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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAir Quality Advisory Board - Minutes - 10/17/1994MINUTES CITY OF FORT COLLINS AIR QUALITY ADVISORY BOARD REGULAR MEETING 281 CONFERENCE ROOM - 281 N. COLLEGE AVE. OCTOBER 17, 1994 For Reference: AQAB Chair, John Fooks - 229-5225 Alan Apt, Council Liaison - 224-9798 Brian Woodruff, Staff Liaison - 221-6604 Board Members Present Bill Eckert, John Fooks, Pete Perkins, Lynne Baker, Susan Bilo, Harry Edwards, Eric Levine, Tom Wyatt Board Members Absent Rob Cagen Staff Present Brian Woodruff, Sally Maggart, Linda Devocelle, Greg Byrne, Ron Phillips (after election of officers) Quests Ted Liles, MAT Emissions; Alex Chapman, interested citizen; Alan Apt, Council Liaison (after election of officers) Introduction of Quests The meeting was called to order at 4:35 P.M., and Board members, staff and guests introduced themselves. Review and Approval of Minutes On a motion by Tom Wyatt the minutes of the September 1, 1994 meeting were unanimously approved with the following addition offered by Bill Eckert. To the discussion of Kenny Roger's restaurant on page 2, add: "Brian said that, although one wood -fired restaurant would add a small amount of smoke to the city-wide total, it is a symbolic problem because it sends a message inconsistent with the City ordinance that restricts new wood stoves and fireplaces. Bill Eckert disagreed, saying it is a real problem, not just symbolic." Election of officers With the Board's consent Brian presided for the purpose of electing a chair and vice -chair for one-year terms. Lynne Baker asked if the vice -chair would succeed to chair at the end of the one year term. Brian suggested that the Board should clarify that question as well as define the term of office and other matters by adopting by-laws at a future meeting. Air Quality Advisory Board October 17, 1994 Page 2 Lynne nominated John Fooks for chair. There being no further nominations, John Fooks was unanimously elected chair by voice vote. There being no nominations for vice -chair, Brian asked if anyone was interested in serving. Tom Wyatt expressed interest and was unanimously to elected vice -chair by voice vote. On a question from Bill, Brian said the vice -chair should assume the duties of the chair in his absence. He further explained that the Natural Resources' staff would like to work with the chair between meetings (this process worked well for the AQTF) unless the Board changes the process. John recommended that the agenda for the next meeting be discussed at the end of each meeting. He felt the Air Quality Task Force Ground Rules could act as the temporary by-laws of the Board. Air Ouality Action Plan Briefing and Progress Report Brian presented an overview of the Air Quality Plan as adopted by the City Council. As to "why" the need for a plan, he cited the strong public support for clean air. The purpose of the plan is to address local goals as well as meeting federal mandates. The plan is part of the City's Comprehensive Plan drafted by the Air Quality Task Force and Natural Resources Division staff. Through SDIC (Strategic Development of Informed Consent), the plan was developed involving public input. The key findings showed vehicle miles and the number of unconverted wood stoves and fireplaces as the indicators of air quality. On a question from John, Brian responded that there has been an updated census of wood stoves through a telephone survey of 1200 homes this spring; the raw data has not yet been analyzed but will be part of the two-year update to Council. In pollutant source ranking, motor vehicles are first priority, commerce and industry are second and residences third. The objectives of the Air Quality Plan are to reduce VMT growth, reduce tailpipe emissions per mile, reduce commercial and industrial emissions, reduce wood smoke and increase voluntary actions to reduce indoor air risk. Air quality indicators associated with each objective measure the results reported to Council. The number one priority in pollution reduction is the automobile. The current trend is towards an increased dependence on cars; there are over two cars per household and 1.9 million miles travelled per day in Fort Collins. The VMT is growing 30 percent faster than the population. On a question from John, Brian replied that the root causes of the VMT increase would be discussed further in the Congestion Management Plan overview at next month's meeting. The number of trips is related to expendable income, and there are less people r Air Quality October 17, Page 3 Advisory Board 1994 . riding the bus and car pooling than asked why. Convenience is one reason; convenient for many people. Ted Liles people and fewer buses ten years ago actual figures from Transfort if that felt that would have a bearing on solutions. ten years ago. Susan Bilo the transit service is not noted that there were fewer Brian said he could get would help. Pete Perkins the direction to go for While the VMT is growing at a rate of 3.6 percent per year, emissions/mile is going down. It is dropping because of the replacement of older cars with newer cars as well as the emissions testing program. Pete asked if the electric car had been factored in. Brian replied that it had not; California is required to have two percent of Zero Emission Vehicles by 1998, but that is not required here. Brian cited the three factors involved in reducing VMT: 1) Vehicle Trips Per Household, 2) Vehicle Trip Length and 3) Persons Per Car. John noted that emissions per mile relates to the trip length; increasing the length should make it go down. Brian agreed, adding that most of the pollution is created during the first miles of a trip when the engine is cold. Greg Byrne referred to the Congestion Management