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HomeMy WebLinkAbout20100251 RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS MINUTES BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS WELD COUNTY, COLORADO FEBRUARY 3, 2010 The Board of County Commissioners of Weld County, Colorado, met in regular session in full conformity with the laws of the State of Colorado at the regular place of meeting in the Weld County Centennial Center, Greeley, Colorado, February 3, 2010, at the hour of 9:00 a.m. ROLL CALL: The meeting was called to order by the Chair and on roll call the following members were present, constituting a quorum of the members thereof: Commissioner Douglas Rademacher, Chair Commissioner Barbara Kirkmeyer, Pro-Tem Commissioner Sean P. Conway Commissioner William F. Garcia Commissioner David E. Long Also present: County Attorney, Bruce T. Barker Acting Clerk to the Board, Esther E. Gesick Director of Finance and Administration, Monica Mika MINUTES: Commissioner Conway moved to approve the minutes of the Board of County Commissioners meeting of February 1, 2010, as printed. Commissioner Long seconded the motion, and it carried unanimously. AMENDMENTS TO AGENDA: There were no amendments to the agenda. PUBLIC INPUT: No public input was given. CONSENT AGENDA: Commissioner Conway moved to approve the Consent Agenda as printed. Commissioner Kirkmeyer seconded the motion, and it carried unanimously. COMMISSIONER COORDINATOR REPORTS: There were no Commissioner Coordinator Reports. NEW BUSINESS: CONSIDER REVISIONS TO BYLAWS FOR WELD COUNTY COMMUNITY CORRECTIONS BOARD AND AUTHORIZE CHAIR TO SIGN: Doug Erler, Justice Services, stated he and the County Attorney reviewed the bylaws for overall clarity, and the proposed revisions have been approved by the Community Corrections Board and reviewed by the Commissioners in a work session. Commissioner Garcia moved to approve said revised bylaws. Commissioner Conway seconded the motion, which carried unanimously. CONSIDER REQUEST TO COLORADO AIR QUALITY CONTROL COMMISSION TO POSTPONE IMPLEMENTATION OF IM240 OZONE TESTING PROGRAM IN NORTH FRONT RANGE UNTIL 2013: Bruce Barker, County Attorney, stated this Resolution requests that the testing program be postponed until the Ozone Action Plan is put into effect by the Environmental Protection Agency, Minutes, February 3, 2010 2010-0251 Page 1 BCQ016 'c�`?/Cq 7G) in 2013, in accordance with federal requirements. Mr. Barker stated it makes no sense for Colorado to add both Weld and Larimer Counties now, for the following two reasons: 1) the cost of $5,000.00 per ton is three times more than the next highest amount, which is the most inefficient method of reduction; and 2) the Weld County Tower indicates the numbers are continuing to decline, and, at a time when the public is struggling financially, it does not make sense to require an additional $25.00 per vehicle to test every vehicle at only one of four sites located in two counties. He stated his review of the proposed federal requirements indicates the ozone value will be .06 or .07 parts per million, in which case the Weld County Tower will suddenly be out of compliance. He further stated, following discussion at the status conference, it does not appear that there would be support for removing the two counties. He stated the best thing to do is to postpone until the 2013 Action Plan is put into effect so that all of the methods of reduction may be taken into consideration, rather than piece milling the project through Senate Bill 3. Chair Rademacher commented if the standard drops to .60, two-thirds or three-fourths of the country will be out of compliance, which will be very difficult to enforce. He further stated 60 to 75 percent of the ozone readings are background amounts which are very difficult to track. Mr. Barker agreed and stated the two areas of enforcement will likely be at power plants and the testing of vehicles, although the mobile testing program taking place in northern California has been proven to be totally ineffective. Commissioner Conway stated Senator Chris Romer recently indicated any automobile manufactured after 2003 is passing the test, and it is a known fact that the older vehicles are producing high emissions, and the program is doing nothing to prevent that. He stated the owners simply have to pay a fine and continue to drive and emit at levels 200 times higher than the allowed standard. He stated if the program would truly reduce ozone levels, all participants would be in support; however, he noted a substantial investment was made in Weld County by the oil and gas industry to reduce emissions at their facilities, which resulted in oil and gas ratings that have gone down from .082, in 2006, to .067 in 2009. He stated if the next reading indicates the levels are down to .070, the new EPA standard would still be enforced against the citizens of Weld County despite the proactive and successful measures that have already taken place. Commissioner Garcia commented the program also has a negative impact on the poor and working class members of the community. He stated, unlike automobile collectors, the poor and working class members who own automobiles that do not meet the proposed standards may not have an alternate mode of transportation to get to work, and the fees represent a greater percentage of their salaries, as opposed to those who are in the higher wage brackets. He stated these impacts will be significant in the Greeley and Evans areas, and the fee would be just one more cost to be paid. Commissioner Conway concurred that to impose this program during a time of economic hardship does not make sense. Commissioner Conway moved to approve the Resolution to request the Colorado Air Quality Control Commission Postpone the Implementation of the IM240 Ozone Testing Program in the North Front Range until 2013. Seconded by Commissioner Garcia, the motion carried unanimously. Commissioner Conway also thanked Mr. Barker for his efforts in representing the County throughout this process. Mr. Barker thanked the Board for the recognition, but noted there is still a lot of work to be done. RESOLUTIONS AND ORDINANCES: The resolutions were presented and signed as listed on the Consent Agenda. No Ordinances were approved. Let the minutes reflect that the above and foregoing actions were attested to and respectfully submitted by the Acting Clerk to the Board. Minutes, February 3, 2010 2010-0251 Page 2 BC0016 There being no further business, this meeting was adjourned at 9:13 a.m. BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ELD COUNTY, COLORADO ATTEST: '> ,,- -4----- L/,2 cey Do gl Rademach yChair Weld County Clerk to trek •$ <ry "� Ls. ' 14 �t a ,L J'f AA*"_cs W 1- 4 arbara Kirkmeye Pro-Tem / Deputy Clerk to the Board : , cc --'11- Sean P. Corm, gF. arcia chkA (Co( David E. Long (9\ • Minutes, February 3, 2010 2010-0251 Page 3 BC0016 Hello