Subdivision 1. Petition for exclusion. Any person proposing to own or operate a processing facility using waste materials subject to a designation ordinance may petition the waste district or county for exclusion of the materials from the designation ordinance. In order to qualify for the exclusion of materials under this section, the petitioner shall submit with the petition a written description of the proposed facility, its intended location, its waste supply sources, purchasers of its products, its design capacity, and other information that the district or county may reasonably require.

Subd. 2. Decision. The district or county, after appropriate notice and hearing, shall issue a written decision with findings of fact and conclusions on all material issues. The district or county shall grant the petition if it determines that:

(1) the materials will be processed at the facility; and

(2) the exclusion can be implemented without impairing the financial viability of the designated facility or impairing contractual obligations or preventing the performance of contracts by the facility owner or operator, the district or county, or users of the facility.

Subd. 3. Appealing decision. A person aggrieved by the decision of the district or county may appeal to the commissioner. The review is confined to the record. The decision of the commissioner must be based on the standards stated in this section.

Subd. 4. Designation ordinance and petition amendments. If the commissioner approves the petition, the designation ordinance must be amended in conformance with the decision of the commissioner. The petition may be amended during the proceedings by agreement between the petitioner and the district or county.

History: 1985 c 274 s 10; 1989 c 325 s 16; 1994 c 639 art 5 s 3; 1Sp2005 c 1 art 2 s 161