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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10/19/2000 - Waste Reduction and Recycling Advisory Commission AGENDA WASTE REDUCTION & RECYCLING ADVISORY COMMISSION EAGAN, MINNESOTA Eagan Municipal Center City Council Chambers THURSDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2000 * * * ** 3:30 p.m. * * * ** * ** I. TOUR OF GREEN INSTITUTE II. ROLL CALL AND ADOPTION OF AGENDA III. APPROVAL OF SEPTEMBER 21, 2000 MEETING MINUTES IV. VISITORS TO BE HEARD V. INFORMATIVE VI. NEW BUSINESS VII. OLD BUSINESS A. Update Regarding Community Center Process 1. Green Buildings Discussion B. City Procurement C. Sub Committee Updates 1. Evaluation Sub - Committee 2. Events Sub - Committee 3. Education Sub - Committee VII. ADJOURNMENT Next meeting— Novemberl6, 2000* The mission The mission of the Waste Reduction and Recycling Advisory Commission is to proactively assist the Eagan City Council by educating, encouraging and assisting the community in reducing and managing waste in an environmentally sound manner. MEMO TO: MEMBERS OF THE EAGAN WASTE REDUCTION & RECYCLING ADVISORY COMMISSION FROM: COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR FOOTE DATE: OCTOBER 16, 2000 SUBJECT: EAGAN ADVISORY COMMISSION MEETING OF OCTOBER 19, 2000 A regular meeting of the Eagan Waste Reduction & Recycling Commission will be held on Thursday October 19, 2000 from 3:30 p.m. until 5:30:00 p.m., The group will meet at the Eagan Municipal Center at 3:30 p.m. and travel to the Green Institute in Minneapolis. I. ROLL CALL AND ADOPTION OF AGENDA The agenda, as presented or modified, requires adoption by the Commission. ACTION TO BE CONSIDERED ON THIS ITEM: approve, deny or modify Agenda II. APPROVAL OF September 21, MEETING MINUTES A copy of the minutes of the Waste Reduction Commission meeting of September 21 ,2000 is included as an attachment. ACTION TO BE CONSIDERED ON THIS ITEM: approve, deny or modify Minutes II. VISITORS TO BE HEARD III. INFORMATIVE IV. NEW BUSINESS A. City Procurement Facts: The Commission Chair requested information regarding the City's procurement habits with regard to recycled content materials. Included on pages to are copies of documentation produced which outlines the office supplies and other materials the City is purchasing which contain recycled content. This documentation/survey was conducted in 1998. ACTION TO BE CONSIDERED ON THIS ITEM: For Discussion Only VI. OLD BUSINESS A. Update Regarding Community Center/ Process(6:15 -6:30) 1. Green Building Practices Facts: The Commission wished to tour the Green Institute in hopes of garnering ideas for possible utilization in the development of the Community Center. Following the tour, the Commission may wish to discuss what they have seen and formulate a plan to bring ideas forward to the staff involved in the Community Center development process. ACTION TO BE CONSIDERED ON THIS ITEM: Adopt a list of ideas /strategies to be considered in the architectural program of the Community Center Facility. C. Update by Evaluation sub - committee D. Update by Events sub - committee E. Update by Education sub - committee VII. ADJOURNMENT- -NEXT MEETING The next meeting of the Commission is scheduled for Thursday, November 16, 2000 at 5:30 p.m. Regular Meeting (Not Televised) • Invite County Staff to review Goals/Master Plan • Sub - Committee Report(s) Subject to Approval MINUTES OF THE WASTE REDUCTION & RECYCLING ADVISORY COMMISSION Eagan, Minnesota September 21, 2000 A regular meeting of the Eagan Waste Reduction & Recycling Advisory Commission was held on Thursday, September 21, 2000 at 5:30 p.m. in the City Council Chambers at the Eagan Municipal Center. Present were Clint Hooppaw, Patricia Hurd, Rick Patraw, Tom Petrilli, Gary Hansen and Mike Stone who arrived at 5:50 p.m. Absent from the meeting were Gwen Hillesheim, Linda Merkel, John Tapper and Jim Weinzettel. Also present were Recycling Coordinator Bast, Recycling Intern Seubert and Communications Coordinator Foote. