Agenda - Environmental Policy Board - 01/05/2015

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CLOSED LAN DR LL USE PLAN ANOKA -RAM SEY LANDR LL INTRODUCTION In 1994, the Minnesota Legislature adopted the Landfill Cleanup Act (LCA) (Minn. Flat. 1156.39- 1156.45) which created the Closed Landfill Program (CIP). Under the CLP, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (M PCA) is responsible for the cleanup and longterm care of 112 dosed, municipal, solid waste landfills throughout the State. The mission of the C1Pisto manage the risk to public health and the environment that isassociated with these landfills. Landfill gas migration and groundwater contamination can be serious issues at some landfills. These problems can pose athreat to the health and safety of those living or occupying land nearby. In addition, chemicals leaching from landfills can degrade groundwater and surface water resources surrounding them. The M PCAaddressesthe risk to public health and the environment at the dosed landfills by undertaking cleanup actions, operating and maintaining remediation systems (engineered covers, gas - collection and groundwater - treatment systems) and by monitoring groundwater, surface water, and landfill gas. The risk to public health and safety isalso mitigated by implementing land -use controlsthat minimize public exposure to landfill hazards and protect the state's response action equipment. In other words, future use of land at and around closed landfills needsto be planned carefully and responsibly. Minnesota Statutes 1158.412, Sjbd. 9 of the LCA requiresthe M PCAto develop a Land Use Ran for each of these landfillsand for local government units(LGUs) to make their local land use plansconsistent with the WCA's plan for the site. Minnesota Statutes 115B.412, Sjbd. 4 requiresthe M PCAto provide LGUscertain information about the landfill and to incorporate this information into their local land use planning. These statutesare provided in Appendix A. The M PCA considersthese statutory requirements, when put together, as a Qosed Landfill Use Ran (CLUP). The purpose, then, for preparing a CLUPfor each landfill isto: • protect the integrity of the landfill's remediation and monitoring systems; • protect human health and public safety at each landfill; and • accommodate local government needsand desiresfor land use at the qualified facility with consideration for health and safety requirements. To meet the requirementsof subdivision 9 of the statute, LGUsthat have land -use authority must make their land -use plans for the landfill consistent with the WCA's plan for future use of, and obligations for, the facility. One way to a000mplish this is for LGUsto make certain that their land -use designations and /or zoning ordinances are compatible with the WCA's future responsibilities and uses for the Land Management Area. To meet the requirements of subdivision 4 of the statute, LGUs must consider the information about the landfill's contamination and methane gas migration in its land -use planning and also make this information available to those that want to develop the affected property. Also, LGUs may wish to adopt certain land -use controls in order to better protect public health and safety.