stove Point -of -Sale Ordinance Bill Eckert distributed information on the background and recommended a course of action for the Point -of -Sale Ordinance. He noted that the purpose of the ordinance is to improve air quality. Bill said the proposed ordinance would require sellers of residential homes to upgrade wood stoves and fire places to low -polluting units or else disable them. He added that the realtors with whom he has discussed the ordinance do not like the idea; they do not want the added paper work. John asked if there could be another option based on enforcement through an excise tax. Bill said he had not looked at other options, only the one outlined in the Air Quality Plan. He noted that John Crouch, an environmental specialist for the Hearth Products Association, has studied Air Quality Advisory Board June 12, 1995 Page 3 the issue and found that several areas have implemented point -of -sale requirements, and none are doing it well. John asked about the effectiveness of the ZILCH program. Linda Devocelle said that over the past five years there have been about 250 fireplaces converted to gas through the ZILCH program. She added that the conversion option is also offered to wood stove owners who have had complaints filed against them, but it is difficult to convince wood stove owners to convert. Bill noted that burning wood is not cheaper than burning gas. Brian said that the Air Quality Action Plan calls for a point -of -sale ordinance for wood stoves only -- stoves create more smoke per cord of wood. The ordinance is planned for 1997 to give time for education and voluntary incentives to work. Eric said that he felt wood stoves and fireplaces should be grouped together in the ordinance. Bill agreed and asked for direction on how to proceed. Harry suggested the board recommend to council the adoption of an ordinance as described. Brian reiterated that council has directed staff to propose an ordinance in 1997. He added that staff would have to revise work priorities in order to accomplish this any earlier and it could compromise the education efforts. Eric asked if there were any studies that show educating the community would reduce the use of wood stoves and fireplaces. Bill said that he has learned that most communities with an ordinance have skipped the education portion and gone directly to legislation. Will Smith noted that the Air Quality Action Plan was reviewed and adopted by council in March 1994. He explained that the board needs to advise council; if the board does not think things are being done in an appropriate sequence, they can tell council and it can be changed. Bill noted that we don't yet have a solution on how to implement this, and the board is a long way from submitting an ordinance to the city. John asked when the wood burning survey (part of the emissions inventory) will be finished. Brian said the draft is completed and it will be included in next month's packet. Harry Edwards made the motion that the board proceed with the recommendation of a point -of - sale ordinance that includes wood stoves and fireplaces. Eric Levine seconded the motion. Bill Eckert asked to amend the motion to include a time frame. Harry did not accept this as a friendly amendment; he said he wants to proceed now. The motion passed by a vote of 3-2, with Susan Bilo and John Fooks dissenting. Brian noted that the minutes will communicate to council the decision of the board. Will said it is crucial to the language of the ordinance to define what the point -of -sale requirements are. He said public input is needed or there will be a low success rate for adoption. Air Quality Advisory Board June 12, 1995 Page 4 Bill volunteered to continue as a "committee of one" and he said he will report back to the board in the next month or so. He said he will study the other ordinances and try to draft a model ordinance. Brian offered staff assistance on the research. Bill said he is not giving up on the realtors. Brian said he will report back to the board on the status of the staff work load after talking to Tom Shoemaker. UNFINISHED BUSINESS Radon Information for Home Buyers Eric noted that his letter in the board packet gives background information on the radon issue. He cited two studies that show the Fort Collins area high in radon. Eric said that council needs to be advised that radon is a serious health concern. Bill asked the cost per house to test for radon. Eric answered that the test kits sell for $10-$15 in the stores. Bill asked who would implement, read and document the testing. Eric said that needs to be determined. Harry expressed concern about the science involved. He felt that the number of lung cancer deaths per year is based on extrapolation and not epidemiology. He is concerned that this is a situation that is not well defined and he said he is not comfortable proceeding on this course. Linda said that the radon issue is complicated, but nobody disputes the fact that radon is not good for you and it can cause lung cancer. She noted that EPA's "action level" of 4 pico-curies per liter is questioned by the medical community, but a level had to be set and it is the best information presently available. Harry said that the other issue is that radon permeates through the soil from geological deposits of uranium and the distribution is not uniform and forms pockets. He said he felt that any ordinance adopted should specifically target the high radon houses and a testing program is needed. Eric Levine moved to recommend that council require a radon test for all new homes and that purchasers receive that information. Susan Bilo seconded the motion and it passed unanimously (5-0). Will suggested that Eric take this proposal to the Building Review Board because they address code issues and may have some comments. Eric agreed to make a presentation to the Building Review Board. AQAB Retreat John said that the board needs to plan a retreat before the work plan is due in October. He said it will be held at the Hewlett Packard Center; he will check with Pete Perkins on availability. Air Quality Advisory Board June 12, 1995 Page 5 The board members present decided on the following possible dates: Sunday, August 20; Tuesday, August 22; or Sunday, August 27. Action Log Brian added the following items to the list: 1. Brian will include the brown cloud summary sheets in the next packet. 2. Brian will determine Anheuser-Busch's position on the VOC permit and report to the board. 3. Bill and staff will work on the next step of the point -of -sale ordinance and report back. 4. Eric will present the radon ordinance to the Building Review Board. Announcements Bill noted that Rick Ensdorff, Director of Transportation, is leaving the city. Bill requested that the board send a thank you letter to him for his years of service. Brian said that staff will compose the letter. Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 6:30 p.m.