HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019-06-13 EMC Final Minutes_0EMC Final Minutes 1
June 13, 2019 4:00 p.m. 2
TCAT, 737 Willow Avenue, Ithaca, NY 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 E Legislative Liaison
Cait Darfler P Town of Ulysses Susan Allen-Gil E 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 E Town of Groton Anna Kelles A Associate Member
Michelle Henry P Town of Newfield Dooley Kiefer P Associate Member
Anne Klingensmith P Town of Danby Dan Klein P Associate Member
Laurel Lynch A At-Large Jose Lozano E Associate Member
Vladimir Micic P Town of Ithaca Osamu Tsuda A Associate Member
Steve Nicholson P Town of Caroline David Weinstein A Associate Member
Susan Riley P At-Large Robert Wesley A Associate Member
Tom Shelley P City of Ithaca Roger Yonkin A Associate Member
Genny Shipley A At-Large Darby Kiley P Planning Staff
Don Smith A At-Large Kristin McCarthy P Planning Staff
Regi Teasley P At-Large
Guests – Tom Butler, Katherine Herleman, Mike Merchant 5
Call to Order – Chair Brian Eden called the meeting to order at 4:10 p.m. 6
Privilege of the Floor – No one spoke. 7
Agenda Review/Changes – None 8
Approval of the May Minutes – A motion was made by Brian Eden, and seconded by Steve Bissen, to 9
approve the May 9th minutes. Susan Riley abstained. Motion carried, with suggested edits to lines 16-18 10
by Steve Bissen. Edits have been incorporated into final May 9th minutes. 11
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Presentation: A Community-owned Internet of Things – Jon Bosak 13
Jon Bosak from Pinax presented to the group on the Internet of Things in general and in particular on 14
the volunteer-run The Things Network Ithaca (TTNI), a grassroots initiative aimed at creating free and 15
open community-owned data networks that enable anyone in Tompkins County to connect inexpensive 16
wireless sensing devices to the Internet. It is a collaboration between volunteers, Cornell Cooperative 17
Extension (CCE-TC), and consulting firm MCCI, based in Trumansburg. In 2018, Tompkins County 18
allocated $40,000 toward the purchase of 60 TTN “gateway” devices. Some will be installed in 11 County 19
government buildings, with the rest distributed for free to individual volunteers but also municipalities 20
and businesses to provide coverage over most of the County. IT support and participant concerns about 21
network security have been two stumbling blocks. 22
Many local applications of the program to date have focused on monitoring energy usage in buildings. 23
Early adopters include CCE-TC, Holt Architects, Ithaca Bakery, T-burg ShurSave, and Taitem Engineering. 24
Approximately a year’s worth of data is available. Other projects completed or under way include air 25
pollution monitoring (Cornell), air source heat pump efficiency (Maplewood), and passive house 26
efficiency (Ecovillage). More recently, the Town of Ulysses has come online and talks are in the works 27
with other municipalities. Local wish list items include sensing devices to monitor road conditions (Town 28
of Danby), roadway ditch conditions (Town of Ulysses), and all the various possible uses for agriculture. 29
His presentation can be found on the EMC website, and members can contact Jon for more information. 30
Presentation: County Comprehensive Plan Update – Joan Jurkowich 31
Joan Jurkowich of the Planning and Sustainability Department gave an overview of the department’s 32
five-year review of the Tompkins County Comprehensive Plan. She outlined the review process and 33
asked the audience to keep two factors in mind when commenting: Is this addition related to a principle 34
or policy in the comprehensive plan, and if so, can the County take action on it? Have any issues arisen 35
in the last five years that are not addressed in the current plan? (Likewise, should anything be deleted 36
from it?) Here are some of the topics of concern shared by EMC members: 37
• Community choice aggregation 38
• Municipal LED streetlights and Internet service 39
• Increasing cellphone coverage to rural areas 40
• Affordable housing, especially for aging population 41
• Possible influx of population from other areas due to climate change 42
• Best management practices for balancing agricultural land use and environmental protection 43
• Natural disaster preparedness, with focus on community outreach and education 44
• Increase in tick-borne illnesses and spread of infectious diseases due to climate change 45
• Negative effects of climate change on local agricultural community: excessive heat and poorer 46
milk production; flooding/drought and crop yield 47
• Contamination of water resources, specifically detrimental effects to public health: salt 48
contamination, lead pellet contamination, emerging contaminants and microplastics 49
• Extending wastewater treatment systems along both sides of Cayuga Lake 50
• Disruption of food supply chain and transportation due to climate change 51
