To: Board of Supervisors
From: DHHS: Public Health
Agenda Section: Consent
SUBJECT:
title
Appointment to the Solid Waste Local Enforcement Agency Independent Hearing Panel (IHP)
end
RECOMMENDATION(S):
Recommendation
That the Board of Supervisors:
1. Appoint Carisee Geronimo as Technical Expert Representative with a term to begin December 18, 2022 and to expire December 17, 2026.
Body
SOURCE OF FUNDING:
Public Health Fund
DISCUSSION:
The Board of Supervisors, the governing authorities of the cities within the County, and the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) have designated the Department of Health and Human Services Division of Environmental Health (DEH) as the solid waste Local Enforcement Agency (LEA). The LEA permits and inspects solid waste handling sites throughout Humboldt County. One component of designation as the LEA is to maintain a local appeals body to hear solid waste permitting and enforcement issues (CCR 14 §18081(e)(2)). A hearing before the appointed hearing panel may be requested to appeal either an LEA action or the LEA’s failure to act as required by law or regulation. When, in the jurisdiction of the enforcement agency, there exists a publicly owned or operated solid waste facility or disposal site (as exists in Humboldt County), there shall be an independent hearing panel (IHP) or hearing officer (CCR 14 §18081(e)(2)).
The first IHP was established in 1992 by Humboldt County Resolution No. 92-128. A copy of the Resolution is attached here for your Board’s reference. The IHP members serve four-year terms with a maximum appointment of two consecutive terms. The term of one current Technical Expert on the IHP will expire on December 18, 2022. To maintain certification as the LEA, a replacement must be appointed.
The LEA began this recruitment for an Independent Hearing Panel member by sending an announcement via email to the general inbox for the Schatz Energy Research Center at CalPoly Humboldt and to members of the public via the list serve of a well-established local non-profit. The LEA Senior also shared details regarding this volunteer position during the public comment period of a HWMA Board Meeting in June, kindly requesting Board Members to spread the word. The process revealed 3 interested candidates. Two persons from the list of potentially qualified candidates maintained from the 2018 recruitment were also contacted. Of the 5 persons interested, one agreed to be considered for the upcoming IHP opportunity.
Staff will continue to develop a list of interested candidates, as there will be two vacancies on the hearing panel in 2023. At this time, the LEA recommends the appointment of Carisee Geronimo to the Independent Hearing Panel. Ms. Geronimo’s experience in solid waste includes planning and developing low to zero waste events as a Sustainable Waste Intern at CSU Bakersfield, where she graduated Magna Cum Laude in 2018 with a biology degree. As a graduate student at Cal Poly Humboldt, she taught a solid waste engineering lab (a Senior level course) and conducted research projects to estimate and measure greenhouse gas emissions. She is the lead author of an article titled “Overlooked emissions: Influence of environmental variables on greenhouse gas generation from woody biomass storage” (published on March 9, 2022 on El Sevier). Ms. Geronimo holds a MS in Environmental Systems with a concentration in Energy, Technology, and Policy and is now the Bioenergy Staff Lead at the Schatz lab. Her current projects include energy planning with the Karuk Tribe, assessing indoor air quality, and testing solar water pumps for use in water insecure areas. The LEA is particularly impressed by Ms. Geronimo’s background as solid waste is frequently managed to divert waste and reduce methane emissions. Her experience in solid waste and expertise in a parallel field (renewable energy, energy planning) makes her a strong choice for a technical expert.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
Serving on this panel is voluntary. Members of the panel may receive per diem and necessary expenses while conducting a hearing (PRC §44308(c)). The party requesting a hearing panel is charged a fee of $1,184. This fee is used to defer a portion of the costs of holding a hearing and may be used to pay hearing panel members for per diem and necessary expenses in Fund 1175, Budget Unit 430, Local Enforcement Agency. This fee was established by Humboldt County Ordinance No. 2613.
STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK:
This action supports your Board’s Strategic Framework by creating opportunities for improved safety and health .
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle).
ALTERNATIVES TO STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS:
The Board of Supervisors may choose to appoint one of its members to the IHP in lieu of the proposed appointment (PRC §44308(b)(1)). To avoid a conflict of interest, the governing body representative should be a member who does not sit on the Board of the local solid waste joint powers authority.
ATTACHMENTS:
Attachment 1: Sections of the Code of Regulations and Public Resources Code.
Attachment 2: 1192 Humboldt County Resolution No. 92-128.
PREVIOUS ACTION/REFERRAL:
Board Order No.: C-11, C-7, C-4, C-10, C-11, C-7
Meeting of: 12/11/2007, 3/6/2012, 11/10/2015, 12/18/2018, 7/30/2019, 11/12/2019
File No.: 18-1597, 19-1052, 19-1548