Plan in which trip length is described as a related choice; the shorter the trip, the greater the likelihood to choose alternative transportation. Brian stressed the need for public education; short trips produce lots of pollution. In order to reduce the per -mile emissions, street capacity and signal operation need to be improved and the emissions testing program needs to be expanded to include CSU students and others who do not live here but work here. Also, the use of clean fuels, e.g., methane, propane and electricity reduces emissions with proper vehicle maintenance. On a question from Eric Levine, Brian explained that improved fuel economy does not necessarily decrease pollution emissions, except carbon dioxide. For example, a 50 mpg car could produce more hydrocarbons than a 15 mpg car. Eric requested further information. Brian explained the proposed efforts to reduce VMT include capital projects (shorter wait between buses, new bike lanes, etc.), demand management programs (employer offering incentives to change employee driving behavior), better land use planning (mixing residential, shopping and employment areas), stronger growth management (reducing community sprawl) and urban design standards (reducing trips in dense communities). Brian noted the following actions are planned for reducing tailpipe emissions: Air Quality Advisory Board October 17, 1994 Page 4 1. An emission sticker ordinance will be adopted so City police do not have to issue separate state tickets. Beginning January 1995, an emission sticker will be required on every vehicle in the City. Brian noted the ordinance would also allow the police department to deputize the City parking staff for assistance in enforcement. 2. An improved IM (Inspection and Maintenance) program could potentially double the effectiveness of the current program. The Council wants a local plan developed, and a study group is being convened to recommend a local program; this is top priority along with VMT reduction measures. 3. The City fleet is setting the pace on the use of alternative fuels. Other fleet managers are being encouraged to convert. 4. The City is using the "best management practice" in street sanding and sweeping in order to reduce particulate. 5. Enforcement is needed on gasoline vapor recovery involving fumes that are emitted when underground gas tanks are filled at gas stations. Regarding commercial and industrial sources, Brian reported a pollution prevention program started this year with the formation of a committee to investigate the elimination of pollution before it is created. The priority for next year is new source review -- initially an APEN (Air Pollution Emission Notice) will be required for land use approval. Because of the potential for pollution, continuing efforts are being made on wood burning education. There are incentives to convert .or decommission wood stoves and convert fireplaces to natural gas through ZILCH (Zero Interest Loan Program). The most controversy involves requiring wood stoves upgraded or removed before a home can be sold. The main concern is there are lots of wood stoves not designed for low emission standards. In response to John's question if the City has requirements on the stove types sold, Brian responded that a resident can sell any stove, but it can only be installed in the City if it is certified by the state. Brian emphasized there is an effort to encourage voluntary actions to reduce indoor air risks through education. The current focus is on radon, environmental tobacco smoke, and carbon monoxide but will be expanded to include other kinds of pollutants, e.g. from furniture, rugs, etc. He noted that building code amendments are made every two years which can affect indoor air pollution and, hence, public health. Air Quality Advisory Board October 17, 1994 Page 5 After the overhead presentation, Brian asked if the Board wanted to proceed with the other items on the agenda or spend some time reviewing the mock-up of the Action Plan. He noted that Items 6 & 7, Congestion Management Plan and Education Overview, will be moved to the November meeting as there were too many things on this agenda. At this point, Council member Alan Apt introduced himself and thanked everyone for attending. He emphasized the importance of the Air Quality Board in decision making and impacting the community. He explained he would not be able to attend every meeting, but wanted to be called if needed. Eric asked Alan why Council decided to create a separate task force to deal with the IM240 program. He thought it should fall under the purview of the Air Quality Advisory Board. Alan explained that after collecting information on community support and the effective way to proceed, Council called for a study committee in order to involve more citizens. Committee recommendations will be brought back to the Air Quality Board. Brian added that the process is still being developed, and this subject will be discussed in more detail at the next meeting. At the Board's request, Brian proceeded with the explanation of the time line for the Air Quality Plan. A condensed copy of the time line is included with these minutes. He explained actions to reduce VMT growth are not represented, because they have been transferred to the Congestion Management Plan process. The Air Quality Action Plan was adopted March 1994 and goes to Council every two years for review and re -direction. Brian further explained that the wood burning survey and indoor air quality survey have been completed, but the monitoring plan is behind schedule. It will be done the beginning of 1995. In 1995 the focus will be on requiring an APEN (Air Pollution Emission Notice) as part of the Certificate of Occupancy requirements. Bill noted that the "wood stove point of sale ordinance" is put