(A) Declaration of site as a chemical investigation site public health nuisance. Clandestine drug lab sites, as defined herein, are declared by this chapter to be “chemical investigation site public health nuisances”.
(B) Medical guidelines for assessing health status of exposed persons. Medical guidelines for assessing the health status and determining medical care needs of persons, particularly children, that are found or known to be occupants or frequent visitors at a clandestine drug lab site, may be established and updated as necessary by such “medical consultants” who provide consultation services under contract, or otherwise, to the city.
(C) Law enforcement notice to affected public, public health and child protection authorities.
(1) Law enforcement authorities who identify a clandestine drug lab site, or clandestine drug lab operation, shall notify the appropriate governmental departments or agencies responsible for public health and child protection within one working day of identifying the lab site.
(a) The obligation to promptly notify may be delayed to accomplish appropriate law enforcement objectives, but only to the extent that public health and child protection responsibilities are not unnecessarily compromised.
(b) The notice shall include sufficient information to inform the recipients of the following:
1. Property location by street address and other identifiable location;
2. Property owner’s and occupant’s identities, especially the identities of any children and women of child-bearing age found or known to be associated with the site;
3. Chemicals found and indications of chemical residues;
4. Presumed duration of the lab;
5. Equipment in a dwelling or structure that is typically associated with the manufacture of a controlled substance; and
6. Conditions typically associated with a clandestine drug lab site or operation, including weapons, illicit drugs, filth, fire or electrical shock and other harmful conditions as determined by state law.
(2) Upon identification of the clandestine drug lab site or operation, law enforcement agencies may treat, store, transport or dispose of all hazardous waste found at the site in a manner consistent with State Department of Health, State Pollution Control and local county, city and other applicable rules and regulations, including, but not limited to, such ordinances as may hereafter be adopted providing for Hazardous Waste Management Regulation.
(3) When a law enforcement agency completes its work under division (C)(2) above, and is prepared to leave those sites, the agency shall affix a warning sign to the entrance of the affected part of the structure. The warning sign shall be those that have been prepared in advance for the situations through the collaboration of city and county law enforcement, public health and city officials, as applicable. The warning sign shall be of a size and contain information sufficient to alert visitors or returning occupants that the site is a chemical investigation site public health nuisance, may be dangerous to enter and must not be entered, except by authorization of the Public Health Authority and/or law enforcement agency identified on the sign.
(D) Notice of chemical investigation site public health nuisance to owner and occupant.
(1) After the Public Health Authority receives notice from a law enforcement agency that they’ve identified a clandestine drug lab site and posted the appropriate Chemical Investigation Site Public Health Nuisance warning sign, the Public Health Authority shall serve the known lawful occupants and owners of the site pursuant to M.S. § 145A.04(8)(b), as it may be amended from time to time, with notice of their responsibilities relative to the chemical investigation site public health nuisance.
(2) The public health authority shall notify and order the property owner of record and known occupant or agent to have the public health nuisance removed or abated within ten days as provided in M.S. § 145A.04, as it may be amended from time to time, and this chapter. Public Health notice and order shall include the following:
(a) A replica of the Chemical Investigation Site Public Health Nuisance declaration that is posted at the site’s entrance(s);
(b) Information about the potentially hazardous condition of the chemical investigation site;
(c) A summary of the property owner’s and occupant’s responsibilities under this chapter; and
(d) Information on locating professional services necessary to remove and abate the chemical investigation site public health nuisance status as provided in this chapter and M.S. § 145A.04, as it may be amended from time to time.
(3) The public health authority shall endeavor to provide information in writing about the Chemical Investigation Site Public Health Nuisance declaration and potential hazard(s) to the following additional concerned parties:
(a) Neighbors within close proximity that can be reasonably affected by the conditions found;
(b) The City Clerk;
(c) Local and immediate area law enforcement (police and sheriff offices); and
(d) Other state and local authorities, such as the State Pollution Control Agency and State Department of Health, that may have public and environmental protection responsibilities at the site.
(E) Notice filed with property record and/or motor vehicle record.
(1) If, after ten days’ notice and order, Public Health is unable to obtain any reasonable assurance or plan from the property owner or occupant that the structure is being properly vacated, cleaned, remediated and tested, Public Health may provide a copy of the Chemical Investigation Site Public Health Nuisance notice and order to the County Recorder and to the lien and mortgage holders of the affected structure and/or properties. The County Recorder is authorized to file that information with the property record, to notify other persons with interest in the property about the property’s chemical investigation site public health nuisance status.
(2) When the affected property is a motor vehicle, boat or trailer, Public Health shall notify the appropriate state and local agency that maintains motor vehicle, boat or trailer records, and the holders of liens or security interests against the vehicle or trailer.
(F) Property owner’s and occupant’s responsibility to act.
(1) Property owner(s) and occupant(s) provided with a notice, which also includes the posted warning sign informing them about the chemical investigation site public health nuisance, shall promptly act to vacate occupants from those parts of a structure that are a chemical investigation site public health nuisance. This includes dwellings, buildings, motor vehicles, trailers, boats, appliances or any other affected area or location.
