Agenda - Environmental Policy Board - 09/16/2019

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5.01: Review of MN Brightfields Workshop on the Potential of Solar Development at the Closed Landfill Site City Planner Anderson presented the staff report. He reported that the City hosted a workshop on July 17-18 focused on development of solar energy systems on Closed Landfill Sites across the state and more specifically, the Closed Landfill Site (CLS) in Ramsey, located west of Sunfish Lake Boulevard, north of Sunwood Drive, and south of Alpine Park. The workshop was organized by Metropolitan Council staff in response to Ramsey's Closed Landfill Site being selected by the Council of Development Finance Agencies (CDFA) Brownfields Technical Assistance Program for further analysis (at no cost to the City). The intention of the workshop was to explore what potential obstacles there may be to develop solar on a CLS and identify possible solutions. The workshop also included a site visit to Ramsey' CLS. City Planner Anderson stated that overall, the workshop seemed very well received with a lot of enthusiasm from all attendees about the possibilities of utilizing CLS across the state for solar energy development. There is a broader study that has also been funded by the state legislature for the State of Minnesota Environmental Quality Board (EQB) to conduct further analysis on siting solar development and greenhouse gas mitigation on CLS across the state. The study should be completed sometime in 2020. City Councilmember Musgrove stated that the CLS is within her Ward and asked if there would be notice provided to residents in that area prior to a possible rezoning. City Planner Anderson confirmed that any zoning amendment would require publication in the local newspaper to alert the residents of a public hearing conducted by the Planning Commission prior to moving to the City Council. He reiterated that currently there are no projects proposed for the site. City Councilmember Musgrove stated that there are some new concerns arising with toxic waste generated from panels used in solar energy. She stated that she would also be interested in possible runoff from the site into the nearby lake. Chairperson Valentine stated that if there is anything the Board can do to assist in moving things along, should a possible project arise, staff should bring that to the Board. 5.02: Consider Opportunity to Apply for Grant Funding for Water Efficiency City Planner Anderson presented the staff report. He stated that the Metropolitan Council is offering grants from $2,000 to $50,000 to municipal water suppliers to help increase water efficiency in their communities by lowering the cost for residents to purchase and install products that reduce water use including toilets, washing machines, and irrigation sprinklers and controllers. Municipalities may use grant funds to fund rebates to residents who replace inefficient water -using devices with approved devices that use substantially less water, or for irrigation system audits. The Metropolitan Council administered a water efficiency grant program during the 2015-2017 biennium using $500,000 from the Clean Water Fund, which yielded an estimated total savings of 52 million gallons of water per year. This grant program requires that products be labeled by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's WaterSense program or, in the case of washing machines, by the U.S. Department of Energy's Energy Star program. Grant funds can only be Environmental Policy Board / August 19, 2019 Page 2 of 4