HomeMy WebLinkAboutWastewater Volume Review Metropolitan Council
Working for the Region, Planning for the Future
June 7, 1999 Environmental Services
Flamingo Wire, Inc.
2687 Wayzata Boulevard
Orono, MN 55356
ATTN: Chuck Guerin
Re: Wastewater Volume Review for Permit Number 1052 Located at 2687 Wayzata Boulevard
As part of the MCES Service Availability Charge (SAC) policy, all industries holding an Industrial
Discharge Permit are subject to a wastewater volume review one year prior to the expiration of
their permit. SAC is a "connection" fee which has been levied since 1973 for new connections or
increased volume discharged by existing users to the Metropolitan Disposal System (MDS). SAC
revenue is used to pay for the unused reserve capacity portion of debt service for capital
improvements.
The wastewater volume review serves as a method for detecting wastewater volume increases from
a facility. Current wastewater volumes are converted to a SAC equivalent and compared to a SAC
baseline value. Any increases over the baseline value, or the value for SAC credits, whichever is
greater, have the potential to be assessed SAC.
Three years ago, the fust wastewater volume review for your facility took place. At that time,
wastewater volumes from your facility were noted to be above SAC baseline and/or SAC credit
levels. Additional SAC was purchased for the increased volume. The additional purchased units
were added to your baseline value. This has now become the "modified" SAC baseline value for
your facility.
For Flamingo Wire, Inc., the second wastewater volume review for your facility has been
completed, and a preliminary evaluation of wastewater flows indicates an increased use of the
sanitary sewer, above the modified baseline value, equivalent to 2 SAC units. Please refer to the
attached worksheet for the results of the review.
Based on the 1999 SAC rate of$1,050 per unit, this increase will result in a charge of$2,100 due
at the time of permit renewal.
A follow-up letter will be mailed to you four months prior to permit renewal describing two options
regarding a potential SAC purchase. The first option will be to purchase SAC based on the
preliminary volume review results and SAC rate described above and in the attached worksheet.
The second option will be to conduct a 30-day wastewater volume study to determine the updated
SAC equivalent of wastewater flows. The SAC rate applied to the results of the 30-day volume
study will be the rate in effect at the start of the study. The 1999 SAC rate is $1,050 per unit.
(The volume study option will be beneficial to your company if you choose to initiate
wastewater reduction measures to reduce or eliminate the amount of SAC due.)
230 East Fifth Street St. Paul. Minnesota 55101-1626 (651)602-1005 Fax 602-1183 TDD/TTY 229-3760
An Equal Opportunity Employer
Chuck Guerin
June 7, 1999
page 2
With either option, a SAC Purchase Form will be enclosed with your industry's renewed Industrial
Discharge Permit stating the amount of SAC due, if a SAC purchase is required. It should be
noted that some cities use SAC determinations to assess municipal impact or connection fees which
are exclusive of the SAC charge. If you are unsure as to whether or not these fees are applicable in
your city, you should call the city offices to inquire. At this time, no money should be sent to
our offices. SAC payment shall be made to the city at the time of permit renewal using the SAC
Purchase Form.
During December, 1998, the Metropolitan Council adopted changes to the SAC program.
Legislative approval is required before the policy changes would be implemented in January of
2000. Please be aware of the fact that the information contained in this letter is accurate under the
current SAC policy. You will be notified in the future of any change in policy which might effect
the status of this or future SAC reviews.
Minnesota Technical Assistance Program (MnTAP) offers assistance to industries with
pollution prevention concerns, including the reduction of wastewater volumes. The services
provided by MnTAP are free. For more information, call MnTAP at (612) 627-4646.
If you have any questions, please call Roger S. Tan at(651) 602-4736.
Sincerely,
gvv)-��
Leo H. Hermes, P.E.
Industrial Waste Manager
MCES Industrial Waste Section
Enclosure
cc: Lyle Oman, City of Orono
Sandy Selby, MCES
Roger S. Tan, MCES
LHH:rjg
Metropolitan Council
Environmental Services
Wastewater Volume Review
Industrial Discharge Permit Renewal
Company Name Flamingo Wire, Inc.
Permit Number 1052
Permit Expiration Date May 2000
SAC equivalent of the Jul - Dec , 19 98 7 Units
Self-Monitoring Report
(Total wastewater volume/total number of
operation days equals average daily wastewater
volume. Each SAC unit equals 274 gallons.)
Modified SAC Baseline Value 5 Units
(MCES policy determined the SAC baseline
value to be the SAC equivalent of the volume
reported in the final self-monitoring report
for 1991. The modified SAC baseline value
represents the SAC baseline value, plus any
SAC units purchased after the 1991 baseline
date, or the value for SAC credits*, whichever
is greater.)
This review indicates that the SAC equivalent of the current wastewater volume exceeds the modified SAC
baseline value. The permittee has the option to conduct a wastewater volume study prior to permit expiration.
The MCES will make a final determination as to the permittee's SAC liability based on the preliminary volume
data and the SAC equivalent determined from the wastewater volume study. In the interim, the industrial user
has the option to undertake volume reduction measures to reduce or eliminate SAC associated with this
permit renewal.
* MCES SAC purchased records may not be current, therefore, the credit value may be revised to account for
unidentified credits, if the permittee can provide proof of their existence.
Revie by Date