2020-07-22 Meeting Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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Commissioner Gaffney said he believes state law already provides the authority for ESPCs and that Honolulu and Maui are already moving forward with large ESPCs, so he does not understand why it is taking our county so long to get to the same place. Director Kucharski said he is not familiar with those ESPCs, but Hawaiʻi County’s wastewater fees are signiﬁcantly lower than any of the other counties’ fees. He is more than happy to check with the other counties about their ESPCs. Chair Pequeño said a way the commission could support the department is to urge the county administration to explore the scope of the ESPCs the other counties have been working towards. They could explain how it would benefit DEM’s operations and services. Commissioner Gaffney said this needs to remain as a continuous agenda item, because the conversation needs to move forward between DEM and R&D. They also need to learn about the other counties’ ESPCs, and as a reminder, Hawaiʻi County has used ESPCs in the past. Chair Pequeño said for the next meeting they could ask Steve Holmes to provide a presentation on ESPCs, and they could also invite R&D and Finance to be part of the presentation. Commissioner Gaffney said he would like Riley Saito to give input on how the county has used ESPCs in the past and what he sees as hindering them from being used for wastewater management on the Big Island. Chair Pequeño said he would have an invitation sent to Riley Saito. 7. REPORTS/CORRESPONDENCE: Director’s Informational Report. • There is still a delay in the Kealakehe R-1 upgrade due to the EIS being held up for cultural review. SHPD approved the AIS but had some comments, so responses are being drafted. The design is mostly complete, but how construction is bid out will be an issue. • About 1,200 sleeve packs for the collection system along Aliʻi Drive have been ordered. These packs will go inside the piping system to stop leaks and reduce I&I. They are formalizing the repair of all the Aliʻi Drive forcemain systems. The sleeves are an interim solution, as the entire system is old and needs to be replaced. • There was a break at the Keopu Pump Station earlier this month. It was 12 hours before the break was reported. They were able to divert around it and repair the break, which was caused by an old repair sleeve on the forcemain. They will be replacing about 50 feet of piping and checking the rest of the system with cameras. • Scrap metal and white goods collection has resumed. It was closed earlier during the pandemic due to a shortage of drivers and other personnel. The mayor has approved new driver positions, and they will be in the process of hiring soon. • On the recycling overview requested by Commissioner McIntosh, he would propose deferring it until the next meeting and having George Hayducsko, their Recycling Coordinator, do a presentation. 8