HomeMy WebLinkAboutCB 2023-05-30CB 2023-05-30
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CONSERVATION BOARD
May 30, 2023
Hybrid
Present: Gian Dodici (Chair) (arrived in person 7.36 PM), Andrew Miller, Anne Clark, Bob
Beck, Jeanne Grace, Nancy Munkenbeck (arrived 7.22 PM), Steve Bissen
Absent: Craig Schutt, Kate McKee, Tim Woods
Liaisons: Spring Buck (Town Board)
G Dodici phoned in to tell Board members that he was en route to the meeting, and
asked if there was someone who could run the meeting until he arrived. A Miller called the
meeting to order at 7.07 PM.
Review and Approval of Minutes
On motion made by A Miller, the minutes of Feb 28, 2023 were unanimously approved
as written.
Update: Rail Trail
B Beck reported that the Connect the Trails Fest that was held over the weekend was a
success, so Dryden’s Rail Trail is now officially connected with the East Hill Recreation Way.
Dryden also received a $5,000 Parks and Trails grant for municipalities from the
Tompkins County Planning Department. This will be applied to trail-building between Rte 13
and Pinckney Rd, which will provide, for example, cyclists from Etna with access to the trail
and, by extension, Ithaca, helping them avoid Rte 366 and Rte 13. This will occur next year or
so.
A Miller complimented the surfacing of the stretch of Rail Trail that runs from Game
Farm Rd to Rte 13. S Bissen inquired whether the Rail Trail Task Force is trying to improve the
surfacing along the entire length of the trail. B Beck responded that the old cinder rail bed, in
most places, is quite smooth and doesn’t need much improvement. Unfortunately, in the newer
stretches, our highway crews have used item 4 stone, which is too big to be comfortable for
bicyclists; it’s really bumpy and really unpleasant. He has encouraged Rick Young, if he is to
continue using such size stone, to cover it quickly with packed stone dust to make it usable for
both runners and cyclists. The plan is to finish the trail with a packed stone dust surface, as
has been done at the Game Farm and between Mt Pleasant and the end of the compost road.
Other stretches are in need of improvement. The TAP Grant that we received covers Monkey
Run Rd, Rte 13, and Hallwoods Rd, so the trail resurfacing there will be done in conjunction
with the pedestrian bridge, so that will have a new stone dust surface. To answer the question,
as we can, the plan is to make all the trail a smooth surface, with no plans to pave any of it
with asphalt.
To the point of the large stone not being amenable to bicyclists, G Dodici asked if there
was any coordination between the DPW and the Rail Trail Task Force. Are they working ad hoc
without consulting anyone? B Beck reinforced the notion that there was indeed good
communication and a lot of cooperation. He cited the success of the trestle renovation and
resurfacing done near the Game Farm, as well as putting in signs at crossings (e.g., Mt
Pleasant Rd and Game Farm Rd) and pavement striping. But Rick Young doesn’t work for the
Rail Trail Task Force or for the Town Board; he is an elected official and does things on his own
timeframe. G Dodici interjected, “But if he’s putting down a surface that is not multi-user-
friendly, what’s the point? It’s just a waste of resources if you have to redo it.” B Beck replied
that both Rick Young and (Deputy DPW Superintendent) Chris Clauson say that it’s a matter of
cost, though it’s hard to believe that item 4 stone is less expensive than crusher run. R Young
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says the item 4 stone is less costly, and when they did apply stone dust on top, it packs in
really well, maybe better than over crusher run. They use the item 4 stone for cost reasons,
but, in his opinion, they shouldn’t do it. They should use crusher run, which might be a little
more expensive, with stone dust on top.
Update: EMC
S Bissen reported that all the municipal Conservation Boards in Tompkins County
convened at the last meeting of the EMC to discuss planning for the New York State
Association of Conservation Commissions (NYSACC) Conference, which will be held from
September 20-22. Virtual talks will take place on September 20th, with field trips throughout
Tompkins County occurring on September 21st and 22nd. Through S Bissen’s work, Dr Andrew
Newhouse (SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry), Director of the American
Chestnut Project, will give a 10-15 min status talk at the Conference on the transgenic
American chestnut.
A Miller inquired about the status of the chestnuts that are to be planted along the Rail
Trail. J Grace confirmed that she picked up at least 100 American chestnuts and put them in
pots with planting mix so they could grow out a bit, until such time as they can be planted.
She reports that they have little leaves on them and are looking good.
Discussion then turned to the recent frost. A Clark related how all her ashes and
sumacs are completely wilted. J Grace responded that late-leafers are really intolerant of frost
because they wait so long to leaf-out; so the recent frost got a lot of mature trees and burned
their leaves off. Regarding the chestnuts, J Grace stated that the first little leaves did frost, but
they are sending out new leaves, so they will be okay.
