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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCB Minutes 2013-09-05 Town of Ithaca Conservation Board September 5, 2013 7:00 p.m. Final Minutes Members present: Andy Goodell, James Hamilton, Eva Hoffmann, Jon Meigs, Vladimir Micic, Kristine Shaw Staff: Mike Smith Guests: Mara Alper Persons to be heard -none Member concerns —We are having membership attendance issues more regularly. We discussed the options of having fewer seats on the board so that reaching quorum would be easier, and also requiring attendance in various ways. We need a definition of quorum: Is it based on the total number of seats on the board, or just the number of filled seats? Chair and coordinator reports The Conference on the Environment will be in Buffalo, NY Oct 3-5 http://coe20l3.org/. Mike reported that Planning Board has had few projects, and none warranting our input. Approval of minutes from 06/06/13 There were no July or August meetings. June minutes received minor edits. Continue discussion regarding Town of Ithaca water conservation efforts The Bolton Point water treatment facility will be considering installing solar panels on site. They are looking for available grants for other efficiency improvements. They have stated that they are focused on sustainability, conservation, their bottom line, and fair pricing and will be looking for a pricing structure to meet all of these aspects. Their meetings have seen discussions of a price per volume with graduated pricing, which would help price use in better increments for promoting conservation. The Conservation Board is focused on finding ways to reduce the CO2 emissions of water treatment, which mostly comes from the energy needed to pump water up the hills. However, even with reduced water use, Bolton Point has fixed operation costs that would require adjusting rates if usage is reduced. A few Conservation Board members expressed interest in finding ways to participate in Bolton Point meetings while they are discussing potential rate change options. Review of scenic views tour brochure Vladimir motions to use the map side of version 4 (horizontal view), and the text from version 3 (descriptions instead of driving directions). Discussion about bike routing and image thumbnail size continued, and Vladimir proposed using version 3 as it is with a few minor editing changes. All were in favor of this for a limited production. The Scenic Resources Committee will update the wording on the brochure for the next round of printing. Update on the "Conservation Board recommendation for a Town of Ithaca Pest Management Policy" The Public Works Committee has concerns of cost, training, and public works storage if a Town staff person was to be certified for pesticide application.Alternatively, the work can be hired out but likely at a higher cost. Cornell Plantations has used Jim Engel for pesticide application; an example of his efforts was along the East Ithaca Recreation Way, near the Game Farm Rd entrance, removing honeysuckle. Susan and Kristine will look into examples of plans from other communities and costs involved. Regular reports and updates: Environmental Review Committee -No report Scenic Resources Committee - The scenic views brochure should be distributed, now that the sign at East Shore Park has been installed. Communications Committee - Susan has applied for an award for the New York State Association of Conservation Commissions 2013 Environmental Excellence Award for our scenic views sign. Conservation Zoning Committee -The Planning Committee had a meeting to discuss changes to the boundary of the Southwest Glens and Creeks Conservation Zone. Tompkins County EMC -Vladimir attended the July board meeting, where a county plastic bag ban has been proposed. The Cayuga Lake coal plant is being phased out. The cost for new transmission lines versus channeling the money to regional wind farms or other sources was discussed. The plant also generates fly ash which is stored on site very close to the lake, which has been a safety concern. Six Mile Creek Volunteer Monitoring Program - The Community Science Institute has been teaching the Science Center summer camp about benthic macro-invertebrates, which is good public outreach. Four teams sampled Six Mile Creek for BMI population analysis. The new entrance road construction to the 60-foot dam caused excessive runoff during the storm on August 8. Monitors took samples after the peak flow. James noted the water was 2.5 yards higher than typical. City of Ithaca Natural Areas Commission -No report. Cornell Plantations Natural Areas Academy - James weeded and pruned for invasives among Monkey Run trails. The knotweed was cut down and pesticide applied, which had good results controlling this invasive species. The deer exclosures in the McLean Bog were revised to prevent deer from eating the ground yew. Seeding in Park Park after weeding garlic mustard earlier in the year proved effective, and James has gone back for more weeding. Community Energy Action Plan Advisory Committee -Andy was unable to attend the past meeting. The plans continue to be developed, but will take longer than the initial schedule which was ending in summer. Other Business Membership resolutions have been tabled for the next meeting. Review 2013 Work Goals / Set March a eg nda Membership attendance and seats, as well as water rates will continue to be future discussions. These draft minutes were written by Andy Goodell on 09/26/2013.