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Joint powers board close to reality
Published 04:41 p.m., October 20, 2009
It’s three down and one to go for establishment of the Prairie Lakes Municipal Solid Waste Authority (PLMSWA) that would oversee operations of the refuse burner in Perham.
On Tuesday the Otter Tail County Board of Commissioners signed an official letter of intent to participate. Becker and Todd counties already have done so and Wadena County is expected to the sign the letter of intent today (Wednesday).
The refuse burner in Perham is technically referred to as the Perham Resource Recovery Facility (PRRF).
“The next step would be for the Solid Waste Authority to acquire the refuse burner from the City of Perham,” said Otter Tail County Board Chairman Everett Erickson. “After the acquisition, the counties (Otter Tail, Becker, Todd and Wadena) would decide whether to expand the capacity of the burner.”
Becker County, which includes the City of Detroit Lakes, would likely haul refuse to the burner at Perham. Becker County would replace Stearns County (St. Cloud area) whose contract expired Sept. 1.
If it’s determined that the expansion of the capacity of the refuse burner would best service the long term waste management goals of the member counties, the PLMSWA (joint powers board) would determine whether the project would include the expansion of combustion capacity, the addition of a Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) or possibly both.
The state of Minnesota already has pledged $2.8 million for any expansion project. More funds will be solicited Thursday, Oct. 29, when members of the State Senate Investment Committee hold a meeting in Perham. Members of the county board, specifically Doug Huebsch and Roger Froemming, will be in attendance.
“The goal on the 29th will be to show solidarity on the part of Otter Tail and the other three counties,” said Huebsch. “We need to show the state legislature, MPCA and other entities that we’re making progress.”
Huebsch said the MPCA supports an expansion of the refuse burner.
“That’s important,” he said, “especially as we move forward into what’s in the best interests of the members of the Prairie Lakes Municipal Solid Waste Authority (PLMSWA). Working together, we’ll get things done.”
The group's mission statement is to, “engage in a waste management system that is safe, efficient, and provides for the management and disposal of solid waste in a manner that protects the natural environment, its citizens, its employees and is committed to preserving this quality of life for people and the environment."
Discussion has been evolving since 2001 when the refuse burner in Perham was first retrofitted and reopened, through 2004 when the Fergus Falls Resource Recovery Facility was closed, and on into 2009 when Steams County exercised its contractual option to no longer remain a partner in the project.
“As this process moves forward, it will likely open opportunities for the counties to collaborate in other areas with regard to solid waste management,” said County Board Chairman Erickson. “It’s the vision of the counties that by, collaborating in the future, there should be opportunities to develop synergy and efficiency by utilizing regional solid waste management.”
Erickson said that the joint powers board strategic plan will be presented in
the future for discussion, review and approval. This plan, he said, will include
several phases with opportunities throughout this process for the participating counties to make decisions which could carry the authority on to the next phase of operations.
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