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HomeMy WebLinkAbout09-27-2000 Steering Committee MinutesI , , ;:!Li.:D DRAFT IN THE OF F!r;E or n1:: SECRE TARY ORANGE CO UNT'1 :~t>N ITATIO N DISTR ICT MINUTES OF STEERING COMMITTEE MEETING OC T 2 5 2000 Wednesday, September 27, 20QO IW ·~--__ ~.( _ A meeting of the Steering Committee of the Orange County Sanitation District was held on Wednesday, September 27 , 2000 at 5 p.m., in the District's Administrative Office. (1) The roll was called and a quorum declared present, as follows: STEERING COMMITTEE MEMBERS: Directors Present: Norm Eckenrode, Chair Peter Green, Vice Chair Pat McGuigan, Chairman, OMTS Committee Steve Anderson, PDC Committee Tom Saltarelli, Chairman, FAHR Committee Jim Silva, County Supervisor Jan Debay, Past Chair of the Board Directors Absent: (2) APPOINTMENT OF CHAIR PRO TEM No appointment was necessary. (3) PUBLIC COMMENTS OTHERS PRESENT: Tom Nixon, Counsel Don Hughes Brian Walter, Cassidy & Assoc . Mark Reed Jim Colston Bill Lloyd Ryal Wheeler Chuck Lee Jon Thomsic STAFF PRESENT: Blake Anderson, General Manager Bob Ghirelli, Director of Technical Services David Ludwin, Director of Engineering Greg Mathews, Assistant to the General Manager Lisa Lawson, Communications Manager Lisa Tomko, Director of Human Resources Layne Baroldi, Senior Regulatory Specialist Jim Herberg, GWRS Project Manager Jeff Reed, Human Resources Senior Analyst Jean Tappan, Committee Secretary General Manager Blake Anderson recognized Jim Colston and Jon Thomsic, members of the SPMT Group, who addressed the Committee regarding their group's concerns with additional delays approving the tentative agreement reached with the District's negotiators in July. They asked that the members consider sending the tentative agreement to the full Board at tonight's meeting rather than going back to the FAHR Committee for further discussion . Minutes of the Steering Committee Page 2 September 27, 2000 (4) RECEIVE. FILE AND APPROVE MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING The minutes of the August 23, 2000 Steering Committee meeting were approved as drafted. (5) REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE CHAIR Committee Chair Eckenrode reported on his trip to Wash ington, DC for the signing ceremony for a memorandum of understanding regarding participation in the Santa Ana River Watershed Group efforts to secure matching federal funding for infrastructure needs in the watershed. Chair Eckenrode thought that the program was well-received by the legislators in attendance . (6) REPORT OF THE GENERAL MANAGER A. General Manager Blake Anderson reported on two workshops that the District sponsored. Capacity Maintenance, Operation and Management (CMOM) of City-owned Local Sewers. This all-day workshop was held in Garden Grove on September 20. Over 100 people attended. There appears to be very little local agency understanding of what the regulations will mean to the cities in Orange County and staff. OCSD, with assistance from state and EPA representatives , attempted to clarify some of the issues. Director McGuigan reported that she attended this workshop and it was an eye- opener. The fines tied to sewer spills could be overwhelming for cities with aging systems. She complimented Nick Arhontes for his presentation on what the cities will have to do in order to comply with the regulations as they are now drafted. She recommended that a presentation on this subject be made to all Board members because the impacts could be staggering and cities should begin this planning effort now and work cooperatively with all agencies involved. Mr. Anderson reported that staff is preparing a white paper that will be presented to all the working committees and will serve as the basis for our outreach program with city managers. He stated that it is unclear when the draft regulations will appear in the Federal Register. CASA and AMSA will be closely monitoring this with us. Spill Response Seminar. On September 26, 225 people attended this workshop, which was held in Fountain Valley. The objective was to educate local agency representatives on how to prevent and respond to spills. Mr. Anderson reported that the Grand Jury will be making a report on what should be done to improve the environment and this subject will be included. The Grand Jury will be meeting with staff on follow-up issues , as well as returning to the District for a plant tour B. GWRS-related Issues: Minutes of the Steering Committee Page 3 September 27, 2000 1. 2. 3. Lisa Lawson reported that the GWRS Joint Coordinating Committee formed a Public Information Subcommittee, to focus on outreach for the project before the January go/no go votes by the board. Two workshops for Directors to provide progress updates. The next workshop is scheduled on Saturday, October 7, the focus will be on wrapping up the technical issues. The second workshop is scheduled for Saturday, December 2, where there will be a general overview for newly-appointed representatives and an updated project cost estimate will be discussed. Four public workshops (three evening and one during the day) are being scheduled in November. Director Green suggested that one workshop be held in Huntington Beach. Monthly updates, similar to those given to the PDC Committee, will be provided to the Board beginning in October. Letters will be sent to the mayors of all cities asking that changes in representation on the District Board of Directors be made early enough so that a newly-appointed member has time to learn about the project before the project "go-no go" decision at the January 24, 2001 Board meeting. I Jim Herberg reported on the steps remaining before making the final decision in January. The focus is finalizing the research and technology reports, developing a final cost estimate, defining governance and financing issues. Mr. Anderson reported on a staff report presented to a committee of the IRWD Board