Organics processing facility on agenda at Cambria CSD
Cambrians who have been dutifully putting food waste in special containers for weekly collection — or who are still considering whether or not they want to do so — can learn more Thursday, Nov. 17, about the process that Mission County Disposal wants to use for handling that garbage.
At the Cambria Community Services District Board of Directors meeting that starts at 12:30 p.m. in the Veterans Memorial Building, 1000 Main St., representatives of the Integrated Waste Management Authority will give a presentation on the Kompogas organics processing facility.
Later in the meeting, the directors are to consider amending the Mission Country Disposal franchise agreement for management of solid waste, such as garbage, greenwaste and recyclables.
Also on the agenda is a new, three-year employment agreement with finance manager Patrick O’Reilly. The contract would increase his annual salary to $131,153 from $116,360, which would put his pay on par with that of the district engineer and fire chief.
O’Reilly’s new annual compensation total, including a $4,200 auto allowance, and district payments to Social Security, Medicare, workers compensation and state retirement fund, would be $155,412.
The meeting also is to include a certificate of recognition for CCSD water and wastewater department employees, and a closed session with price-and-payment-term negotiations with Shauna Drogomir, real property manager for San Luis Obispo County.
Waste Connections
Waste Connections, which owns Mission Country Disposal and other garbage companies in the county, plans to begin construction of the $12 million organics processing facility in about mid-2017 on an industrial site on Old Santa Fe Road in San Luis Obispo.
The current CCSD contract is scheduled to expire May 31, 2025. The agreement modification, which is contingent on the plant being complete and operational, would extend the contract by 20 years, starting on the first day of Kompogas operation. Extending the contract apparently would help facility provider Hitachi Zosen Inova obtain financing.
According to the staff report, all other cities and districts served by Waste Connections solid-waste disposal companies in the county have approved contract extensions to provide for the Kompogas facility.
Grand jury
General Manager Jerry Gruber also is to report on his response to recent inquiries from the county grand jury on the district’s progress toward addressing the jury’s concerns about fire risk and efficiency of emergency services on the North Coast.
Jury foreperson Lee Stephens also asked about how funds from a $498,000 FireSafe Council grant have been spent.
Management of the grant awarded in December 2015 is under the control of the FireSafe Council, Gruber replied, and the council’s “current efforts and expenditures have been directed towards environmental approvals, forest sampling and removal of hazardous trees that threaten public safety or infrastructure.”
Gruber said the CSD has spent district funds to augment the grant, including significant work on the Fiscalini Ranch Preserve.
With regard to the emergency-services issue, Gruber reminded the jury that, since the jury raised the issue in another 2014-15 report, the district decided to continue maintaining its own fire department, rather than contract with Cal Fire for the service. That and other issues have delayed preparing a multiyear plan for fire suppression and emergency services, he said.
Among the other issues is a lengthy but as-yet unresolved negotiation with the Cambria Community Healthcare District on interchanging personnel, since both districts have paramedics and emergency medical technicians on staff, some of whom work for both districts. Gruber wrote that, since 2004, the two districts have had an interagency agreement, “which provides an operational level agreement for cross-utilization of personnel for emergency medical service calls.”
Gruber noted that the state’s “Local Health Care District Law” doesn’t include the ability of CCHD employees to provide firefighting services, which would be part of any agreement to share personnel.
The two districts do have a working relationship, as do the employees who often work side by side on health and fire incidents.
The health care district Board of Trustees approved its response to a similar grand jury inquiry about progress toward issues brought forth in the 2014-15 jury reports.
Administrator Bob Sayers wrote that a combined organizational structure for CCSD and CCHD is a “work in progress,” but that it isn’t “warranted and reasonable … at this time.” Because the districts “are two entirely separate public entities under state law, the jurisdictional boundaries … are considerably different … the two agencies cannot simply ‘merge’ services without approval” from the county Local Agency Formation Commission. In fact, Sayers wrote, a merger might require state legislation.
Last month
At the board’s Oct. 27 meeting, directors voted unanimously to wait until the end of February before considering again whether to reinstate surcharges and penalties on water accounts that use more water than they’re allocated each billing period. However, if conditions change, the CSD’s conservation committee could recommend that the board consider the topic sooner. Meanwhile, committee members Jim Bahringer and Amanda Rice will research the matter more fully.
The directors also unanimously approved the district’s participation in, coordination and submission of four “Assistance to Firefighters” grants under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Federal Emergency Management Agency.
The approximate grant amounts are: $82,500 for regional personal protective equipment for San Luis Obispo County fire departments; $80,000 for regional EKG with the Cambria Community Healthcare District; $50,600 for mobile radios and $75,000 for fire protection and safety (health, safety and fall prevention in conjunction with healthcare district). CCSD would be responsible for a 5 percent cost share match for each grant, although other participating agencies would be responsible for their share of the match.
This story was originally published November 16, 2016 at 10:05 AM with the headline "Organics processing facility on agenda at Cambria CSD."