HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019-05-09 EMC Final MinutesEMC Final Minutes 1
May 9, 2019 4:00 p.m. 2
TCAT, 737 Willow Avenue, Ithaca, NY 14850 3
Attendance 4
Member Seat Member Seat
Steve Bissen P Town of Dryden Jonathan Zisk E At-Large
Maureen Bolton P Town of Enfield Amanda Champion P Legislative Liaison
Cait Darfler P Town of Ulysses Susan Allen-Gil P Associate Member
John Dennis P Village of Lansing Karen Edelstein A Associate Member
Brian Eden P Village of Cayuga Heights Bill Evans A Associate Member
Pegi Ficken P Town of Groton Anna Kelles A Associate Member
Michelle Henry P Town of Newfield Dooley Kiefer P Associate Member
Anne Klingensmith E Town of Danby Dan Klein P Associate Member
Laurel Lynch P At-Large Jose Lozano P Associate Member
Vladimir Micic P Town of Ithaca Osamu Tsuda P Associate Member
Steve Nicholson E Town of Caroline David Weinstein A Associate Member
Susan Riley E At-Large Robert Wesley A Associate Member
Tom Shelley P City of Ithaca Roger Yonkin A Associate Member
Genny Shipley E At-Large Darby Kiley P Planning Staff
Don Smith E At-Large Kristin McCarthy P Planning Staff
Regi Teasley P At-Large
Guests – Fred Howe, Ken Jaffe, Anne Koreman, Hilary Lambert, Mike Merchant 5
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Call to Order – Chair Brian Eden called the meeting to order at 4:04 p.m. 7
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Privilege of the Floor – None 9
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Agenda Review/Changes – No quorum so approval of the minutes was moved to later in the meeting. 11
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Presentation: Rescue of the American Chestnut – William Powell, SUNY-ESF 13
Professor Powell spoke about the precipitous decline of the American chestnut due to an invasive blight 14
fungus (Cryphonectria parasitca) and the efforts of his research team at ESF to restore it through 15
biotechnology. Researchers with the American Chestnut Project are inserting a single gene that creates 16
an oxalic oxidase enzyme, commonly found in wheat and other plants, and introducing it into the 17
American chestnut genome to produce trees that can successfully tolerate blight infections. See the 18
EMC website for Professor Powell’s PowerPoint presentation. 19
Approval of the February and April Minutes – Regi Teasley moved approval of the Feb. 14th minutes. 20
Cait Darfler seconded. Motion carried. Tom Shelley made a motion to approve the April 11th minutes, 21
and Maureen Bolton seconded. Motion carried. 22
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Committee Reports 24
Climate Adaptation: Michelle Henry 25
At the last meeting, Michelle Henry used ArcGIS to give a presentation on the different types of soils 26
available locally for land cover, slopes, and agriculture, as well as where in the local landscape it might 27
make sense to use these assets for mitigation, carbon sequestration, and other conservation measures. 28
29
Environmental Review: Brian Eden 30
Brian gave updates on various topics, including the City’s Flooding Hazard Analysis presentation, 31
City’s approval of the Arthaus housing project without consideration of its location in the floodplain, 32
potential EMC resolutions in opposition to discharge of lead pellets into the Salmon Creek floodplain 33
by Lansing Rod & Gun Club members, a resolution in favor of making Tompkins County a pollinator-34
friendly community, PFOA/PFAS a toxic contaminant in fire-fighting spray foam, and continued 35
concern with local use of the herbicide Roundup (Glyphosate). 36
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Unique Natural Areas: Brian Eden 38
EMC will host a public meeting (June 12) on the County Forest Management Plan at TCPL. Contract 39
for the UNA consultants is still awaiting approval from the County. 40
41
Waste Reduction: Tom Shelley 42
Tom contacted County Recycling and Materials Management about partnering on public outreach. 43
Committee hopes to collect reusable bags from local businesses to distribute for free at area events. 44
45
Water Resources Council (WRC) Liaison: Michelle Henry 46
Tee-Ann Hunter, Chair of the Cayuga Lake Watershed Intermunicipal Organization (IO), spoke about the 47
IO’s history, current activities, and goals. She discussed the recent drafting of new Watershed Rules and 48
Regulations for Owasco Lake and how similar work might be undertaken for Cayuga Lake. 49
50
Executive: Brian Eden 51
Former EMC member Madison Wright recently passed away at age 95. Mayor Svante Myrick 52
released a proposal for a Green New Deal for the City of Ithaca. Sunrise Movement Ithaca had a 53
huge turnout for its Green New Deal Town Hall at the TCPL. 54
55
Staff Report – Darby Kiley 56
Two properties on the County Foreclosure List contained UNAs: a 5-acre parcel in the Town of Caroline 57
and a 3-acre one in the Village of Groton. No conservation partners want to purchase the Caroline parcel 58
due to its small size, and the Town has no mechanism for preserving land, so it remains on the auction 59
roster (for June 17). The Groton property owner paid her taxes today (May 9). 60
61
Review and Approval of 2018 Annual Report 62
Action: Pegi Ficken made a motion to approve the 2018 EMC Annual Report. Regi Teasley seconded. 63
Vladimir Micic abstained. Motion carried. 64
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Environmental Bill of Rights Passes in NYS Senate and Assembly – Next Steps? 66
Given the NYS Legislature’s recent passage of this bill A. 2064/S.2072, efforts on the municipal and 67
County level to pass supportive resolutions can be deferred. Since it is a proposal for a constitutional 68
amendment, it will need to pass the NYS Legislature again during its next session. Then it will be placed 69
on the election ballot to be approved by voters. 70
71
Municipal Reports and Member Announcements 72
Volunteers are needed to staff the Waste Reduction Committee table at community events. 73
74
Chair Brian Eden adjourned the meeting at 5:30 p.m. 75