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COMMENTS PRESENTED AT 3/15/84 MWCC PUBLIC HEARING TO DISCUSS MRC PROPOSAL TO DEVELOP A CRF IN THE METROPOLITAN AREA V, Representative Dee Long: My name is Dee Long and I am the Chair of the Minnesota Legislative Commission on Waste Management and I am a representative of the Minnesota House of Representatives. We in the Legislature are certainly interested in helping to solve industries' problems and in helping to keep jobs in this state. We need the Metropolitan Waste Control Commission to continue to work to solve the sewered hazardous material treatment problem and we're looking at Waste Management Act amendments to try and help in any way we can. It's time to move toward a public/private planning and partnership involvement in managing Minnesota's waste. We need to find solutions which reduce, abate, recover and lead to process changes such as the methods that are before you this evening. This proposal and others like it can lead to a significant reduction in the amount of materials which may eventually have to be landfilled. I Also understand that ion exchange extraction of toxic metals can lead to in -plant deionization of water. This can be water recycling, purer process water and reduction of supplies and sewer charges. I want to encourage the Waste Control Commission and its Commissioners to continue to work with local industry to seek these types of mutually beneficial needs for industrial waste management. I understand there has been neighborhood opposition to earlier attempts at finding a treatment site. This is understandable. I don't think anybody wants any kind of waste treatment in their area. However, my understanding is that the process is probably a lot safer than living next to a gasoline station; not that there aren't any problems living next to a gasoline station. I would encourage looking and working with the neighborhood groups. There are sites which are not residential areas which should be acceptable for this type of treatment plant. In terms of the funding for a project of this sort, Chairman Dunn has talked about the Waste Management Act amendments. We do have a proposal for additional bonding authority for this type of purpose under the Department of Energy and Economic Development. I have noticed the letter from Dan Shuster to Ray Payne talking about a repayment out of the Waste Management Board's loan program. This isn't for sure. We are not sure about the specifics of any loan rules that the Department of Energy and Econ(,:nmic Development would have. I assume this legislation is going to pass but I guess that's certainly the first stet. But with that, I would like to reiterate that I am very supportive of this kind of approach, using a partnership of business and government. We need this sort of thing to work towards solutions to the very real problems of hazardous waste in this state. Thank you.