CR 05-071 Ordinance 2005-943 - Cleanup of Clandestine Drug Labs
CITY OF
m
May 17,2005
IiOPKINS
Council Report 2005,071
ADDITION OF SECTION 625 - ORDINANCE FOR CLEANUP OF CLANDESTINE
DRUG LAB SITES AND CHEMICAL DUMP SITES
Pro Dosed Action
Staff recommends that the Council approve the following motion: Move that Council
approve Ordinance #2005-943 for first readina,
Overview
Staff is recommending the addition of Section 625 - Cleanup of Clandestine Drug Lab
Sites and Chemical Dump Sites. Clandestine drug laboratories are being discovered in
many areas of Minnesota, including cities in the Metro area, In January of 2005, the
production materials from a mobile lab were discovered in a vehicle in Hopkins.
Narcotic cases in Hopkins almost doubled in 2004 and the production and use of meth-
amphetamine is increasing. The manufacturing process requires the use of large
quantities of metals, acids and solvents, all of which are readily available, but are also
dangerous and may result in fires or explosions. Clandestine labs often contaminate
residential property, apartment complexes, storage facilities or commercial buildings
where they set up. The MN Department of Health has warned that exposure to meth
lab chemicals or by-products have the potential to cause both long and short-term
health effects, Staff seeks to establish a city ordinance based on statutory authority to
insure the safety of first responders or law enforcement to a lab site, the procedure for
declaring a site as a public health nuisance, the authority to remove the public from a
contaminated area, and a set of assessment and cleanup procedures to be followed,
This ordinance also establishes the responsibility for site assessment and cleanup on
the property owner.
Primarv Issues to Consider
· Ordinance provides a system to recover costs of cleanup from the person
responsible or the property owner.
. No city staff has adequate training to clean up contaminated sites; outside
contractors will need to be employed.
SUDDortina Information
· Ordinance 2005-943
~G.~
Craig A ~id
Chief of Police
Hopkins City Code
625,00
Section 625: CleanuB of Clandestine Drul!: Lab Sites and Chemical DumB Sites
(Ordinance #2005-943)
625,01. General Provisions, Subd 1. Pumose and Intent. The purpose ofthis section is to
reduce public exposure to health risks where law enforcement officers have determined that
hazardous chemicals or residue from a suspected clandestine drug lab site or chemical dump site
may exist. Professional reports, based on assessments, testing and investigations, show that
chemicals used in the production of illicit drugs can condense, penetrate, and contaminate
surfaces, furnishings, and equipment of surrounding structures, The City Council finds that such
sites, and the personal property within such sites, may contain suspected chemicals and residues
that place people, particularly children or adults of child bearing age, at risk when exposed
through inhabiting or visiting the site or using or being exposed to contaminated personal
property.
Subd.2. Interpretation and Application. In the interpretation and application of this
section, the provisions herein shall be construed to protect the public health, safety and welfare.
Where the conditions imposed by any provision of this section are either more or less restrictive
to the public than comparable provisions imposed by any other law, ordinance, statute, or
regulation of any kind, the regulations which are more restrictive or which impose higher
standards or requirements on the public shall prevail. Should any court of competent jurisdiction
declare any section or subpart of this section to be invalid, such decision shall not affect the
validity of the section as a whole or any part thereof, other than the provision declared invalid.
625,03 Definitions, For the purposes of this section, the following terms or words shall be
interpreted as follows:
Subd, 1. Building Official: The Building Official for the City of Hopkins or his/her duly
authorized representative(s).
Subd, 2, Chemical Dump Site: Shall mean any place or area where chemicals or other
waste materials used in a clandestine drug lab operation have been located,
Subd,3, City: Shall mean the City of Hopkins.