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Hansen noted a change to the minutes of the August 17, 2000 meeting. On page 3, under Old Business, Evaluation Sub - Committee, paragraph 4, line 2, Hansen requested that the spelling of "A.A.R.O.W." be changed to "A.R.R.O.W." The minutes of the August 17, 2000 meeting were approved unanimously as modified by acclamation of the Commission. INFORMATIVE A. June 7 -8 Superstorm Update Foote stated that she added the superstorm update to the agenda in case there was questions after the last meeting. She noted that a superstorm update is being sent to the printers and will be mailed out in about 1% weeks and briefly reviewed background information on the superstorm. Burnsville, Eagan, and Apple Valley received 12 inches of rain on July 7 and an additional 3 -4 inches on July 8 This rainfall overwhelmed the storm sewer system damaging around 1,400 homes with 200 -250 homes having severe damage. High damage occurred in Cedar Grove; however, areas that are on higher ground such as Oak Chance, and Beacon Hill were also damaged. Damage ranged from a few inches of water to 15 feet of water in homes. The federal disaster declaration was made in 5 days for Dakota County, which normally take several weeks. She noted that some homeowners with no previous damage are now just finding damage from mold and mildew. Patraw asked if the clean up was free to the residents. Foote stated that Eagan was paying for the debris removal cost that is continuing. The final numbers have not been calculated but there was over 16,000 tons of debris collected during the first two - week period. Patraw added that the brush and wood collected was being used for making wood chips. Hansen asked if there were any adverse environmental impacts from the superstorm. Foote stated that impacts include sedimentation, debris, and chemicals build up in lakes and ponds and sewer backups have occurred. Patraw asked if the addition of the few 2 -5 inch rainfall events have resulted in any further impacts. Foote replied that the additional rainfalls have no resulted in major flooding but the water table is still high. This is because the storm sewer system is designed to take 3 -4 months, with no additional rain, for water to work its way through the whole system. So even if the water level is down in one area, it is still high in other areas. Patraw stated that there was a difference in damage caused by tornado and flood disasters. Unlike with a tornado, nothing can be salvaged with a flood. Hoopaw felt that the cleanup was fast. Foote added that it was important to have a fast clean up because there were strong priorities to prevent health hazards and to assist residents at a psychological standpoint. Once damaged items were out of the house, some of the separation from their things could begin. This was accomplished with the assistance of local waste haulers and some of the roll off haulers. She stated that on October 2 the clean -up will be reviewed by the City Council and could be extended to assist residents in the clean up process. Solid Waste Abatement Commission Meeting Minutes Page 2 /September 21, 2000 NEW BUSINESS A. Review Annual Grant Application Foote stated that the City Council had adopted the grant applications. Bast passed out copies of the Burnsville and Eagan grant applications and stated that they required a work plan that only reflects recycling activities. Hansen asked if the evaluation was to occur every other year. Bast stated the grant application will be conducted every other year and is for county funding of recycling programs. Dakota County passes funding on to cities for recycling programs and they set standards for distribution of funding. Foote noted that the amount of funding is based on the $1.60 per household plus $5000 for a community about this size. Hurd asked, under Section C. Solid Waste Education, if the stars meant that activities were limited to those activities that were starred. Americas Recycles Day was not starred so does that mean that nothing will be done. Bast stated that the stars meant that at least five activities must be done but the activities are not limited too the ones starred and more than five things can be done. Patraw questioned, under section D. Work Plan, if it meant that Eagan was to have a clean up day referring to past discussions on whether or not to have a clean up day next year. Bast stated that the clean up day is a possibility for Eagan and Burnsville next year and that it could be limited to appliances. If Eagan decides not to do a clean up day, it can be modified from the grant application. Hurd questioned if the clean up date should read 2000 or 2001. Foote stated that it should read 2001 and that the clean up day could possibly take place at the Dakota County Eco Site or could be limited to certain types of items, such as electronics or appliances. Hansen asked if Patraw's letter was passed on to the City Council. Foote stated that Patraw's letter was included in the informative packet for the City Council. B. Neighborhood Organization Patraw expressed that he was excited about the benefits of neighborhood organizations. Foote noted that a survey card would be sent out in about 11/2 weeks to Eagan and Burnsville residents. Bast passed out copies of the survey card and stated that Eagan and Burnsville