(2) Within ten business days of receiving the Public Health notice and order to cleanup the Chemical Investigation Site Public Health Nuisance, the property owner(s) and/or occupant(s) shall take the following actions:
(a) Notify the City Public Health Authority or its designated agents that the affected parts of the dwellings, buildings and/or motor vehicles have been and will remain vacated and secured until the Public Health Authority provides notice that the public health nuisance no longer exists;
(b) Contract with one or more acceptable environmental hazard testing and cleaning firms (acceptable firms are those that have provided assurance of appropriate equipment, procedures and personnel, as determined by the State and/or City Departments of Health), or other designees, to accomplish the following:
1. A detailed on-site assessment of the extent of contamination at the site and the contamination of the personal property therein;
2. Soil testing of the site and testing of all property and soil in proximity to the site that the environmental hazard testing and cleaning firm determines may have been affected by the conditions found at the site;
3. A complete clean-up of the site (including, but not limited to, the clean-up or removal of contaminated plumbing, ventilation systems, fixtures and contaminated soil) or a demolition of the site and a complete clean-up of the demolished site;
4. A complete clean-up or disposal at an approved dump site, of all personal property in the site;
5. A complete clean-up of all property and soil in proximity to the site that is found to have been affected by the conditions found at the site; and
6. Remediation testing and follow-up testing to determine that all health risks are sufficiently reduced, according to State Department of Health guidelines, to allow safe human occupancy and use of the site and use of the personal property therein.
(c) Provide City Public Health Authority with the identity of the testing and cleaning firm the owner or occupant has contracted with for remediation of the structure(s) as described above;
(d) Provide the City Public Health Authority with the contractor’s plan and schedule for remediation that will abate the chemical investigation site public health nuisance declaration; and
(e) The property owner or occupant may request an extension of time to consider options for arranging cleanup or removal of the affected parts of the structure. The owner or occupant must show good cause for any such extension. Any such extension shall be dependant on the owner’s assurance that the affected parts of the structure will not be occupied pending appropriate cleanup or demolition.
(G) Property owner’s responsibility for costs and opportunity for recovery.
(1) Consistent with M.S. Chapter 145A, as it may be amended from time to time, the property owner shall be responsible for: private contractor’s fees, cleanup, remediation and testing of chemical investigation site public health nuisance conditions; and city fees and costs of administering notices and enforcing, vacating, cleanup, remediation and testing of affected parts of the property.
(2) Nothing in this chapter is intended to limit the property owners, agents, occupants or the city’s right to recover costs or damages, from persons contributing to the public health nuisance, such as the operators of the clandestine drug lab and/or other lawful sources.
(3) The city’s administrative and enforcement services, referenced in division (G)(1) above, include, but are not limited to, the following:
(a) Posting warning notices or signs at the site;
(b) Notification of affected parties;
(c) Securing the site, providing limited access to the site and prosecution of unauthorized persons found at the site;
(d) Expenses related to the recovery of costs, including the assessment process;
(e) Laboratory fees;
(f) Clean-up services;
(g) Administrative fees; and
(h) Other associated costs.
(H) Special assessment to recover public costs.
(1) The city is authorized under M.S. § 145A.04(8)(c), as it may be amended from time to time, to proceed within ten business days of service of a notice for abatement or removal of the Public Health Nuisance to initiate the assessment and cleanup when: the property owner is not located; or the Public Health Authority determines that the owner refuses to, or cannot pay the costs, or arrange timely assessment and cleanup that is acceptable to the designated Public Health Authority.
(2) The City Council (or its formally identified designee) shall be fully authorized to act, consistent with state law, on behalf of the city to direct funds to assure prompt remediation of chemical investigation sites.
(3) When the estimated cost of testing, cleanup and remediation exceeds seventy-five percent of the county assessor’s market value of the structure and land, the City Council (or its formally identified designee) is authorized to notify the property owner of the city’s intent to remove and dispose of the affected real property instead of proceeding with cleaning and remediation.
(4) The property owner shall be responsible for all costs, including those of the city, incurred to abate the public health nuisance, including contractor’s fees and public costs for services that were performed in association with a clandestine drug lab site or chemical dump site clean-up. The city’s costs may also include, but shall not be limited to, those set forth in division (G)(3) above. Fees and costs specified above that are not paid for in any other way may be collected through a special assessment on the property as allowed by M.S. § 145A.08, as it may be amended from time to time, or by any other applicable federal, state and local laws, ordinances and/or applicable City Council resolution(s).
(5) Payment on the special assessment, shall be at the annual rate of at least $1,000 or more as needed to assure full payment to the city within ten years. This amount shall be collected at the time real estate taxes are due. The amount due and/or payment rate may be adjusted by action of the City Council.
(6) The city may also seek recovery of costs through other methods allowed by federal or state law.
(I) Authority to modify or remove declaration of chemical investigation site public health nuisance.
(1) The designated Public Health Authority may modify conditions of the declaration and order removal of the declaration of Chemical Investigation Site Public Health Nuisance.
(2) The modification or removal shall occur only after the Public Health Authority has determined that levels of contamination are sufficiently reduced through remediation to warrant modification or removal of the declaration. The Public Health Authority may rely on information from competent sources, including those supplied by the property owner and/or others, such as state and local health, safety, law enforcement and pollution control authorities to reach those decisions.
(3) When the declaration is modified or removed, the Public Health Authority shall forward that information to the County Recorder for addition to the property record if notice of the nuisance declaration was previously filed with the Recorder as described above. Similarly, notice shall be provided to the motor vehicle or other license records agencies and lien holders if a notice had previously been provided to them.
(J) Waste generated from cleaning up a clandestine drug lab. Waste generated from chemical investigation site public health nuisances shall be treated, stored, transported and disposed in accordance with applicable State Department of Health, State Pollution Control Agency and city, and all other applicable rules and regulations for solid waste and for hazardous household and other hazardous wastes.
(Ord. 123, passed 10-18-2004)