Berry Corporation
Letter from David B. Struhs and A. Stanley Meiburg to Ernie Caldwell
Mr. Ernie Caldwell
Vice President for Environment and Governmental Affairs
Jack M. Berry, Inc.
P.O. Box 5609
Winter Haven, FL 33880
RE: Jack M. Berry, Inc. Project XL
Dear Mr. Caldwell:
We are writing as a follow-up to our letter sent to you in August 1998, concerning the Jack M. Berry XL Final Project Agreement (Agreement). While we appreciate your continued interest in Project XL, and the constructive dialogue of our meeting on August 12, 1998, since that time it appears that the Agreement as originally constructed no longer meets the needs of either Cargill or the agencies. In the three years since the agreement was signed, we have been unable to implement the agreement and establish a Comprehensive Operating Permit (COP) and further progress appears unlikely.
Even though the project has not been implemented as expected, FDEP and EPA feel that it has been a useful learning experience. The "Lessons Learned" below are items that EPA (Region 4 and Headquarters), the State, the District office, Cargill and Berry identified in a focus group discussion to evaluate the project in December 1998. These lessons were taken into account as EPA, in conjunction with interested stakeholders, conducted a "re-engineering" of the XL process.
Lessons Learned
Focus group participants cited several lessons learned in the Berry project to date that may be useful for companies involved in future XL projects. These included:
- In the event of a management changeover at an XL Project company, start working with the new company as soon as possible so the project transition will be easier.
- Make an accurate assessment of the resources available and internal capabilities of the company to implement a project like this. EPA and the state should communicate clearly to the company the resources and capabilities required to assist the company in assessing its ability/willingness to participate.
- Legal issues can be resolved; it's more important to concentrate on addressing practical issues-who to deal with, who should do what, when should tasks be completed.
- Make sure that there is a clear commitment from all parties from the beginning and that the division of responsibility and timelines are written very clearly. It is too easy to assume everyone understands; it is important to be as specific as possible and to check and re-check.
- The Agreement should include language that spells out the time frame for making a decision about proceeding with the project when the management of the facility changes.
The termination provision of the Agreement (Section I F.) allows that the Agreement may be freely terminated at any time by any party. While FDEP and EPA have committed significant resources to the development of the Agreement and have continued to offer assistance in an effort to launch the COP, we no longer feel it would be useful to continue work on this project in the absence of a demonstration of further interest by Cargill. We therefore feel that the interest of all parties would be best served by terminating the agreement effective as of the date of this letter.
Thank you for your interest and participation in the XL program. I hope that we will have the opportunity to work together on other matters in the future.
Sincerely
David B. Struhs,
SecretaryA. Stanley Meiburg
Deputy Regional AdministratorFlorida Department of
Environmental Protection
cc: Terri Bates, South Florida Water Management District
bcc: Jacki McGorty, FDEP
Peggie Highsmith, FDEP
Lisa Lund, OR
Chris Knopes, OR
Chad Carbone, OR
Patricia Mott, OECA
Robin Lancaster, OECA
Zylpha Pryor, R4
Michelle Glenn, R4
Anne Heard, R4