• Improved communication and coordination among watershed districts 52
• Flooding and its effects on legacy toxins, such as those found in old landfill sites 53
Additional comments can be emailed to the Planning and Sustainability Department. 54
Committee Reports 55
56
Climate Adaptation: Regi Teasley 57
Katherine Herleman, of Cornell Cooperative Extension – Schuyler County, gave a presentation on 58
community resiliency and natural disasters. Committee explored what role it could play in developing 59
public education and training along those lines. Agriculture and Markets, in concert with other NYS 60
agencies, will host an expo on natural disaster preparedness at the 2019 New York State Fair. 61
Environmental Review: Brian Eden 62
• City of Ithaca passed a Green New Deal policy on June 5th and will likely adopt the Green Building 63
Code for new construction and major renovations before year’s end. Committee plans to lobby City 64
officials to adopt the necessary budget to accomplish the goals set out in these new policies. 65
• Committee plans to develop a resolution on lead pellet contamination. Gay Nicholson might provide 66
a presentation on this topic at the July EMC meeting. 67
• At the June 24th Planning, Energy, and Environmental Quality (PEEQ) Committee meeting, Brian will 68
give a presentation proposing that the County adopt net zero energy standards for its buildings. 69
• At the same PEEQ meeting, Ken Jaffe will speak about a new procurement policy adopted by four 70
local school districts that awards contracts to farms supplying meat free of or low in antibiotics. 71
• NYS Historic Preservation Office and Federal Highway Administration have taken an interest in the 72
Freese Road Bridge controversy. 73
• Town of Dryden Planning Board recommended that the Trinitas be required to complete an 74
environmental impact statement for its proposed development in Varna. 75
• In the wake of the likely repeal of the Federal Clean Water Rule, New York State is looking to revise 76
its water protection standards to include smaller wetlands and steams not covered under the 77
current guidelines. 78
Unique Natural Areas: Steve Nicholson 79
More than 30 people attended the June 12th County Forestlands public forum. David Weinstein gave a 80
presentation on strategies for evaluating the 2007 County Forestlands Management Plan, and a Q&A 81
session followed. Ithaca Voice published a news story on the event shortly. With the collaboration of 82
Sharon Anderson of CCE-TC, the UNA Committee will sponsor a field trip to one of the County forests. 83
County is processing the 2019 contracts for the UNA consultants. 84
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Waste Reduction: Tom Shelley 86
Committee members are waiting for Barbara Eckstrom and her staff at the TC Department of Recycling 87
and Materials Management to develop a public outreach and education campaign so they can be in sync 88
with County efforts. Barbara, along with County Attorney Jonathan Wood and others, is serving on a 89
committee charged with determining whether the County should impose a bag fee of some sort. No 90
discussion has taken place at the Legislature yet. Committee is seeking large quantities of reusable bags 91
to redistribute among low-income communities and agencies that serve them. 92
93
Outreach/Community Education: Susan Riley 94
Committee is seeking content ideas for fall public outreach program. Members should contact Susan 95
Riley with recommendations. 96
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Water Resources Council Liaison: Michelle Henry 98
The Council held a joint meeting with the Cayuga Lake Intermunicipal Watershed Organization on the 99
new draft Owasco Lake Watershed Rules and Regulations. 100
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Executive: Brian Eden 102
EMC By-laws are back with the County legislative staff for review. The Chair presented the 2018 EMC 103
Annual Report to PEEQ on May 28. It was well received. Some EMC members walked in the Ithaca 104
Festival Parade to Stand Up for Cayuga Lake. 105
Staff Report – Darby Kiley 106
A homeowner information event will be held Tuesday, June 18th, at the YMCA of Ithaca and Tompkins 107
County on PEARL, the new NYSERDA Home Energy Ratings Pilot. 108
109
Municipal Reports and Member Announcements 110
• Town of Caroline is hiring a LED lighting coordinator to recruit, train, and organize volunteers, who 111
will in turn provide information and guidance to residents on home energy improvements and will 112
distribute LED lightbulbs to all 1,550 homes in the town. 113
• Regi Teasley expressed concern about the possible environmental ramifications of an ADA-114
accessible trail being constructed along the waterfront in Allan H. Treman State Marine Park. 115
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Chair Brian Eden adjourned the meeting at 5:30 p.m. 117