Defense Environment Alert
February 12, 2002

CO SENATE BILL TO ALLOW FEE ASSESSMENTS ON DESTRUCTION FACILITIES

A bill is moving through the Colorado Senate that would, in effect, expand the authority of local governments to assess fees and require permits for any type of chemical weapons destruction facility the Army builds to demolish its stockpile in Pueblo. The legislation mirrors language that failed to make it through the state House of Representatives last year.

The bill would extend the authority of local governments to assess fees and require a local government permit for all hazardous waste processors. Existing law applies just to hazardous waste incinerators.

The legislation is emerging once again just as public support for use of a non-incineration destruction technology at the Army's stockpiled chemical weapons site in Pueblo is soaring. Sen. Wayne Allard (R-CO) recently expressed full support for the local Pueblo governments' call to employ a neutralization method, rather than an incineration technology, at the site (Defense Environment Alert, Jan. 15, p 11). An environmentalist says that, without the expansion in the existing law, taxpayers could be penalized -- by not receiving the fees -- for supporting an alternative to incineration. The Defense Department is expected to make a final decision this spring on which destruction technology to use at Pueblo.

On Feb. 8, the bill, SB02-041, was slated to be considered on the Senate floor. The Senate Committee on Government, Veterans and Military Relations, and Transportation passed the legislation, 5- 1, Jan. 23. Last year's bill made it through the Senate, but was withdrawn in the House shortly before the General Assembly ended its session. It is unclear whether there will be any opposition in the House this year, an environmentalist says.

SB02-041 would expand Colorado's State Hazardous Waste Incinerator Siting Act "to include hazardous waste processors," a summary of the bill says. It would give local governments the power to issue so-called certificates of designation to hazardous waste processors. These certificates identify the types of wastes that a facility can process. Mustard agent, the chemical agent stored at the Pueblo Chemical Depot, is included in the list of acutely hazardous wastes to which the bill applies.

In applying for the certificate of designation, the processor would be subject to a fee established by the local government. The bill would raise the cap on the existing fee from $50,000 to $100,000, the summary says. And it increases annual "impact fees from 2% of revenues to the greater of 2% of revenues or operating fees!' stemming from the processing of hazardous wastes by the facility. The annual fee would be used to offset direct costs related to the incinerator or waste processor, the bill says. These could include: increased services such as "the improvement and maintenance of roads and bridges; fire protection; law enforcement; monitoring by county or municipal health officials pursuant to the requirements of state law, rules, and the certificate of designation; and emergency preparation and response," the bill says.

In a related move, the Colorado Senate is also considering a resolution that would express the Senate's endorsement of the neutralization technology backed by Pueblo citizens. The pending resolution would state that the Senate "fully supports and endorses the determination by the citizens of Pueblo County and encourages the United States Army to utilize Water Neutralization followed by Bio-treatment technology to destroy the mustard agent weapons currently stored at the Pueblo Chemical Depot." At press time, the resolution was pending on the Senate floor.