off until 1997 and he wondered why it couldn't be done sooner. He offered to collect data from other communities that have had experience with this ordinance. Brian explained the delay was intended to allow people enough time to comply voluntarily before taking a regulatory approach. Brian added if those efforts fail, an ordinance would be needed. Alan agreed with Bill and suggested moving it up a year to 1996 and allow the community to decide what to do. Brian moved it. Air Quality Advisory Board October 17, 1994 Page 6 Linda reported that the Zilch Program is popular and has grown over the last four years. Changes have been made in the program to favor wood stove over fireplace conversions. A request will go to Council to increase the amount of funding by $30,000. At present, not every application can be funded. She suggested offering tax incentives or working with local banks to provide special programs. She noted there are no defaults on loans, and the program has been changed to loan a maximum of $1500 with a payback of three years. Lynne asked if there was a request for more dollars in the proposed budget for Zilch funding. Alan offered to bring it up at the Council budget meeting Tuesday, October 18. For next year's budget process, Alan suggested that the Board compile its budget recommendations and get them to Council early. Brian noted that although the indoor air quality survey and information program are scheduled for 1995, they have already started. The indoor air work focus in 1996 will be on building code changes and working with the County on Air Quality Information and Outreach. Linda is the main contact for the information and outreach effort. Since the city, state, county and federal governments all have air quality programs, interagency planning is crucial to avoid duplication of effort. The goal is that the city, state and county agencies will jointly review their work plans each year. The agency theme will continue in 1995 with the air toxic partnership because the City cannot address air toxics effectively on its own. The monitoring plan will be completed in time for the next budget cycle. School education will be the focus in 1996, with the effort to formulate curriculum development for Poudre R-1. This will be difficult as they have a lot to teach, but adults can be reached by reaching children. The City will consider adopting a policy on life cycle cost accounting, where long-term benefits would be considered, including environmental concepts. State legislation on diesel and gas formulation is of interest, and the City will work on this with other municipalities, since fuel formulation cannot be controlled at the local level. John thanked Brian for the good presentation. Inspection/Maintenance Project Reviev Brian explained that the I/M Project has the highest priority related to vehicle technology and the Council wants feedback from the Board. Lynne asked what the time frame would be for response. Brian answered that the situation is evolving as we speak; a next step is have the City Council ask the North Front Range Council to become the regional forum for decision -making on this. If the North Front Range Council accepts, then they would appoint a study ,. s 0 • Air Quality October 17, Page 7 Advisory Board 1994 committee. One concern is that Gerry Horak, City Council liaison to the North Front Range Council, is leaving and his replacement will not be chosen until December 6. Eric asked if the committee appointments would follow an open process like that of the City Council or more of a closed -door process. Brian responded that he would urge them to do it the same way as the City does. The City will be responsible staff support of the committee, so the City will be able to affect the appointment process. Staff will recommend that the North Front Range Council appoint a good mix of representation from Loveland and Larimer County as well as the City. Eric asked what would happen if the City Council approves the plan that we do not unanimously approve; what would the procedure be then? John said this will be put as the first agenda item for next month's meeting. Other Business Bill inquired about an upcoming meeting of the Air Quality Control Commission in Denver; he would like a meeting summary to see what the rest of the state is doing. Brian said it is a public input meeting and he will arrange to get a summary. Linda spoke of a round table meeting on radon that will be presented by the EPA on December 8 from 11:30 to 1:30 (lunch provided). She asked someone from the Board to attend and report back to the Board members for discussion. It is an information meeting with Loveland, Estes Park, Berthoud, etc. John volunteered to attend. Linda will get further information to him. John suggested the agenda for the November 21 regular meeting include the Inspection/Maintenance Project Review, the Congestion Management Plan briefing, and an overview of education efforts under the Clean Air Colorado contract and ZILCH loan program. In addition, Pete suggested the board needs to work on the procedures and infrastructure of the group. Ron Phillips, Director of Transportation Services, introduced himself to the Board and expressed interest in working with the Board on enhancing alternative transportation and air quality. The new Transportation Service Area includes Engineering, Transfort, Streets, and the former Transportation Division. He would also like to strengthen the relationship between the Transportation Board and the Air Quality Advisory Board. Adiournment The meeting was adjourned at 6:45 p.m. | ` \ act ■�§| �� . �t J lug . ! |! ps ■| a� 7 !§ . .� �2 k £ ' !- | •E � � B �� (f | ■$ �| � Ir!ƒ!} ■. � W Z � Jill . ■ £ ■ |$ � ' ■J ;|7& 6|a% ;� ■a|f| ||i& E ! & Tiff\ |..S !� )2 # &Ef{ !(k ■: 3 !tJ! !| ;!f! . !!