have been promoting the voluntary program for a few years. In 1998, a survey of waste haulers was done to determine the number of households participating in neighborhood organizations. The 5 haulers from Burnsville, Eagan and Apple Valley surveyed had about 1300 -1400 households participating and about 65 neighborhood organizations. Foote stated that the organizations could vary from 3 households to100s of households. Patraw stated that it would be helpful to know how many households were participating in organizations before promoting neighborhood organizations. Foote stated that it is not known. Bast stated that the number fluctuates and there is no way to know the number of participants at any one time. Foote stated that Waste Management buys out smaller companies, like Aagard Sanitation, who may have had neighborhood organizations. The question is whether or not Waste Management complies with the previous neighborhood organization agreement. There may be areas that may be considered neighborhood organization because they all have the same hauler. But this could be because a large company bought out smaller companies. The survey card will help to answer this question. Bast stated that there are 8 haulers in Eagan with one truck for garbage, one for recycling and one for yard waste that still could create problems. Foote added that just one hauler on a windy day could cause problems. Patraw asked at what point is promoting neighborhood organizations successful and how many households are there is Eagan. Foote stated that there are 25,000 households including multifamily. There are 15,000 single - family households and some townhouses serviced like single family. Patraw stated that maybe we should consider a percentage to determine if promoting neighborhood organizations have been successful. The Committee discussed this question and decided to wait for the survey results are available to continue the discussion. Hurd stated another way to measure success is the number of complaints received. The increased or decreased in complaints since promoting neighborhood organizations could help in deciding what is the next step. Bast stated that she does receive some complaints with most of them from new residents that were used to a system that only had one hauler and is not use to the traffic. Foote stated that complaints are hard to quantify because they come from many different places not just phone calls. You hear the conversion of high traffic levels when road upgrades are being discussed. Hurd stated that it may be hard to keep track of the complaints but it Solid Waste Abatement Commission Meeting Minutes Page 3 /September 21, 2000 is an important to keep track of them. It was my understanding that the Committee began because there was calls complaining about the current situation. Bast added that most calls are not complaints but people looking for neighborhood organizations. Hansen asked if the city has ever considered any economic incentive to participate in neighborhood organizations. Stone stated that it goes hand in hand. The service can be supplied at a lower rate with organizations. Foote stated that 9 times out of ten the saving is the deciding factor and in some cases, being the first area to be picked up is the deciding factor. Stone stated that all people recognize the savings but service is promoted. In addition, neighborhood organizations groups people together resulting in them looking after their neighborhood in other ways. The Commission continued to discuss the organizations and information from the hauler survey. Stone stated that if a neighborhood is interested in forming an organization about 10 household are needed. He added that safety would be increased in a cal -de -sac if an organization exists because there are fewer trucks. In addition, safety in any neighborhood is being increased with the use of automated service because it eliminates most backing up. Patraw asked if it would be beneficial to map the locations of the neighborhood organizations. Foote stated that mapping the locations would make it public information and should not be done. The map would work against all the hard work neighborhood organizers have done. Stone added that the goal is to promote neighborhood organizations, not to help haulers out. If a map were made, haulers would want a copy of the map to target those organizations for their business. Haulers already know where one hauler is picking up all the households on a street but they do not know if it is an organization. For the hauler, there is a difference between picking up all the households on a street and neighborhood organization picking one hauler to use. Patraw