Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians Hazardous Substances Control Act (HSCA) Implementation. Tribal Lands Forum August 22, 2013 John LeBlanc

Transcription

1 Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians Hazardous Substances Control Act (HSCA) Implementation Tribal Lands Forum August 22, 2013 John LeBlanc

2 Red Lake Reservation- What Do We Want to Protect? One of two closed reservations in the United States Largest land base: about 59% of trust land in US EPA Region 5 Total land holdings in excess of 846,000 acres 429,000 acres of it are forested 242,000 acres of it is lakes 466,000 acres are wetlands 371 miles of rivers and streams 6 th largest freshwater lake in the U.S. 11,100 enrolled members with 6,300 residing on the reservation. 10,800 total service population for the reservation

3 Red Lake s Hazardous Substance Control Act (HSCA)~ Enacted February 14, 2012 Creates a Voluntary Response Program (VRP) as required by 128(a) grant Requires proper disposal of waste Encourages recycling and re-use Ban against open dumping Ban against open burning Requires reporting of releases of hazardous substances Provides response actions to clean up releases

4 The Implementation Phase of Environmental Legislation~ The transitional period between code development and enforcement

5 Act must be able to be supplemented to adapt to the needs of your Tribe Helpful Resources Work with Section 128(a) Tribal Response Program Project Officer or equivalent US EPA Program Contact Include contractual line item for legislation development in work plan and budget Must involve Tribal Officials Utilize other Tribes Get Conservation and Police Officers on Your Side Continuing to work with the attorney who developed the HSCA, if content with work Attorney should be willing to develop what your Tribe needs No cookie-cutter legislation Speak with the Attorney, (Not an Assistant or Para-Legal) who Will Work with You to explain your needs and Expectations for the Project

6 Red Lake Environmental Department (RLED) is Responsible for Implementing the HSCA HSCA Provides the RLED: Site and information access Allows for thorough inventory, investigation and assessment Rulemaking authority Examples: cleanup standards, Hazard Ranking System (HRS) for site prioritization, public participation plan Notice and comment process Can not pass new ordinances/codes/laws without Tribal Council approval Issue administrative orders and fines Accept the order or pay the fine Hearing Board or Judicial review Enforcement authority Assistance from Fire Prevention, Police and Conservation Officers

7 Implementing the HSCA: It s in the Books, Now What? Get the word out Public outreach prior to implementation & enforcement Gather up your tools Complete Oversight/Program Manual or Handbook Create Hearing Board, set a fine schedule, develop Hazard Ranking System, provide training to courts/law officers Complete cleanup standards Fix the Glitches Original Act may have sections which are too narrow or too broad in scope (i.e. open dumping of vehicles) Develop complementary tools Abandoned Vehicle Ordinance (leaking fluids) Recycling, composting, HHW collection Work in collaboration with Solid Waste Department

8 Getting the Word Out

9 Public Education and Outreach Be sure sufficient public outreach is completed prior to imposition of penalties While providing outreach, issuance of notices of violation and assistance with compliance is recommended Welcome questions and comments Examples of effective outreach activities: Mail HSCA summary/fact sheet to all box holders Include HSCA on DNR and Tribal websites Include articles in Tribal paper and DNR newsletter Participation in community events, (Earth Day Fair, Health Fair, Career Day, State of the Band Address, Healthy Homes Summit) Speak to other Programs about how it applies to their work

10 Implementation Tools

11 Oversight Manual Used in Conjunction with the HSCA Summarizes Main Provisions of the HSCA Applicability of the HSCA Prohibited acts Reporting Releases Includes Procedures for HSCA Implementation Survey and Inventory of potential Brownfields sites Response actions by responsible party and/or RLED Voluntary Response Program (VRP) Enforcement Procedures Public Record, participation, education, and outreach procedures Covers regulations promulgated under HSCA HSCA Rulemaking procedures HSCA Regulations (Cleanup Standards, Hearing Board procedures, VRP regulations, Penalties & fees HSCA Forms (VRP application, Sample VRP agreement, NOV/Field citation)

12 Environmental Hearing Board Hears appeals of orders issued by RLED Consists of 3 program directors: 2 from DNR other than RLED ~ Fisheries Director & Wildfires Director 1 from a different environmental/health program ~ Sanitation Director At least 1 must be a Red Lake Enrolled Member ~ we have 2 Directors may be hesitant, recruited help from DNR Director to convince two of them RLED Provides board with expertise in environmental matters Intended to relieve burden on courts

13 Cleanup Standards Sets requirements for performing cleanups of contamination from pollutants includes background, generic and site-specific cleanup levels Developed in accordance with several goals Focus on background levels Incorporate risk based approach Recognize the potential for technical impracticability Avoid leaving contamination in place Assume most restrictive use of all land Recognize subsistence and culturally significant lands Foster cooperation between the Tribe and State Provide equally or more stringent cleanup levels Provide flexibility to account for scientific developments Promote identification of background levels prior to new development

14 Continuing Development Develop fee/fine schedule Work with Tribal Attorney and Officials Refer to examples from other Tribes Complete Hazard Ranking System Hire environmental consulting firm Develop using examples from other Tribes Training for court staff and law enforcement Ongoing ~ important to keep support staff apprised of program developments Upcoming ordinance development Abandoned Vehicle Ordinance

15 On Site Implementation Site survey, inventory, and investigation Determine nature of contamination Determine area impacted by pollutants Attempt to discover responsible party

16 Proceed With Caution!

17 Consider your surroundings when going out to implement and enforce! Safety First! Vehicle Dump --> There will be people who aren t so happy to see you so bring backup!

18 Response Actions Launching voluntary clean up actions Attempt to implement Voluntary Response prior to enforcement actions

19 Begin with other Departments Positive change helps the community understand and accept the new laws

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21 Up Next: Enforcement Action When Voluntary Response or cleanup fails, enforcement actions will begin Need all implementation tools in place Oversight Manual, HRS, Cleanup Standards, Hearing Board, etc.

22 Contact Information: John E LeBlanc -Coordinator Environmental Response Program Red Lake Department of Natural Resources High School Drive, PO Box 279 Red Lake, MN Phone: (218) Fax: (218) jleblanc@redlakenation.org

23 Questions?