Monday’s Garfield County Commissioners (BOCC) meeting began with a plea to take a fresh look at the land behind Walmart and how it may be a wildfire hazard. Longtime Glenwood Springs resident Rachael Windh approached the BOCC, stating that she thinks something needs to be done to make the area safe.
In 2021, the county spent over $87,000 to remove 60,000 pounds of garbage, hazardous materials and more from the 36-acre site southeast of Walmart that has long been a makeshift homeless camp.
Now residents want authorities to take action again. Rob Pitt, fire marshall for the Glenwood Springs Fire Department, said he visited the place in January and was alarmed at the amount of gas canisters and everything else up there.
“We expect it to be cleaned up and stay clean,” he said. “Unfortunately, it is on those landowners to try and enforce that.” He urged the BOCC to put pressure on the landowners.
Glenwood Springs Mayor Ingrid Wussow added that the city has spent a lot of money on wildfire evacuation plans but she questions prevention efforts. She suggested a work session between the county and the city.
“What are variables that we can collaborate on [to] prevent this from happening rather than making a plan for when it does?” she asked.
Commissioner Tom Jankovsky said the county sheriff has made more citations up there recently and that a fence and more “no trespassing” signs are needed on the property.
Next up, Matt Solomon, Energy Initiative project manager for the Associated Governments of Northwest Colorado (AGNC), talked about AGNC’s efforts to promote a high level nuclear waste repository in NW Colorado. Solomon is a former council member for the Town of Eagle, who ran unsuccessfully for Colorado’s Senate District 8 seat in 2022.
At the request of Commissioner Mike Samson, in response to Carbondale resident George Wear’s comments last week asking the BOCC to oppose the repository, Solomon explained that the idea is in outreach mode, that AGNC is gathering public opinion and is not ready to build the waste repository.
Solomon discussed future Colorado energy needs, which could mean small reactors. He prefers the euphemism “spent nuclear fuel” instead of “nuclear waste” mainly because, he said, it can be recycled.
“Countries like France have discovered ways to repurpose and recycle the spent fuel,” he explained. “These new small modular reactors [reuse] this spent fuel so it’s not waste because it’s being repurposed.”
Samson asked, “Is it feasible by [recycling spent nuclear fuel] that the harmful radiation is eventually cleansed from that?” Solomon said he didn’t know, and added, “I do know that would really kind of solve the problem.”
According to scientific studies, recycling spent nuclear fuel may reduce the amount of waste that goes into storage but it does not get rid of harmful, long-lived radionuclides. Instead, it separates the plutonium and uranium from the waste. The plutonium can then be used in other reactors or to make nuclear weapons.
Solomon glossed over environmental and public health concerns of the repository in favor of the recycling idea and the potential economic benefits, such as bringing jobs to an area heavily dependent on coal mining. The coal mines in Craig and Hayden are scheduled to close by 2030.
The BOCC discussed House Bill 1040, which would add nuclear energy to the state’s definition of clean energy resources. Commissioner Perry Will plans to go to Denver on Thursday to testify in favor of the bill.
In other news, the BOCC approved all of the nonprofit funding requests from last week; although the Glenwood Springs Concert Association, West Elk Trails and the Lower Valley Trail Association received only a portion of their requests. All others received the full amount.
The BOCC discussed recent developments at the limestone quarry above Glenwood Springs and how the state Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety denied mine owner Rocky Mountain Industrials’ request for an 18-acre expansion permit.
County manager Fred Jarman informed the board that they don’t yet have a speaker for the Economic Development Roundtable scheduled for May 15. Samson suggested Elon Musk, “He’d be great, wouldn’t he?”
County attorney Heather Beattie brought up a meeting last week with Mind Springs Health, stating that basically the agency does not have any money. Commissioner Jankovsky said Mind Springs wants out of the withdrawal management facility because it’s costing $65,000 a month. “The tough thing for the community is all the funds that we’ve put into this [facility], considerable funds, plus a grant.”
He questioned if the county would have to repay the grant if the building shuts down. Beattie said the county received $700,000 in pass-through funds to Mind Springs in 2022 from the Office of Behavioral Health and that she will check on the agreement.
The BOCC has scheduled a special meeting for Feb. 27 to interview candidates for the Glenwood Springs seat on the library board of trustees. Applications are due by 5pm on Feb. 20.