stated that it never occurred to me that households could happen to have the same hauler without an organization behind it. Stone stated when making the decision on what to do, this type of situation needs to be considered. C. City Procurement Bast passed out copies of the email broadcast that was sent out to the Burnsville and Eagan employees for Pollution Prevention Week. The topics covered in the broadcast were copy paper, plastic lumber, office cleaners, paint and alternate fueled vehicles. The information for the broadcast was taken from the Environmentally Preferable Purchasing Guide. Foote stated that all new Eagan employees receive an email introducing them to the recycling basics. She continued to give a brief history of Eagan recycling. About 21/2 years ago, Eagan made a change in the wastebaskets used. The employees have been very receptive to the change. The normal wastebasket is now used for paper recycling and a smaller wastebasket is used for trash. In addition to this change, Eagan uses 50 % -60% recycled paper that is the highest recycled content that will run on the copy machine. The only complaint with using recycled paper is that there are no astro bright colors or fluorescent colors. Finally, a past intern conducted an inventory of all office products used by Eagan. She stated that copies of the spreadsheets showing price comparisons were included in the pre - meeting packet. The recycled content products on average cost the same or less than the current products purchased. There still is a plan to do an inventory of the cleaning supplies used and a comparison in costs. Hurd inquired about efforts to reduce waste besides recycling. Foote stated that 2- sided copying and using one -sided copies as scraps for notepads are being done to reduce waste. But there are areas that waste reduction is not practical, such as files. Files have to be kept for a certain amount of time so reducing the volume of paper is not possible. OLD BUSINESS A. Update Regarding Community Center Process 1. Green Building Discussion Chair Patraw stated time was short and moved the discussion to the Community Center. Foote stated that Patraw's letter was given to the Council in their informative packet, to the City Administrator and to the Parks Director who is the project director. She moved on to point out that Ken Vraa and staff who are working on the project are in tune with green building opportunities. Vraa would Solid Waste Abatement Commission Meeting Minutes Page 4 /September 21, 2000 like to use the Commission as a resource to make specific recommendation on what materials to use for a green building design and not as part of a focus group. Vraa and his staff interviewed 18 groups to design the Community Center and the first question asked was how have they included green building ideas in projects. TKDA was chosen as the architect and have partnered with Moody /Nolan. If at some point the group would like to speak with Vraa or the architect, that would be possible. Foote stated that touring a green building was discussed at the last meeting. The tour would give an opportunity for ideas that could be included in the Community Center. Patraw stated that the Green Institute recently received the Governors Award and would be a good place to tour. It is a good example of were quality was not compromised during construction. The Commission continued to discuss the possibility of meeting at an earlier time on the regular day to tour the Green Institute. The tentative plan is to meet at 3:30 p.m. and take a bus over to the Green Institute. All present stated the time was good except Hurd who needed to check at work. Foote stated that she would email the time the group would be meeting and requested that everyone reply to all so everyone is aware if any problem arises with meeting time. Patraw stated that the Commission members not present should be emailed to see if it would be possible to meet earlier in the day. Foote stated that she would do this. B. A.R.R.O.W. Program Bast stated that there were four new applications since the last meeting without any promotions. She added that there would be a brief explanation of the A.R.R.O.W. program in the Eagan business newsletter to promote the program. Hooppaw stated that the A.R.R.O.W. program is on the Rotary Club's agenda for the next meeting. Bast stated that the A.R.R.O.W. program is an award program for businesses that recycle or reduce waste and the phone number for people to call for information about the A.R.R.O.W. program is (651) 681 -4611. ADJOURNMENT Chair Patraw moved to adjourn the meeting at 7:30 p.m. It was seconded with all members present voting in favor. Date Secretary