ERMUSR MISC 09-11-2007J~
Elk River -~
Municipal Utilities
13069 Orono Parkway • P.O. Box 430
Elk River, MN 55330-0430
September 5, 2007
To: Elk River Municipal Utilities Commission
Jerry Takle
Jerry Gumphrey
Jim Tralle
From: Bryan Adams
Subject: Miscellaneous Issues
Phone: 763.441.2020
Fax: 763.441.8099
Enclosed is the packet for Tuesday, September 1 1, 2007 commission meeting at 4:00 p.m.
Our electric and water consumptions to date are 8.75% and 6.75% respectively above last year.
MMUA's summer meeting was August 20-23, 2007. Jerry Takle, Theresa Slominski and I had
the opportunity to attend. Attached for the commission is the 2007 legislative report for your
review. We will update you about this event at our meeting.
Enclosed is a copy of John Doggett's presentation titled, "What Changing Global Markets Mean
to Us" for the commissioners. This presentation was given at APPA's annual meeting in June. l
also have the digital copy as well.
In May of 2006, Classic Protective Coatings completed a spot repair project on the Hillside
Water Tower east of Menards. This repair project included a two year warranty period. KLM
Engineering recently did a two year warranty inspection and found some areas that need repair.
We are in the process of getting the painting contractor back on site this fall to make the
necessary repairs.
In the process of making the final connections to the new Waco Substation transformer
manufactured by Virginia Transformer, we found some fiber blocking loose in the oil along with
some loose nuts that were not lightened. Due to the seriousness of this matter, we have
requested Virginia Transformer to remove the core from the tank and remove the loose material,
inspect, tighten or replace missing components and again test. Virginia Transformer has agreed
and will return this unit to their Pocattelo, Idaho facility. It will take 4 to 6 weeks to get it back.
Because of the location of the transformer under the transmission line and not having "free"
access to the transformer, we have agreed to pay half the cost of loading/unloading at our site.
On a final note, enclosed is an announcement of the SOMWpnultry-litter biomass power plant in
Benson, Mn.
Energy Services Bulletin Page 2 of 4
backup service agreements and walked the European company through the new MISO
agreements.
Long road to development
Interest notwithstanding, it took years of discussions, public meetings, planning and permitting to
make the innovative, utility-scale biomass powerplant a reality.
Like most animal waste-to-energy generators, the Fibrominn plant started as anodor-control
solution. Most of the manure from turkey farms in west central Minnesota winds up on crops.
However, stricter environmental regulations and encroaching suburbs are pushing growers to look
for alternative means of waste disposal.
Greg Langmo, a turkey farmer in Lichtfield, Minn., found the answer he was looking for in
Fibrowatt, LLC. The British company had developed and built three powerplants that burned
poultry-litter in the U.K. Langmo attended a Fibrowatt presentation in 1998, and suggested that
the company come to Minnesota. "The United States is the largest poultry producer in the world so
there was cleazly a mazket for our technology," said Wieronski.
The idea gained strong support from the Nisnnes~ta T_ urlcey Gro~rers_Asso__ciat~cr~, the
Minnesota Building Trades Council, and many west central Minnesota county boards and
economic development groups. That support helped push a bill through the Minnesota. House of
Representatives in 2000 that added poultry litter to the state's 1994 biomass mandate.
Open communication addresses concerns
The community was supportive from the beginning of the project, encouraged by Fibrowatt's
openness, as well as by the promised benefits. The company, now doing business as Fibrominn in
Minnesota, held an open house in Benson in October 2000 to explain the project to residents and
give them the opportunity to ask questions.
The city also did its homework. A delegation of city council representatives went on a fact-fznding
mission to Fibrowatt's three U.K. facilities. Their independent reports answered some important
questions for residents and officials. "People were concerned about the smell the plant might
produce, and the delegation didn't find any," Wolfington said.
In Apri12001, Benson and Fibrominn established a Citizens Advisory Panel to ensure
communication throughout the project. The city selected panel members carefully to represent
diverse occupations. Members include a bazber, a science teacher and a local priest. "We looked
for people who had a lot of interaction with the public," Wolfington said. "Our panel was in a
good position to relay information to the community and get informal feedback."
Fibrominn representatives worked with panel members to answer questions about truck traffic,
odors, layout and air emissions. The panel continues to meet now that the plant is up and running,
but Wolfington added, "In the U.K., residents stopped showing up to meetings because the plants
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Energy Services Bulletin
worked so well."
Permits, exemptions granted
Page 3 of 4
The open approach helped move the project forward through the usual funding and permitting
hurdles powerplants face. During the public comment period, the Minnoscta PalJution Contra6
,agency received 135 letters, mostly in support of the plant. Opposition surfaced at the public
meeting Fibrominn held in Benson, but, "most of it came from people from the Twin Cities, three
hours away," Wolfington recalled.
The MCPA granted a permit to the project in October 2002, after more than a year of studying the
environmental effects. It was the first project of its kind in the United States, so the state was
cautious, said Wolfmgton. "'The company had to provide a lot of explanation and demonstrations."
The permit included provisions for odor control and specific operating conditions to minimize the
production of dioxins. The Minnesata Environmental Quality Board. also waived the
powerplant siting review process, finding that the project "will not create significant human or
environmental impact."
First months' operation a success
And so far, in four months of operation, said Wolfington, the city has not received a single
complaint about the plant, or about the 100 trucks that daily transport litter through town. It helps,
of course, that the truck drivers buy goods and services from local merchants.
But the main advantage in terms of odor control is that Fibrominn trucks haul the litter away all at
once. Farmers don't have to pile it up outside their barns where it can draw flies and spread odors.
At the plant, Fibrominn prevents odors from escaping by drawing air from the storage building
into the boiler. Another environmentally-friendly feature includes using gray water from Benson
Municipal Water Treatment for some of the plant's cooling water requirements.
Most turkey producers with long-term contracts will get $3 to $5 per ton, about what they got
selling it for fertilizer. Other growers may find a market for their agricultural waste, too. Extensive
testing indicates that the boiler can use ag-based biomass such as grain, straw, processing co-
products and animal bedding. The plant's permit allows it to burn those wastes, which currently
represent about one quarter of its fuel.
Farmers will not be deprived of their fertilizer, either. The ash left after combustion is processed
into high-value fertilizer, missing the nitrogen in turkey manure but with enhanced phosphorous
and potassium.
A renewable energy project that works out this well will spawn more like it. Fibrowatt LLC is
planning similar plants in North Carolina, Arkansas, Maryland and Mississippi, all major poultry
states. Another developer, Earth Resources Inc., plans to break ground soon on a chicken litter-
burning plant neaz Carnesville, Ga.
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Energy Services Bulletin
Page 4 of 4
Benson may not be the only town in the United States with a utility-scale, biomass powerplant for
long, but it will always have the title of being the first. And that distinction-along with the
economic benefits-is something to be proud of.
Please visit our home page at http://www.wapa.gov/es/pubs/esb/default.htm
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