Subd. 4. Clandestine Drug Lab Operation: Shall mean the unlawful manufacture or
attempt to manufacture a controlled substance,
Subd. 5. Clandestine Drug Lab Site: Shall mean any place or area where law
enforcement has determined that an unlawful clandestine drug lab operation exists or ,existed. A
clandestine drug lab site may include, but is not limited to, dwellings, accessory buildings,
structures or units, vehicles, boats, trailers or any other area or locations,
Subd, 6. Controlled Substance: Shall mean any drug, substance or immediate precursor
in Schedules I through V of Minnesota Statute ~152,02 together with any amendments or
modifications thereto. The term shall not include distilled spirits, wine, malt beverages,
intoxicating liquors or tobacco,
Subd. 7. Household Hazardous Waste: Shall mean waste generated from a clandestine
drug lab operation.
Subd. 8. Site: Shall mean chemical dump site and/or clandestine drug lab site.
Subd. 9. Manufacture: In places other than a pharmacy, shall mean and include
the production, cultivation, quality control, and standardization, by mechanical, physical,
chemical or pharmaceutical means, and the packing, repacking, tableting, encapsulating,
labeling, relabeling, or filling of a controlled substance,
Subd. 10. Owner: Shall mean any person(s), fmn(s), corporation(s) or other entity who
or which owns, in whole or in part, the land, building, structure, vehicle, boat, trailer or other
location associated with a Site,
625.05. Declaration of Site as a Public Health Nuisance. A Site, all areas in proximity to a Site
and all personal property located on areas in proximity to a Site, are potentially unsafe due to
health hazards and are hereby declared to be a public health nuisance.
625.07. Law Enforcement Action, When a law enforcement authority determines the existence
of a Site, the Site and all personal property located in proximity to the Site, shall be declared a
public health nuisance, Law enforcement authorities who identify conditions associated with a
Site are authorized to take the following action:
a) Promptly notify the Building Official, child protection officials, public health authorities
and the appropriate enforcement division of the Drug Enforcement Administration of the
D,S. Justice Department. This notice must, at a minimum, identify the location of the
Site, the property owner, if known, and the conditions found on the Site;
b) Treat, store, transport or dispose of all household hazardous waste found at the Site in a
manner consistent with Minnesota Department of Health, Minnesota Pollution Control,
and Hennepin County Health Department rules and regulations;
c) Issue a temporary Declaration of Public Health Nuisance for the Site and post a copy of
the declaration on all doorway entrances to the Site or, in the case of bare land, post the
declaration in several conspicuous places on the property. This temporary Declaration of
Public Health Nuisance issued by law enforcement shall not expire until after the
Building Official inspects the Site and determines the appropriateness of issuing a
permanent Declaration of Public Health Nuisance;
d) Notify all persons occupying the Site that a temporary Declaration of Public Health
Nuisance has been issued;
e) Require all persons occupying the Site to immediately vacate the Site, to remove all pets
from the Site, and not to return to the Site without written authorization from the Building
Official;
t) Notify all occupants vacating the Site that all personal property at the Site may be
contaminated with dangerous chemical residue; and '
g) After all occupants have vacated the Site, put locks on each doorway entrance to any
buildings located on the Site to prohibit people from entering the Site without
authorization.
Prompt notification of the persons and organizations mentioned above 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.
625,09, Seizure ofProoerty. When the Site is inside a vehicle, boat, trailer or other form of
moveable personal property, law enforcement authorities shall immediately seize it and not allow
it to be transported except to a more secure location. In such circumstances, all other
requirements of this section shall be followed as closely as possible given the specific type of
property in which the Site is discovered,
625,11. Action bv Building Official, Subd, 1, Insoection and Declaration of Nuisance.
Within forty-eight (48) hours of notification that law enforcement authorities have determined
the existence of a Site, the Building Official shall cause the Site to be inspected to determine
whether to issue a permanent Declaration of Public Health Nuisance. Based on the results of the
inspection, the Building Official may then promptly issue a permanent Declaration of Public
Health Nuisance and a Do Not Enter - Unsafe to Occupy Order for the Site to replace the
temporary declaration issued and posted by law enforcement. A copy of the permanent
declaration and order shall be posted on all doorway entrances to the Site or, in the case of bare
land, shall be posted in several conspicuous places on the property.
