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IJfI -Z·Z..lj NiP March 6, 1991 Northem States Power Company 414 Nicollet Mall Minneapolis, Minnesota 55401-1927 Telephone (612) 330-5500 SUMMARY OF NEED FOR A WOOD CHIP TRANSFER SITE IN ROSEVILLE (Requesting a two-year temporary conditional use permit) BACKGROUND: NSP has the responsibility to deliver reliable, uninterrupted electric power to every customer that it serves. Tree limbs that break lines or cause short circuits cause more than 80% of storm-related electric outages. NSP's maintenance program includes trimming and removing trees under and near power lines to help assure every customer continued service. Due to NSP's trimming program, tree-related outages during non-storm conditions have dropped from 45% in 1983 to 8% in 1989. Storm-related outages due to trees have dropped but trees still cause most of the outages during storms with high winds. Tree trimming is important but costly, so NSP uses a four-vBar trimming cvcle. This means that trees in any given neighborhood are trimmed .Q.J1œ every four years. Annually NSP trims @ 400,000 trees and also removes a significant number of weed trees that were allowed to grow under the power lines. In the process of trimming and removing trees a large volume of wood chips is produced. In 1989 - 96,000 cubic yards or 24,000 tons of chips were produced by NSP contracted crews. Of this amount approximately half was given to customers at no charge. The other half was unloaded at various transfer sites around the Twin City metro area and subsequently hauled away for recycling by Mega Co., and several other small contractors. NSP pays these contractors to load and haul the chips, and the contractors are responsible for developing the end use markets. LOCATION: It is vital that chip transfer sites be located at various convenient sites in the metro area so that crew travel time is kept to a minimum. Each tree trimming truck has a large chip box (10-14 cu. yds.) which must be emptied when full before the crew can continue trimming trees. Because the truck must be driven to a chip transfer site, it is unavailable for trimming use during that time. The crew foreman, and in some cases the entire crew, is also not available for trimming while the chips are being driven to the chip site. Both the truck and the crew members are on an hourly billing and are most effective when trimming trees. An average crew will generate three loads of chips per week. If the chip site is not located near where the trimming is being done the costs of trimming rise because of the extra travel and down time. USE OF ROSEVILLE SITE: The proposed chip transfer site in Roseville near Cleveland Ave. and County Rd. C2 would be very convenient to the crews trimming in Roseville and the surrounding communities. At the present time four crews are assigned to trim in the Roseville area. These crews would be utilizing the site approximately 2 - 3 times per week. The material being unloaded at the site would consist of 95% chips and 5% firewood. The firewood is separated from the chips at the time of unloading. Both the chips and the firewood would be hauled out on a weekly schedule by Mega Co.. The size of the chip pile would probably average 200 cubic yards before being hauled out. The amount of firewood would vary considerably depending on the work being done. Both wood chips for mulch and landscaping and firewood for home use would be available to citizens of Roseville at no charae. However, in order to prevent unauthorized dumping, the site would be locked at all times and prior notice would be required for citizens to gain access to the site. SUMMARY: By providing a temporary conditional use permit for a chip transfer site near Cleveland Ave. and County Rd. C2, the city of Roseville will be enabling NSP to keep trimming costs down. It will also be providing a convenient site for rBcvcling of tree trimming byproducts produced in the Roseville area. In addition the citizens of Roseville will gain access to a good supply of wood chips and firewood.