N Munkenbeck noticed that those trees that had serious moth damage last year and
also got frosted this year do not seem to be leafing again. S Bissen expressed similar
observations on one of his 30’ trees. J Grace hopes that some of the spongy moth larvae got
killed off by the frost; the ones that survived won’t have oak leaves to eat, so they will starve
and maybe decrease the population.
Plan for the Town’s Property North of the Town Hall and DPW Barns
G Dodici explained that this was put on the agenda by C Schutt. What is the plan?
There are a lot of wetlands out there, though they might not be regulated. Discussion was
tabled due to C Schutt’s absence.
Road from Neptune Drive (behind Fire Hall in Village)
G Dodici explained that this was also put on the agenda by C Schutt. Apparently there
had been discussion about a trail running through there. This too was tabled due to C Schutt’s
absence.
Purvis Rd Wetland Infraction
G Dodici explained that this as well was put on the agenda by C Schutt. DPW has
apparently taken out a beaver dam located off the Rail Trail near Purvis Rd. Though he hasn’t
seen it for himself, he knows that DPW got their wrist slapped a few years ago for doing similar
work over by George Junior, where they basically drained a functioning wetland that was a
birder hotspot.
In a similar light, the Conservation Board last year drafted a letter detailing the impact
that draining a wetland can have on the environment; this letter was sent to the mayor of
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Freeville via Jason Leifer because Freeville had done some draining. Last week, G Dodici talked
with a contractor, who had been contacted by Dryden Village about digging some ditches in the
wetlands between Spring House Rd and Lewis St, off Egypt and Virgil Creeks. G Dodici did not
know of any plans there and suggested that the contractor contact the mayor regarding
permits because those wetlands are Army Corps-regulated, not DEC-regulated. It would seem
the threat to wetlands is still there, so G Dodici suggests a reworking of the aforementioned
letter be sent both to the Dryden Town Board and (Dryden Village) Mayor Mike Murphy to
stress the importance of wetlands in regard to flooding.
S Buck stated that she noticed the beaver dam being taken out and subsequent beaver
activity being diminished. She noted a recent article about some areas of the country
reintroducing beavers due to their beneficial effect on local municipalities. Would such an
article be helpful to include in a letter? G Dodici knew of efforts to reintroduce the beaver in
more arid climates out West, where they provide an important input into many stream
systems. Anything that supports maintaining that type of habitat is important and could be
used for supplemental information. There are instances, though, where beavers can be
nuisances, where dams get bigger and start backing water up into people’s property and
people’s basements; but the answer doesn’t necessarily need to be to just rip it down and dig
ditches through the wetlands. G Dodici has more of a problem with the wetlands being altered
through ditching than with beaver management and dam destruction. A Clark stated that if
you take out a dam, dependent on its age and size, you could decrease the water level of a
habitat, and should this occur, say, in the middle of summer, the vegetation that is dependent
on these higher water levels could be lost for a while; you could kill a lot of vegetation that way
and potentially have a fire hazard.
A Miller commented on how incredible the terraces were that the beavers built up there,
and it’s a bit bothersome that they’re now mostly gone. S Buck wondered what impact the
destruction of the dams would have on the bird population, then asked whether this should be
a conversation to have with the DPW. B Beck stated that Todd Bittner (Cornell Natural Areas)
has communicated with Rick Young about the beaver problem on Purvis Rd and the improper
removal of beaver dams; Young’s answer is that they flood the roads, but B Beck doesn’t think
that is the case near Purvis.
S Bissen has had a similar experience at the County level. Midline Rd is a County road,
and if there is the threat of that road being flooded, the County will push over dams and knock
over lodges. A Clark interjected, saying that you’re supposed to have permits to do that before
you actually do it. Returning to the Town level, she commented that the Town DPW typically
has not gotten permits, and DEC was not happy when it was alerted to DPW infractions. DPW
must go in and get permits because it is disturbing a beaver dam and that is what DEC
controls; the permit is easy to get if the dam is truly threatening something. G Dodici stated
that it is not onerous and just requires some planning. The bigger question is how much of a
threat the beaver dam really is to the road. Most of the adverse effects from beaver dams are
when they have big failures and big rain events. It’s not unreasonable for DPW to do the
maintenance, but they need to still go through the proper procedures and processes. There are
also other ways to manage beavers, water levels, and impoundments without necessarily
removing the beavers or taking their structures out, but it takes work.
Discussion of Road Ditch “Plan”
G Dodici announced that the focus of this meeting was really to coordinate with DPW.
He has sent Rick Young a few messages but hasn’t heard back from him. He noted that a list of
ditchwork sites proposed for this year was sent to Board members a few months ago, and
surmises that DPW has yet to begin work at any of these locations. Roxy Johnston (City of
Ithaca) reached out to G Dodici to see if any progress had been made on implementing best
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management practices at ditching sites; but again, he hasn’t managed to get a hold of Rick
Young.
