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Council approves three-year ICM agreements with International Paper and Hormel Annex to regulate industrial discharges
Summary
The council approved three-year Industrial Control Monitoring (ICM) agreements for International Paper and Hormel Annex that set discharge limits (flow, CBOD, TSS, TKN, pH and PFAS) and charge for strengths above household benchmarks; International Paper agreement passed 6-0 and Hormel Annex passed with two abstentions.
City staff presented two three-year Industrial Control Monitoring (ICM) agreements governing wastewater discharge from two local industrial facilities and the council approved both measures.
Steven said the International Paper agreement regulates flow, CBOD, TSS, TKN, pH and PFAS discharged from the facility at 1900 Eighth Drive NE and retains previous limit levels; charges apply when wastewater strength exceeds the household benchmark (200 per liter). "This is a 3 year ICM agreement with a new revised expiration date of 12/31/2028," Steven said. The council approved the International Paper agreement by recorded vote.
On the Hormel Annex (the spice plant at 1816 9th Street NE), Steven described a similar three-year agreement with the same approach to strength-based charges and monitoring; the council approved that agreement as well, with two abstentions recorded on the motion.
Why it matters: the agreements set numeric discharge limits and billing mechanisms for industrial wastewater strength, including oversight of PFAS levels at one facility, and formalize monitoring and charges that affect environmental compliance and utility revenue.
Details: both agreements were presented as three-year contracts with a revised expiration of Dec. 31, 2028, and staff recommended approval in each case; the council voted to adopt the resolutions during the meeting.