that recommends a different approach than currently being considered. Staff will be meeting with IRWD to discuss the concerns about risk expressed in that report. C. Kern County Update. Blake Anderson reported that he will be attending a workshop tomorrow in Sacramento with dairy, agricultural, urban regulatory and environmental interests discussing problems with organic wastes disposal state-wide. Biosolids, manure, agricultural waste and urban green waste will be discussed. This is the beginning of a dialogue between the various groups. Layne Baroldi reported that on August 23, 2000, the Notice of Determination was filed on the state's General Order EIR regarding land application of biosolids and the 30- day challenge period started. Staff is not aware of any challenges filed to date, though indications are that Kern County and the Central Delta Water Agency may file. Counsel Tom Nixon reported that a day-long court hearing was held August 30 on the Kern County Biosolids Ordinance CEQA process. The judge indicated that a tentative decision would favor Kern County. However, after hearing our arguments, the judge indicated that he would take the matter under submission. To date, the court has not made a final decision. The court is customarily required to render a decision within 120 days of a hearing . Minutes of the Steering Committee Page4 September 27, 2000 Mr. Baroldi indicated that Kings County is also considering a new biosolids ordinance and outlined the draft terms that are favorable to the continued use of Class B biosolids. The Kings County Farm Bureau has asked staff to make a presentation on land application of biosolids. An internal memorandum of support for applying biosolids to land was written by one of the major farmers in Kings County. Upon questioning, staff indicated that moving from Class B to Class A biosolids for land applications would cost about $1 Olton or more, depending on the technology utilized, for an additional cost of at least $2.5 million per year. The Kings County draft ordinance is considering three different boundaries for restricting the application of biosolids. The District's parcel and parcels owned by other biosolids users are not excluded by any of the three boundary lines. The appraiser has submitted an estimate of $40,000 for the McCarthy Farms compost facility. Staff will be seeking additional proposals for the appraisal. D. SARI Line Relocation Update. Mr. Anderson reported that a professional services agreement has been awarded and several coordination teams are working on it. Twenty-two permits have been identified for the project. SAWPA continues to raise issues regarding cost of the project and we will be open to considering their suggestions. The target completion is 2003. State subvention funds are being considered, which could provide up to 70% state and federal funding. (7) REPORT OF GENERAL COUNSEL Counsel Tom Nixon indicated a need to add one item to the closed session that needed immediate attention, which arose subsequent to the posting of the agenda, to wit: a settlement offer for a worker's compensation claim filed by District employee Larry McLemore. Mr. Nixon reported that an additional item could be added pursuant to Government Code Section 54954 .2(b) upon a two-thirds vote of the Committee. No other item could be discussed or acted upon. A motion was made, seconded and duly carried to add Agenda Item No. 13(b ), pursuant to authority of Government Code Section 54954.2 to authorize discussion and consideration of the following item which arose subsequent to the posting of the agenda and which requires action at this time, to wit: Larry McLemore v. Orange County Sanitation District, WCAB Nos. LAO 763673; 675 (Government Code Section 54956.9). Mr. Nixon also reported that the Montrose trial is scheduled to begin October 3, 2000. (8) DISCUSSION ITEMS (Items A-B) A. The Committee agreed with staff's recommendation that working committees would not meet in January 2001. This will allow staff a break in the agenda process. Minutes of the Steering Committee Page 5 September 27, 2000 B. The Agenda Items scheduled to be reviewed by the Board's working committees in October were reviewed. Because many of the listed OMTS Committee items were moved, OMTS Committee Chair recommended canceling the October 4 meeting and that the start time for the November 1 OMTS Committee meeting be changed to 4 p.m. This will allow time for a tour before the meeting. (9) OTHER BUSINESS, COMMUNICATIONS OR SUPPLEMENTAL AGENDA ITEMS. IF ANY There was no other business discussed. (10) MATTERS WHICH A DIRECTOR WOULD LIKE STAFF TO REPORT ON AT A SUBSEQUENT MEETING Director Green asked that staff provide an update on the experts report on the problems at Huntington Beach. Staff will make presentations at all of the committees in October or November. (11) MATTERS WHICH A DIRECTOR MAY WISH TO PLACE ON A FUTURE AGENDA FOR ACTION AND/OR STAFF REPORT There were none. (12) CONSIDERATION OF UPCOMING MEETINGS The next Steering Committee meeting is scheduled for October 25, 2000 at 5 p.m. The next Board Meeting is scheduled for October 25, 2000 at 7 p.m. (13) CLOSED SESSION The Committee convened in closed session at 6:25 p.m ., pursuant to Government Code Sections 54957.6 and 54956.9. Confidential minutes of the closed session held by the Steering Committee have been prepared in accordance with California Government Code Section 54957.2 and are maintained by the Board Secretary in the Official Book of Confidential Minutes of Board and Committee Closed Meetings. A report of actions taken will be publicly reported at the time the approved action becomes final re agenda items Nos. 13(a) and 13(b ). At 7:04p.m., the Committee reconvened in regular session. Minutes of the Steering Committee Page 6 September 27, 2000 (14) ADJOURNMENT The Chair declared the meeting adjourned at 7:04 p.m . H :\wp.dta \agen da\Steering Committee\00\Sep00\092700 SC Minutes.doc