S Buck shared that, at the last Town Board meeting, Rick Young explained they fell way
behind in their paving work last year due to high costs; currently prices are 20% lower than
they were last year, so Highway/DPW is putting its energy into paving in an effort to catch up
while prices are low.
A summary of the Conversation Board’s views on ditching was given in order to get S
Buck up to speed. G Dodici explained that the Cornell Local Roads Program has a suite of best
management practices (BMPs) that a well-managed ditch program would implement. They host
a meeting every few years for DPW superintendents to come to learn the latest science around
this. The Conservation Board is unsure of the Town DPW’s motivation behind their deep-ditch
digging efforts (without seeding and without implementing erosion-control measures) and has
been working with them to employ alternative methods. It is the hope of the Board that DPW
will be convinced to use BMPs because of cost-effectiveness and maintenance reduction, and
the only way to do this is to set up some demonstrations of BMPs in the Town. Maybe they will
push the use of BMPs into the rest of the Town and start managing ditches that way. There is
no way to provide guidance if DPW doesn’t want to hear guidance.
G Dodici puts the blame squarely on the Town Board for authorizing the purchase of
the Gradall excavator 10-15 years ago. N Munkenbeck showed concern about some places
(e.g., Genung Rd) where ditches have been created that are so deep (8-10 ft deep) that someone
may be injured or even die. She also cited the instance of Banks Rd (Town of Ithaca) where
someone was injured after going off a ditch and successfully sued for a few million dollars
because best management practices had not been utilized on that road.
Ultimately, what the Conservation Board is trying to do is to work with DPW to show
them that BMPs can work and help them in the long run by reducing cost, reducing
maintenance on the roads, and making their lives easier so they can spend more time doing
other things they want to do. The counties that feed into the New York City watershed (e.g.,
Delaware, Sullivan, and Greene Counties) are examples of places that do it right. New York
City’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) basically regulates all activities there.
They learned many years ago that digging deep ditches isn’t good for water quality, for their
infrastructure, for anything, so they provide funding to help with these programs and enforce
the rules against violators.
N Munkenbeck stated that, for those places, the downstream effects are important,
whereas the Town of Dryden does not care what the downstream effects are for Cayuga Lake
and the other lakes. Because we can expect strong water flows in the future, perhaps a case
could be made that while these deep ditches might take away stuff immediately, they could
present a problem for all the bridge infrastructure we have; bridges designed for a 100-year
flood do not work for 100-year floods that are actually worse because of those ditches.
S Buck commented that the health and quality of our lakes does have a significant
impact on our tourism and the financial health of our local economy. G Dodici agreed but
added that economic arguments have not worked in the past; what works best is to get those
who ditch to cooperate with us. They’ve sat through Rebecca Schneider’s demonstrations of
these projects, as well as her slideshows that show the impacts and costs, and they
understand, but then it’s business as usual. Last year, as a board, we decided to work with
them to try to implement some demonstration areas where we could get them to see firsthand
that undertaking these BMPs would not only save money and the environment but make their
jobs easier. Ultimately, it is the person who operates the machine that needs to buy in.
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G Dodici noted that DPW’s ditch management has indeed improved since the
Conservation Board began talking with them. They have started putting in check dams, though
they could be better. It just takes time. He agrees with everything that has been said about the
reasons we should be doing it, but believes it is not an effective way to convince people who are
doing it differently to change their ways; we should show that it will help the DPW in the long
run by freeing up time and money for other projects.
S Bissen inquired whether anybody has talked to Rick Young about what procedures
they do for different slopes. He had noticed that the steeper the slope, the deeper the ditch. He
wondered what their procedures are on how deep they are supposed to dig ditches. N
Munkenbeck suggested that instead of talking with Rick, maybe we should talk with the
operators themselves. G Dodici responded that Rick is the gateway to the crew; if we meet with
Rick, we meet with the crew.
A Clark asked if we see differences between roads, is it due to differences between
operators or different assessments of roads by the same operator. G Dodici does not see
differences between roads; they are all too deep, whether the landscape is flat or steep. He
acknowledged that, to N Munkenbeck’s point, it is important to understand why the operators
are doing what they are doing.
B Beck offered that, based on their work with the Game Farm trestles, workers take
pride in their work, so it may be that the workers doing ditches take pride in doing really clean,
deep ditches. We should try not to shame them but get them to take pride in a different way,
the proper way, so as to benefit both the environment and the road. It’s an educational
process, normally from the top down. Maybe we should try harder to encourage them to
appreciate best practices, to not ditch deeper but better, as a way to take pride in their work.
S Buck suggested that, though there will not be the fanfare associated with the Rail
Trail opening at the Game Farm, we should give them praise at the end of the year for those
pilot areas where they didn’t ditch deeply. Maybe that will be a start to make them feel good
about that approach.
There being no further business, on motion made by N Munkenbeck and seconded by G
Dodici, the meeting was adjourned at 8.17 PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Loren Sparling
Deputy Town Clerk