Subd, 2. Abatement Order. Within 24 hours after the permanent Declaration of Public
Health Nuisance has been issued and posted, the Building Official shall send written notice to the
Site owner ordering abatement ofthe public health nuisance, The abatement order shall include
the following information:
a) A copy of the Declaration of Public Health Nuisance and Do Not Enter - Unsafe to
Occupy Order and a copy ofthis section;
b) Information about the potentially hazardous condition of the Site;
c) Notification of the immediate suspension of the Site's rental license if applicable; and
d) Information that may help the owner locate appropriate services necessary to abate the
public health nuisance,
Subd, 3. Notice to Concerned Parties. Within three (3) days after the permanent Declaration
of Public Health Nuisance has been issued and posted, the Building Official shall also mail a
copy of the permanent Declaration of Public Health Nuisance, a copy of this section, and a
notification of the suspension of the Site's rental licenses, if applicable, to the following
concerned parties at their last known address:
a) Occupants or residents of the Site if the identities of such persons are known;
b) Neighbors in proximity to the Site who may be affected by the conditions found, as
determined by the Building Official pursuant to 625.11 (suM 1);
c) The Hopkins City Manager;
d) The City of Hopkins Chief of Police or his/her duly authorized representative(s); and
e) The Drug Enforcement Administration of the u.s. Justice Department; the Minnesota
Pollution Control Agency, the Minnesota Department of Health, and the Department of
Natural Resources.
Subd. 4. Modification or Removal of Declaration. The Building Official is authorized to
modify or remove the permanent Declaration of Public Health Nuisance after the Building
Official receives documentation from a City approved environmental hazard testing and cleaning
firm stating that the suspected health and safety risks, including thoSe to neighbors and potential
dwelling occupants, either do not exist or have been sufficiently abated or corrected to justify
amendment or removal of the declaration.
625.13. Site Owner's Responsibility to Act. Within ten (10) business days of the date the
abatement order is mailed to the owner of the Site, the owner shall accomplish the following:
a) Provide the Building Official with written notification:
1. That the owner has confirmed that all persons and their pets have vacated the Site;
2, Of the name( s) of all children who the owner believes were residing at the Site;
and
3. That the Site will remain vacated and secured until the public health nuisance is
completely abated as required by this section;
b) Contract with one or more City approved environmental hazard testing and cleaning
firms to conduct the following work in accordance with the most current Minnesota
Department of Health guidelines:
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
which the environmental hazard testing and cleaning fmn 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 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 which is
found to have been affected by the conditions found at the Site;
6, Remediation testing and follow-up testing, including but not limited to testing of
the ventilation system and plumbing, to determine that all health risks are
sufficiently reduced, according to Minnesota Department of Health guidelines, to
allow safe human occupancy and use of the Site and use of the personal property
therein and of all property and soil in proximity to the Site;
7. Provide the Building Official with the identity of the testing and cleaning firm
with which the owner has contracted for abatement of the public health nuisance
as required above; and
8. Provide the Building Official with a written cleanup schedule with reasonable
deadlines for completing all actions required by the abatement order.
625,15. Site Owner' s Verification of Compliance. The Site owner must meet all deadlines
established on the cleanup schedule, Pursuant to the deadlines established by the cleanup
schedule, the Site owner is required to provide the Building Official with a signed statement
from a City approved environmental hazard testing and cleaning firm that the Site, all personal
property therein and all property and soil in proximity to the Site, is safe for human occupancy
and use and that the cleanup was conducted in accordance with the most current Minnesota
Department of Health guidelines,
625,17. Site Owner's Responsibility for Costs, The Site owner is responsible for all costs,
including those of the City, of dealing with and abating the public health nuisance, including
contractor's fees and the City's costs for services performed in association with the Site. The
City's costs may also include, but shall not be limited to:
a) Posting of 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;
t) Cleanup services;
g) Administrative fees;
h) Legal fees; and
i) Other associated costs,
Section 625,19. City Action and Recoverv of Costs. Subd 1. If the Site owner fails to comply
with any of the requirements of this section, the Building Official is authorized to take all
.reasonable actions necessary to abate the public health nuisance including, but not limited to,
contracting with a City approved environmental hazard testing and cleaning firm to conduct the
work outlined in Section 625. 13(b) of this section.
