HomeMy WebLinkAbout08-02-11 •
RESOLUTION 08 -02 -11
RESOLUTION SUPPORTING A COAL COMBUSTION WASTE
LONG -TERM DISPOSAL METHOD
WHEREAS; the generation of electricity with coal results in the coal combustion waste
product of fly ash, and
WHEREAS; fly ash is captured from the hot gases from coal combustion that would go
into the air we all breathe, and
WHEREAS; fly ash is made up of many elemental chemicals that should be stored
permanently, and not be released back into the environment, and
WHEREAS; fly ash disposal sites are intended to be permanent, and
WHEREAS; the need to create coal ash storage facilities intended to prevent elemental
. chemicals from reaching the environment for thousands of years can only be eliminated by
reducing society's dependence on coal- generated electricity; and
WHEREAS; the financial health of Xcel Energy is dependent on maintaining and
increasing the sales of electricity, including electricity generated from coal combustion, thereby
creating a perverse incentive that rewards coal ash production and the need for more coal ash
landfills rather than the efficient use of electrical energy, and
WHEREAS; the proposed Xcel Energy basic dry cell construction method with a bottom
clay liner, 60 mil. impervious geomembrane liner, leachate collection system, 40 mil. impervious
geomembrane cap, and monitoring systems, will provide a long -term safe storage solution for
elemental chemicals, and
WHEREAS; the proposed Xcel Energy dry cell construction method must include a
long -term method of testing the storage cell to ensure that no water has entered the cell. The
materials that create the leachate collection system must last many years to determine the
replacement rate of the top impervious cap, and
WHEREAS; if the dry storage cell were to fill with water and leak, the travel time of the
leachate to a detection monitoring well must be designed to be as short as possible, and
WHEREAS; if the dry storage cell were to fill with water and leak, the travel time of the
leachate to a well or surface water body must be as many years as possible.
•
• WHEREAS; Xcel energy and all future owners of Xcel energy are to be liable for the fly
ash disposal site. The State of Minnesota, as grantor of the permit, must monitor the disposal site
in the best interest of the public. Xcel Energy must conform to all applicable current Federal and
State laws governing the disposal of fly ash
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the City of Oak Park Heights proposes
the dry storage method as the best available technology to safely store fly ash for approximately
50 years.
FURTHER BE IT RESOLVED that there is a need to identify critical pathways
associated with failure modes of the engineered or natural barrier systems. To conduct
performance assessments that would demonstrate the probability that contamination would be
contained within the property boundaries at Xcel Energy landfill site, at the 10,000 year mark;
and
FURTHER BE IT RESOLVED that the City of Oak Park Heights recommends that the
incentive structure compensation Xcel Energy for providing electric utility services be reformed
to reward the efficient use of electrical energy, rather that its consumption, including its wasteful
consumption; and
FURTHER BE IT RESOLVED that the City of Oak Park Heights recommends
standards adopted in permit SW -532 as approved in 1998 applied to coal combustion waste
. products used in soils be enforced, and the testing be validated that mercury and lead run -off
meet Federal EPA standards as indicted in permit SW -532 as approved in 1998 must be
completed; and
FURTHER BE IT RESOLVED that the City of Oak Park Heights will continue to
function, with a commitment of ongoing support from Xcel Energy, through the conclusion of
the A.S. King Ash Landfill Sitting Process, for the purpose of ensuring that potential host
communities and the ultimate host community are not isolated, have access to the technical and
analytical expertise required to protect their interests, and that the intent of this Resolution is
fulfilled to the greatest extent possible.
2008. Passed by the City Council for the City of Oak Park Heights this 11 th day of February,
O vidBeaudet- Mayor
es
f ic 4tison, City Administrator