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Maplewood - Ramsey County Review I Maplewood looking to ban coal tar sealants YIIINI 3 f . dust Page 1 of I ,czCncsday..r.ine )2.2010 Maplewood looking to ban coal tar sealants Derrick Knutson Review staff Wc(Inc Osy Juno 02. 20 =0 Maplewood residents seeking to make their driveways a lovely shade of black with a sealant might want to check what's in it before rolling up their pant legs and slathering the sticky stuff all over the blacktop. As part of updates to its stormwater ordinance, Maplewood is considering banning the use of sealants containing coal tar because known pollutants are found in it. According to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's website, there are two basic varieties of sealant: coal tar -based and asphalt - based. The coal tar variety is less prone to cracks, fading and wear over time. but it also contains higher levels of a class of chemicals called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). PAHs harm fish, and with a prolonged exposure, pose a risk of cancer in humans, according to the MPCA. Coal tar contains as much as 30 percent PAHs by weight, according to a study conducted in Austin, Texas. There are those who refute the claims of that study, and the effects of coal tar -based sealants on the environment, though. Information from the Pavement Coatings Technology Council, a Virginia -based organization that sponsors research activities on issues that affect the pavement coating industry, claims that the Austin study was flawed because it focused only on tar -based sealants applied to parking lots, and old industrial facilities that formerly operated next to Austin's streams and ponds could be a source of PARS in sediment. The Pavement Coatings Technology's study also says that asphalt -based sealants also contain PAIis, as does gasoline, oil and other lubricants ano materials abraded from tires. Additional cost for cities In addition to the environmental concerns surrounding PAHs, they are also costly to clean up. Maplewood City Council member John Nephew said when cities have to dredge up ponds imbued with coal tar sediment, they have to treat the disposal of that sediment differently than normal. ' They have to do more toxic waste protocols instead of putting them in a field or something," he said. In Minnesota, when some cities removed sediment from their stormwater ponds as part of regular maintenance, they found elevated levels of PAHs, and that discovery required them to find special disposal areas, costing them thousands of dollars more, according to the MPCA. Nephew said the state currently has no law banning the use of coal tar sealants, but the Minnesota state Legislature is considering a ban. Other Minnesota cities, like White Bear Lake, have already made the use of the sealants illegal. He added that businesses in Maplewood have agreed not to sell coal tar -based sealants, but they can still be found in other metro cities. Nephew also explained that when Minnesota cities need to clean stormwater ponds with coal tar sediment in them, they will get no help from the state unless they have ordinances in place that specifically ban coal tar's use. Derrick Knutson can be reached at dknutson @lillienews.corn or at (651) 748 -7825. ;.i SHARE Content 02011 Lillie Suburban Nowspapors Software 0) 1998,201 1 up! Software, All Rights Itesorved http: / /www.review- news.com /print. asp ?ArticleID = 6165 &SectionlD= 64 &SubSectionlD =130 7/6/2011 22