21-04-28 EMC minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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b. McIntosh) Chair Adams asked the Director to comment on negotiations going on with the EPA regarding gang cesspools. Director Mansour said we haven’t heard back from them on the NEPA process, so we are waiting on them. We are waiting on some items that we are working on in-house, such as the geotechnical reports. So we are still waiting to see what direction that will go. c. Implementing the goals and priorities of the ISWMP (Requested by Chair Adams) Chair Adams said that one of the things that we’ll be talking to the Director about is how to format a standard template to report progress with the ISWMP. The plan was approved at the last Council meeting, and unfortunately there were several comments about how disappointed the Council was, and having participated on the Solid Waste Advisory Council for a couple of years writing it, she was kind of bummed. But one of the things that she wanted to make happen is for the priorities that are set and the recommendations in the plan are acted upon by the Department. She would like to see a tracking mechanism for what’s happening. She had identified six core actions being taken, education being No. 1, but also re-evaluating the contract with Waste Management Hawai‘i so that they don’t get paid by how much is going into the landfill but to see if we can turn that around and they can get paid for how much they are diverting from the landfill because we are recycling it. There are discussions on that with WMH, and life cycle assessment, so there is some work that is happening already that is starting before the plan is approved. Now we can track it and make sure it isn’t just a plan that we put on the shelf; we are going to report on what is happening or not happening. Commissioner Cardwell agreed, saying that it is important. It goes back to what she said earlier about all these wonderfulideas that sits on a shelf somewhere and there is no action that is taken. Perhaps the Director’s Report could include updates on those six priorities. She would appreciate something like that. 3. Solid Waste Division Projects and Updates Chair Adams noted concern about the decision not to allow trailers at transfer stations for safety reasons, and she understands the Director is looking at what practical options we have. Is there something that the Commission can do about it? Director Mansour said this rule took effect under the last administration. It was supposed to take effect in March and implementation was delayed to get a handle on what is going on. And he discovered that he had no authority to revoke the administrative rule (outside of emergency proclamations or due process) once it is approved. He asked about the reason behind the ban on trailers, which was for safety. He tried to confirm what the initial intent was, and found it is a safety issue. Now we have to go through the legal process. But prior to that first we need to find out if we can remedy the concern. The Safety Committee had recommended a redesign of 19