HomeMy WebLinkAboutCB 2023-02-28CONSERVATION BOARD
February 28, 2023
Hybrid
Members Present: Gian Dodici (Chair), Bob Beck, Anne Clark, Nancy Munkenbeck, Craig Schutt, Andrew
Miller, Jeanne Grace, Steve Bissen
Absent: Tim Woods
Liaisons: Loren Sparling (Town Board)
Guest(s): Darby Kiley, Roxy Johnston, Kevin Sarmiento
The meeting was called to order at 7:05 PM
Review and approval of minutes dated January 27, 2023
On motion made by B. Beck, seconded by G. Dodici, minutes were unanimously approved as amended.
Rail Trail Task Force
At the last Rail Trail meeting, they discussed the possibility of planting chestnut trees and the
board liked the idea. Some people cautioned that they may die and need a lot of care. The board is
hoping to receive 30 trees. J Grace stated that there should be an effort to ensure the trees are planted
in a spot where they are able to thrive. They are 12 to 18 inches. The trees are being given to the town,
so the only cost would be tree tubing if they chose to do that. G Dodici suggested adding mycorrhizae
packets to give them a chance at growing. His guess is only 5 or 6 would survive if 30 are being planted.
Dryden Town Historical society is going to have a program about chestnuts in April. Some of
the board’s questions could be answered then.
Drinking Water Source Protection Plan
Roxy Johnston is the watershed coordinator for the City of Ithaca and the lab director of the
drinking water plant. She shared a slideshow on the Drinking Water Source Protection Plan (attached).
What can you do about ditches? G Dodici and R Johnston are going to talk about a solution or
compromise at a later date.
Hydraulic Resilience- Resilient to climate change so when there are droughts or floods, built
infrastructure and natural infrastructure can withstand that without degrading.
The board reviewed a large solar farm project a few years ago and they were wondering if the
solar farms would have an impact in storm water runoff. A lot of the literature they found at the time
indicated that they didn’t. R Johnston said that Angel Hinickle at Tompkins County Soil and Water
Conservation District says very convincingly that they do. They have an impact during and after they are
established. There are some places where steep slopes were a concern and weren’t taken into account.
Developers then would move on before they were vegetated and stabilization. A lot of buffers got cut
down to ensure maximum sunlight hitting the panels. Solar installations can be done right; it just needs
some careful attention and enforcement. The Town of Dryden has stormwater law, so there are rules,
but no one enforces them. A lot of developers are developing in good faith, but there are also
exceptions. The biggest problem is the lack DEC staffing. The DEC has all these plans and
recommendations, but the DEC is not funding them, prioritizing them, or sending staff in support of
these things happening, etc. We have some very good plans for the Town of Dryden but there are just
sitting on the shelf. Barton and Loguidice have been a huge help with writing a plan and are now helping
to get it through implementation.
Kevin Sarmiento is an operator at the Cornell Water Filtration Plant. They haven’t had much
time to develop the full water source protection plan. He did show us an Excel spreadsheet of the plan
data summary. They are only about halfway through this project, so they don’t have anything fully
developed yet. But they have completed the stakeholder group and Cornell has established a goal and
vision. They are starting to create some maps. The Town of Dryden is right in the middle of the
watershed that feeds Fall Creek, so it is absolutely essential to find ways to collaborate with the work
the City of Ithaca and Town are Dryden are doing to protect six mile creek. A lot of the efforts by the City
of Ithaca and Cornell can be joint because of the proximity to the watersheds. They have identified a
couple of things that they need to look at such as bulk storage sites within a certain buffer zone within
Fall Creek. The other items are ag land use, sediment run off, etc. For these, they are still figuring out
where those critical zones may be to focus their effort. Initially, they started looking at areas within
Cornell boundaries such as Monkey Run where there is significant sediment run off. Currently, they are
identifying the areas that would be the biggest concern. At this point they are working with the
Tompkins County Department of Health and different stake holders.
D Kiley told the board that they are always looking for stream water volunteers.
The board thanked Kevin, Roxy and Darby for sharing their knowledge and resources with
them.
Members of the board met with Mike Hall, Deputy Highway superintendent to come up with
a subset of ditches that the Town DPW is planning on working on this year. The goal is to show the town
that implementing best management practices can save the town money while improving water quality.
Ditches do not need to be 6 feet deep. The deep ditches are road hazards. If a car goes into
the ditch, it is likely to flip. Someone is going to sue the town someday.
D Kiley said if the board identifies any deep ditches on the county roads, to let her know and
she can talk to Jeff Smith, Tompkins County Highway superintendent about the issue.
Is anyone interested in representing the Town of Dryden Conservation Board at the NYS
Association of Conservation Commissions at their fall meeting in Tompkins County? S Bissen said he
would volunteer. S Bissen is going to talk to Kate, chair of the Environmental Management Council
(EMC) to see if she would like B Beck to do a presentation on the Rail Trail and the trials and tribulations
he has endured.
Naming a wetland for Gina and Bard Prentice
B Beck has deeds and survey maps for the wetland behind the Fire Hall. A good majority of the
wetland belongs to the Neptune Fire Hall. It is one of the county’s unique natural areas. The corner of
the wetland is the rich fen which includes about 6 acres owned by Dryden Senior Housing Corporation.
The wetland is on property owned by Willowbrook Manor. B Avery is the president of that organization.
B Beck has had discussions with her about this matter and the donation of that 6 acres piece in memory
of Bard and Gina. It was discussed that they could possibly get a Conservation Easement if they could
get a recipient to own the property or accept the easement which could be the town of Dryden. B Beck
is wondering if the Fire Hall would donate a piece of the property.
Is there access to the wetland? There is public access and a possibility for a small parking area
and a boardwalk.
Is the Dryden Senior Housing going to be willing to give up that land? B Beck said he thinks it’s
possible they will be interested in looking at a proposal.
It would be great to have a resolution or recommendation from the Conservation Board to the
Town Board suggesting an easement for the wetland.
The village might be the holder of the easement. It would be more logical to go straight to the
village.
L Sparling is going to talk to Ray Burger, the Planning Director, to see where to start.
On motion made and seconded, the meeting was adjourned at 8:45 PM
Respectfully submitted,
Emily Banwell