County also prepares for dispute resolutions board meeting
Koochiching County is one step closer to completing a feasibility study for a proposed plasma gasification project.
The Koochiching Development Authority Board approved Tuesday a professional services agreement with R.W. Beck, an engineering firm that will complete the feasibility study. The agreement will now go to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency for approval.
The feasibility study is intended to determine whether to move forward with the proposal to construct a plasma gasification facility, also known as the Renewable Energy Clean Air Project. The facility would use a plasma arc to vaporize about 100 tons of garbage a day from northern Minnesota and possibly Ontario. Gasifying the waste is considered a green solution to a costly concern.
The KDA already has agreements in place with the MPCA and Coronal, a consulting firm, for completion of the feasibility study. The county is “exceedingly close” to completing an agreement with Westinghouse. Electric Company which provides technology and equipment to the power industry.
A portion of the agreement covers the confidentiality and intellectual property of the information collected by R.W. Beck during the feasibility study. This portion also had to be approved by the Koochiching County Board.
County board Chairman Wade Pavleck expressed concern that if the project fell through, the agreement would prohibit a future county board from using the information.
Commissioner Mike Hanson assured the board that the county owns a large portion of the information that will be investigated during completion of the feasibility study. He also told the board that the agreements have undergone a thorough legal review by attorneys representing Koochiching County, the MPCA, R.W. Beck and Westinghouse.
Meanwhile, county officials are preparing for a municipal dispute resolutions board hearing Friday over a disagreement with the city of International Falls on state highway mileage in the Highway 332 project. The county needs the approval of the city because Highway 332 falls within International Falls’ city lines.
County Highway Engineer Doug Grindall and Pavleck are expected to represent the county at the board, which is made up of a city engineer, a city councilor, a county engineer and a county commissioner from outside Koochiching County. A representative of the Minnesota Department of Transportation is also expected to be included. This is the first time Koochiching County will use the dispute resolutions board.
The county’s plan for the reconstruction of the northern entrance of Highway 332 needs to be approved by International Falls, which has the right to review the plan for up to one year.
The county board agreed Tuesday that Grindall will request during the Friday meeting that approval by International Falls be granted concurrently with the county state aid highway designation.
The approval would ensure that the project is not held up for a year, which puts the federal funding for the project at risk, Pavleck said.
Pavleck said he would like to remind people that the proposed reconstruction is completely paid for through federal funding. Other proposals offered by the Falls City Council are not funded and would impact the residents of International Falls the most, he said.
Commissioner Chuck Lepper said the largest issue in the project is safety of Boise employees and the public and people lose sight of that.
Koochiching County Board news notes
• The Koochiching County Board clarified confusion over the county’s Wetland Flexibility Plan and Ordinance.
The flexibility plan is based on the value of different types of wetlands, Environmental Services Director Richard Lehtinen said. The plan can also greatly reduce the cost for landowners when they need to purchase mitigation credits in projects that disturb wetlands, Board Chairman Wade Pavleck said.
The county board clarified that the plan is approved and supported by the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources, but it is not approved by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
• The board approved a revised veterans service officer position. Because of the level of work and the number of veterans in the community, the position is for 30 hours of work a week.
The board also authorized the filling of the VSO position after the current VSO retires.
• The board approved the call for bids on the Lindford Bridge project. The Lindford Bridge is located over the Bigfork River on Koochiching County Road 1.
County Highway Engineer Doug Grindall said he is “pushing hard” for this project to be completed because the bridge has gusset plates, which is what failed on the Interstate 35W bridge.
The Lindford Bridge is listed as a U.S. historic bridge, which has delayed the project, Grindall said.