The Minnesota Pollution Control
Agency (MPCA) has proposed a cleanup plan for the Joslyn Manufacturing &
Supply Company Superfund site, located in Brooklyn Center. Members of the
community are encouraged to review the plan and comment on it. Comments will be
accepted through May 5, 2017.
The Joslyn Superfund site is
located in Brooklyn Center, east of Middle Twin Lake and northwest of the
intersection of Azelia Avenue North and Lakebreeze Avenue North. The site has
been listed on federal and state Superfund lists since the mid-1980s, as a
result of contamination in soil and groundwater from wood-treating chemicals.
The majority of the site has already been cleaned up. However, some
contamination remains in the portion closest to Middle Twin Lake.
Having studied several
alternatives, the MPCA is proposing a cleanup plan that includes digging up the
contaminated soil, trucking some of the soil to a landfill off site, and
placing the remainder of the soil in a mound on site under a clean soil cap.
More information about the site
is posted online. Formal
comments must be submitted in writing to Andri Dahlmeier at andri.dahlmeier@state.mn.us or by
mail to Andri Dahlmeier, MPCA, 520 Lafayette Rd. N, St. Paul, MN 55155.
Dahlmeier is available to answer questions at 651-757-2718.
The State of Minnesota will receive $47 million over the next 10
years through a settlement
with Volkswagen over
allegations that the company violated the federal Clean Air Act by selling
vehicles that emit air pollution over the legal limit.
The settlement includes a list of eligible project
categories, which includes replacing or retrofitting older heavy-duty diesel
engines with cleaner technology and developing electric vehicle infrastructure.
The comment period has been extended to June 30. Comments may be emailed to vwsettlement.pca@state.mn.us.
Hennepin County is involved in efforts to improve air
quality as a member of Clean Air
Minnesota, a coalition of business, government and nonprofit leaders
working to reduce air pollution.
For large quantity, small quantity and very
small quantity hazardous waste generators, annual generator licenses are valid
from May 1 of the license year through April 30 of the following year. To be
eligible to receive a Hennepin County hazardous waste generator license that is
effective on May 1, you must submit a hazardous waste management plan
summary and pay your license fee.
Generator licenses are created for eligible
generators beginning in mid-April. Once your license is created, the person
designated as administrator in the hazardous waste portal will be notified
via email that your license can be printed from the portal. You must print
your license and post it at the licensed site.
The following is a guide to when licenses will
be available in 2017, based on when your payment is posted:
- Payment posted on or before March 31: license created
mid-April
- Payment posted April 1 to 16: License created first
working day in May
- Payment posted April 17 to May 16: License created
first working day in June
-
Payment posted after May 16: Licenses continue to be
created for eligible generators on the first working day of each
subsequent month
See
the licensing schedule and fees for more information
about the licensing process.
If
you are a minimal generator, you are not subject to the same annual licensing
process as the larger generator sizes.
Instead, you are issued a license that is valid for a five year license
period. The current license period for
minimal generators began on January 1, 2015, and runs through December 31,
2019.
A
minimal generator that is registered in our customer portal may log into the
portal and view the wastes covered by their license, they may add new wastes to
their license, they may review and update the contact person information for
their operation and they may print a copy of their current (2015) license. Information for how to register in the
customer portal was sent out to all minimal generators when the 2015 licenses
were issued (see the back side of the license).
Hennepin County recognizes generators and facilities for having a hazardous waste program that is in full compliance with hazardous waste rules and regulations.
Since August 2016, the county has conducted 58 inspections where generators have been in full compliance. The no violations listing not only shows that it is possible for any size generator and facility to be in full compliance at the time of the inspection, but that it also happens with some frequency.
Click here to see the list of the 58 generators.
Hennepin County maintains a list of enforcement outcomes from
hazardous waste violations on our website to reinforce the importance of
compliance with hazardous waste and tank regulations. The list includes
recently resolved civil and criminal cases, including fines and penalties
assessed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Minnesota Pollution
Control Agency or Hennepin County. All of the cases originated from violations
found during hazardous waste generator, hazardous waste facility or tank
inspections at businesses in Hennepin County.
The county has resolved four enforcement cases and one
restitution case for hazardous waste violations since August 2016.
See
the list of enforcement outcomes from August 2016 to April 2017.
If you have any questions regarding compliance with
environmental regulations or wish to report a violation, call 612-348-3777 and
ask for the environmental specialist on call or email environment@hennepin.us.
Discounts are available to small businesses that switch from a
petroleum-solvent parts washer to an aqueous-based parts washer. Switching to
aqueous-based parts washers reducing emissions of volatile organic compounds
(VOCs), which contribute to ground-level ozone or smog.
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency has partnered with
Safety-Kleen to offer a 25 percent discount, and businesses located in
Minneapolis can get an additional 20 percent off.
Small businesses are those with 100 or fewer employees, and
special consideration will be given to businesses located in environmental
justice areas of concern. These are determined using the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency’s EJSCREEN tool.
Businesses are encouraged to take advantage of this opportunity
soon as it will only be available for a limited time. Learn
more, or contact your local Safety-Kleen location or Eric David at
the MPCA (eric.david@state.mn.us or 651-757-2218) to participate.
The
Hennepin County Hazardous Waste Customer Portal was developed and implemented in 2013. This project created a
"Public Portal" into the commercial hazardous waste generator
database, providing hazardous waste generators (generators) with the ability to
view and print a real-time record of their annual report (Management Plan
Summary), an invoice, or their current hazardous waste license. Today, over 99%
of our generators are able to submit disclosure forms for new wastes not
covered by their existing license and edit, sign and submit their annual report
electronically.
The
next phase of development will be to incorporate inspection
response capabilities. The Inspection Response Manager will
give generators capabilities to conduct business related to their hazardous
waste compliance inspections. Generators will be able to use the Hazardous
Waste Portal to:
- Review inspection compliance orders
- Submit compliance order responses and
- Send and receive other inspection correspondence
We
envision implementing these changes within the next two years. We hope to
reduce the time necessary to resolve corrective actions, improve the overall
response rate for generators and provide generators with the ability to
directly monitor the status of their inspection responses.
The Recycling Association of Minnesota and the Solid Waste
Association of North America, Land of Lakes Chapter, have hosted the very
successful and well attended RAM/SWANA conference for twenty two years. This
year's conference will be held on October 16 & 17 at the Minneapolis
Marriott NW, located in Brooklyn Park, MN. The hazardous waste pre-conference training event will be
held on October 16.
For more information visit the RAM/SWANA
website.
Did you know that operations are required to notify Hennepin
County when they move, shut down or undergo an ownership change? Failing to
report these licensing changes creates delays in issuing new generator licenses,
creates more work for licensing staff, and often causes Hennepin County to
initiate enforcement procedures. To make these reporting requirements easier,
Hennepin County has created the following e-forms that are also available
on our website.
Hennepin County has created an iCalendar feed to help you
remember generator licensing deadlines, including due dates for management plan
summaries, license payments and when your new generator license must be
posted.
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