HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes City Council - 09/12/2000 - WorkshopI HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing is a true and correct copy of the minutes of the City
Council Workshop of the City of Corpus Christi of September 12, 2000, which were approved by
the City Council on September 19, 2000.
WITNESSETH MY HAND AND SEAL, this 19th day of September, 2000.
Armando Chapa
City Secretary
SEAL
MINUTES
CITY OF CORPUS CHRISTI, TEXAS
City Council Workshop
September 12, 2000
12:05 p.m.
PRESENT
Mayor Samuel L. Neal Jr.
Council Members:
Javier D. Colmenero
Henry Garrett
Dr. Arnold Gonzales
Rex A. Kinnison
Betty Jean Longoria
John Longoria
Mark Scott
ABSENT
Mayor Pro Tem Melody Cooper
City Staff:
City Manager David R. Garcia
Deputy City Manager George Noe
City Attorney James R. Bray Jr.
City Secretary Armando Chapa
Recording Secretary Rachelle P. Ramon
Mayor Neal called the workshop to order in the Basement Training Room of City Hall. City
Secretary Chapa checked the roll and verified that the necessary quorum of the Council and the
required charter officers were present.
City Manager Garcia said the City of Corpus Christi --and virtually every other city in the
nation --has historical landfills that exist throughout the community. He said those landfills have been
generating interest and he said there were several people at the workshop who will address the issue.
Mr. Ron Massey, Assistant City Manager for Public Works and Utilities, introduced Mr. Buddy
Stanley, Regional Director of the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission (TNRCC).
Utilizing a computer presentation, Mr. Stanley said that during the 73rd session of the Texas
Legislature, HB2537 was passed relating to closed and abandoned landfills. As a result, there was
a change in the Health and Safety Code which mandated that the Councils of Governments (COGs)
carry out a state-wide inventory of all closed or abandoned landfills. He said the TNRCC contracted
with Southwest Texas State University (SWTSU) to conduct the inventory, which is ongoing.
Mr. Stanley said the COGs are responsible for verifying the information prepared by SWTSU
and once they are sure of the locations of the historical landfill sites, they notify the landowner and
the County Clerk, who in turn records on the deed record specific information, such as the site
history and current status. He said TNRCC also has regulations regarding closed landfills, which he
briefly explained. Responding to Council Member Betty Jean Longoria, Mr. Stanley said the
restrictions for the landfills vary.
Mr. Stanley said several different types of investigations may be conducted on closed
landfills, including tests on the groundwater, exposed waste, and leachate; test for the presence of
Minutes - City Council Workshop
September 12, 2000
Page 2
methane; and observe whether there are any structures on or near the landfill. He said many times
the TNRCC will ask the landowner to conduct those tests, which the TNRCC will then review. The
data is compared and evaluated and corrective measures are taken if necessary.
Responding to Council Members Colmenero and Gonzales, Mr. Stanley said that on
September 21-23, 2000, the TNRCC and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will conduct
tests at the Greenwood and Cunningham sites. Those tests will include soil gas surveys and methane
tests to a depth of 18 inches. Mrs. Longoria asked if the TNRCC will continue to monitor those sites.
Mr. Stanley said if no problems are indicated after the tests are conducted, the agency will not return
to those sites on a regular basis. He added that the landowner has an obligation to ensure that the
current conditions remain the same. In reply to Mayor Neal, Mr. Stanley said that prior to the passage
of the Texas Solid Waste Disposal Act in 1969, there were no regulations for closing landfills. He
also responded to additional Council questions.
Mr. Steve Pike, a toxicologist with the TNRCC, discussed risk assessment, which is a four -
step process: data collection, exposure assessment, toxicity evaluation, and risk characterization. He
said the process for data collection is to combine data from available site investigations, develop a
sampling and analysis plan, and evaluate the quality of the data.
Mr. Pike also described the process used in the exposure assessment of both residential and
commercial/industrial scenarios: characterize the physical setting; identify potentially exposed
human receptors; identify potential exposure pathways; estimate exposure concentrations; and
estimate the chemical intake by a person. The toxicity assessment involves identifying the
appropriate exposure periods; determining the toxicity value based on the review of scientific
literature; and include uncertainty factors. Mr. Pike also gave examples to illustrate that toxic doses
vary across substances. He said risk characterization entails reviewing toxicity/exposure assessment
outputs and characterizing the potential for adverse health effects.
Mr. Massey then presented a slide show given by the Texas Department of Health (TDH)
during a public hearing on July 18th. The TDH presentation discussed the former Chula Vista
Landfill, which was operated from the 1940s-1952, and the Villarreal/Greenwood Landfill, which
was open from 1940-1965. Based on available information, the contents of those landfills include
household garbage, yard waste, construction materials, and probably other materials such as
batteries, motor oil, antifreeze, paint, solvents, and household chemicals.
In the presentation it was noted that the key question is: are people being exposed to
chemicals (now or in the past) from those former landfills? The word "exposure" was defined as
contact with chemicals, and the TDH presentation discussed three different exposure pathways: air
(indoors and outdoors), soil, and water (surface water, groundwater, and drinking water). Each
potential pathway is examined for the duration of exposure and the frequency of exposure.
Mr. Kim McGuire, director of the city's Department of Environmental Services, said that
with regard to air emissions from landfills, the major concern is methane gas, which could pose an
explosive hazard inside buildings over a landfill. He noted that, according to the EPA, most of the
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September 12, 2000
Page 3
methane in a landfill is released within 30 years, while the decomposition rate of the landfill depends
on the amount of organic material and the amount of moisture.
Regarding potential exposure from water pathways, Mr. McGuire said the TDH noted that
Corpus Christi's drinking water comes from its reservoirs (Lake Corpus Christi and Choke Canyon
Reservoir), and there are no private or city water wells within one mile of the landfill areas
discussed. In addition, the groundwater in this area is too salty to drink and there is not enough flow
in the groundwater for a well to operate.
Mr. Steve Ashley, of the COG, discussed that agency's efforts in identifying closed landfills
in its 12 -county region. He said that inventory involves establishing the site history and current status
(if known) of landfills; determining the location and boundary description of the landfills; identifying
the current owner(s) of the land on which the landfill units were located; and determining what the
land is currently being used for.
Mr. McGuire then discussed the city's approach in this process: build on the COG research;
continue to develop the geographic information system (GIS) record of historical dumpsites;
consolidate and share dumpsite information; comply with applicable regulations; cooperate with
regulatory agencies; and support the TDI-UEPA investigation. Mr. McGuire also demonstrated how
the GIS system is assisting in the investigation, including with a stormwater drainage project taking
place at Evelyn Price Park, which is a known historical dumpsite. Mr. McGuire and Mr. Massey also
responded to Council members' questions.
Mr. McGuire said the TDH/EPA investigation included the citizen meeting held July 18th,
the publication of a TDH newsletter, the health survey that was conducted, and field work by the
EPA, TNRCC, CCISD, and the city. Once the results of the September 21-23 study are evaluated,
another citizen meeting will be held before the end of the year. Mr. Stanley also responded to
specific questions about the tests that will be conducted near Garcia Elementary and Cunningham
Middle School. He noted that the studies can only address present-day conditions near those areas.
The question was raised about including Price Park in that study, and Mayor Neal said they could
have staff draft a letter regarding that issue.
There being no further business to come before the Council, Mayor Neal adjourned the
workshop at 1:25 p.m. on September 12, 2000.
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