04-07-21 Planning Commission - Laserfiche WebLink

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Mr. David Grant Boston Scientific – Building 14 Expansion Response to Neighbor Letter 12 March 2021 Page 5 of 6 III. EXPANDED LITHIUM BATTERY MANUFACTURING a. Expanded Lithium Battery Manufacturing: An environmental and safety specialist was present during the community presentation and spoke vaguely about the current and future impact of BSCI’s battery manufacturing operations. The vagueness of comments is concerning. Many questions remain. i. What are the emissions from current and future operations, and do/could they impact adjacent neighbors? Response: Since 1995, Boston Scientific Arden Hills has been subject to an Option D air permit with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) and completes annual emissions reporting for the site. MPCA and the Department of Health (MDH) partner to establish air pollutant levels that are sustainable to the environment and are acceptable for human health. Our annual Emissions Inventory Report is submitted to the MPCA every year and is available for public review on their website. The Arden Hills site continues to be within compliance limits of our permitted air pollutant thresholds. Any emissions from future campus building expansions will be captured in the reporting process to MPCA and made publicly available. The Arden Hills campus strives to be a center of environmental excellence by continually improving our technologies to achieve the least impact on the surrounding community and environment as we continue to produce life saving devices. ii. What are the risks? Response: None. The processes in the new building 14 expansion will continue to be the same as current operations and thus will not alter the type of emissions emitted from the facility. The proposed area will be folded into our current emissions reporting process and submitted annually to the MPCA. iii. Have environmental spills occurred in the past? Response: No knowledge of spills and/or releases have occurred during Boston Scientifics tenure at the Arden Hills facility. Further, Boston Scientific has no knowledge or evidence of any historical spills and/or releases from Building 14 prior to Boston Scientific purchase of the property in 2004. iv. Has the land and water been tested recently? Response: In 2019, there was a potential release to soil from Building 14 and proper notification was made to the MPCA. In response to a potential release at Building 14, Boston Scientific conducted a round of soil sampling pursuant to guidance by MPCA. The samples confirmed that a release had not occurred at the facility. The MPCA closed their investigation in October 2020.