Subd. 2, If the costs to clean the Site or to clean or dispose of the personal property at the
Site are prohibitively high in relation to the value of the Site or the personal property, the City is
authorized to remove or demolish the Site, structure or building and/or dispose of the personal
property therein, These actions shall be taken in accordance with the provisions of Minnesota
Statutes Chapter 463 together with any amendments or modifications thereto,
Subd.3. If the City abates the public health nuisance, in addition to any other legal
remedy, the City shall be entitled to recover all of its out-of-pocket costs plus an additional 25%
of such costs for administrative and legal expense. The City may recover its costs both by civil
action against the owner of the Site, and by assessing such costs as a special charge against the
Site as taxes and special assessments are certified and collected pursuant to Minnesota Statute
~429,lOl or according to the provisions of Minnesota State Statute Chapter 463 together with
any amendments or modifications thereto.
The Building Official is authorized to notify any lien and/or mortgage holders of the
affected Site,
625.21. Recovery of Costs from Persons Causing Damage. No provisions of this section are
intended to limit the Site owner's, residents' or the City's right to recover costs incurred under
this section from either the persons contributing to the public health nuisance, such as the
operators ofthe Site, and/or from other lawful sources,
625.23, Site Owner and Address. When the Site is real property and the owner or the address of
the owner of the Site is unknown, the owner and the owner's address is deemed to be that of the
property's taxpayer's name and address as that information is maintained by the county auditor's
office. When the Site is a vehicle, boat or trailer and the owner or the address of the owner of
the Site is unknown, the owner and the owner's address is deemed to be that of the person on file
as the owner on the current or most recent title to the vehicle, boat or trailer.
625,25. Unauthorized Removal of Po stings. It is unlawful for any person, except authorized
City personnel, to remove a temporary or permanent Declaration of Public Health Nuisance
and/or Do Not Enter - Unsafe to Occupy order from a Site,
625.27. Entrv Into or Onto Site, While a Declaration of Public Health Nuisance for an affected
Site is in effect and has been posted at the Site, no persons are permitted to be inside the Site, or
on the Site property without prior written consent of the Building Official or as otherwise
authorized by this section, To confirm compliance with this section and to execute their duties
under this section, law enforcement officers, the Building Official, and any persons designated
by the Building Official, may enter onto the Site property or enter into the Site at any time while
a Declaration of Public Health Nuisance is in effect for the Site,
625.31. Removal ofPersonalPropertv from the Site. While a Declaration of Public Health
Nuisance for an affected Site is in effect and has been posted at the Site, no personal property
may be removed from the Site without prior written consent from the Building OfficiaL Consent
to remove personal property shall only be granted at the reasonable discretion of the Building
Official, and only in cases of hardship after:
a) A City approved environmental hazard testing and cleaning firm has advised the City, in
writing, that the item(s) of personal property can be sufficiently cleaned to remove all
harmful contamination; and
b) The owner of the personal property agrees in writing:
1. That the owner is aware of the danger of using the contaminated property;
2, That the owner will thoroughly clean the property to remove all contamination
before the property is used; and
3. That the owner releases and agrees to indemnify the City, its staff, and the
Hopkins City Council from all liability to the owner and/or third persons for
injuries or damages caused, or alleged to have been caused, by the contaminated
property.
625,33. Violations and Penalties. Any person violating any provision of this section is guilty of
a misdemeanor. In addition, the City shall be entitled to seek any other remedy available at law
or in equity in order to protect the health, safety and welfare of the community, including
temporary and permanent injunctions,