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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2015.07.22 Conservation Commission Minutes Minutes for the Conservation Commission July 22,2015 Page 1 of 4 MINUTES FOR THE ASHLAND CONSERVATION COMMISSION Wednesday,July 22, 2015 Siskiyou Room, 51 Winburn Way 1. Call to Order Roxane Beigel-Coryell called the meeting to order at 6:01 p.m. in the Siskiyou Room. Commissioners Risa Buck, Jim Hartman, Shel Silverberg, Mark Weir, Bryan Sohl, James McGinnis, and Councilor Rich Rosenthal were present. Commissioner Koopman arrived late. Staff member Adam Hanks and Commissioner Cara Cruickshank were absent. 2. Consent Agenda None. 3. Announcements The next commission meeting will be held on August 27, 2015. The climate and energy subcommittee are scheduled to meet on August 5 and 19, 2015. Sohl stated that they may need to cancel or reschedule the subcommittee meetings due to busy schedules. The next compost class will be held on August 15. Commissioner Marni Koopman arrived at 6:06 p.m. 4. Public Forum Louise Shawkat- stated the show, "Future of Energy" can now be streamed on-line. She also has a copy if any commission member would like to borrow it. Huelz—gave handouts regarding energy use and typical amounts of wasted energy. Stated that the information on the handout is old and that wasted energy is now 60%, not the 53.2% shown. He gave details on how energy is typically used and wasted in households. He stated we frequently don't recognize all energy used because we are not billed for it such as greenhouse gases. Estimated 30,000 lbs per year per household in greenhouse gases is put into the atmosphere. Additionally, we need to add in daily uses for things like production of the food we eat, and the activities we enjoy. Stated that California is working to have all new residential homes built to net zero by 2020. Previously there was a goal to have all cars electric by 2050 but the new estimates he's found believe it will be more like 10 years from now. 5. Reports/Presentations/Updates Downtown Recycling—Hartman introduced Vanston Shaw. He is a Parks and Recreation Commissioner but is not here in that capacity. He is here as a resident of Ashland. Stated he would like the Commission to encourage the Council to create a recycling program in downtown Ashland. He wondered why no downtown recycling is available on a daily basis even though it is for special events. When he previously approached Council for recycling to be added downtown he was informed that it is too expensive a program to run. He believes there must be a method for doing downtown recycling which won't cost too much. He gave history of how the recycling baskets in Lithia Park were introduced and how they are currently being used and maintained. Mr. Shaw would like to have a program similar to the Lithia Park baskets in downtown and Minutes for the Conservation Commission July 22,2015 Page 2 of 4 suggested that the Commission could encourage businesses to take responsibility for the maintenance of baskets outside of their businesses. Biegel-Coryell recommended that if the Commission is interested in pursuing this a subcommittee be formed to consider options. Group discussed how many cans were downtown and how much, per can, the Parks Department spends on this program, including the purchasing of the baskets and staff time in maintaining them. Buck stated that she has a long history with recycling programs in the downtown area. She loves how these baskets are being used in the park and would love if they could work in the downtown area. She stated that there are limitations and challenges to recycling programs in Ashland which other communities with similar basket programs don't have to face. The biggest challenge is that we have no sorting facility and so any recycling which is contaminated with garbage can't be recycled. The Clear Stream recycling program previously tried was a massive failure due to this contamination. Additionally, Recology trash drivers can only pick up trash and so this would require a separate pick-up. She feels the concept is good but wants everyone to understand that it is more complicated than it first appears. Group agreed that recycling in the downtown is important. Hartman, Buck, Weir, and Biegel- Coryell agreed to be a subcommittee and work on possible options. They will bring suggestions back to the group. The group can then determine if forwarding any options to Council is appropriate. Council Update— Councilor Rosenthal gave an update on the proposed use of the Imperatrice Property as a solar farm. Staff and Council determined that Public Works likely has need of the property for cooling effluent and as this was the reason the property was purchased in the first place we can't at this time agree to using the property as a solar farm. The overall idea of a solar farm is not dead but Council will not move forward at that location. He informed the group that the Mayor is just starting on the process for appointing people to the Climate and Energy Action Plan group. He also reminded the group that the commissioner appreciation BBQ will be on August 30. He encouraged the commissioners to attend. City Conservation chi Operations— Shiplet handed out the 10-cent Bag Ban cards which will be given to retailers to help inform shoppers of the ban and the 10 cent charge. Fourth of July—Buck stated that Recology added extra trash cans to each city can. This was not a great way to encourage recycling but it did prevent cans from overflowing. Hartman stated he noticed a difference in how clean the streets were after the parade. Salmon Festival—Buck stated that the event organizers are reaching out to the Mount Ashland Association in order to connect the dots between upstream and downstream. This connection might not happen this year but it is a good long-term goal. Organizers are hoping to do a safe carwash demonstration with the Public Works Department kit. Ashland School District Quarterly Update—Hartman stated the school garden on Morris Street is going great. He informed the group that after many years of service, August will be his last Minutes for the Conservation Commission July 22,2015 Page 3 of 4 meeting. He is looking for a replacement to suggest to the superintendent. The group thanked him for his service and offered a few suggestions for replacements. 6. Old Business Sneak Preview Column— Buck/Koopman m/s to approve the August column as written. Discussion: McGinnis wanted to make sure Hartman had received the edits he e-mailed. Hartman confirmed that he had. Voice Vote: All Ayes. Motion Passes. Group discussed the draft of the September article regarding leaf removal and storm drains. They felt it was overall okay but was missing key elements such as dog waste, oil from oil changes, and car wash runoff. Group debated whether or not to include the quiz in the final article, but did not come to a consensus. Koopman/Weir m/s to approve the September column, so long as the final draft includes information on proper disposal of dog waste, car wash runoff, and oil change drippings. Voice Vote: All Ayes. Motion Passes. Group discussed upcoming topics and would like the following: October—Climate and Energy Workshops written by Koopman and or McGinnis November—Energy report written by Hanks December—Holiday conservation written by Silverberg They would also like an article regarding the school efficiency report previously given to the commission by Jeff Sharp. Hartman will consider if he can write it. Group did not schedule it for a particular month. Climate and Energy Sub-committee—Koopman informed the group that she and commissioner Sohl have a meeting scheduled with Mayor Stromberg, Councilors Marsh and Rosenthal, and City Administrator Kanner to determine who plays what role in the process. They hope to have lots of commissioners participate in the process. She was informed by City Attorney Lohman that she cannot be on the committee due to her job. She gave an overview of the proposed process that will be discussed at the upcoming meeting. They are still planning to have the Geos Institute lead a kick-off event on November 15th and all the information gathered at that event will be given to the Mayor-appointed committee. McGinnis suggested that the Commission should extend a specific thank you to the Historic Armory for providing their building for free for the kick-off event. 7. New Business Leaf Blower/Air Quality Best Practices—No update about this as there has not been a meeting of the subcommittee. Commission Budget Discussion—Weir would like to set aside $1,000 for next year's Earth Bowl. Weir/Silverberg m/s to earmark$1,000 of the commission budget for the 2016 Earth Bowl. Minutes for the Conservation Commission July 22,2015 Page 4 of 4 Discussion: Weir stated that of all the activities this commission has participated in, this year's Earth Bowl had the most impact. He wants to see it continue and so is requesting that funds be set aside now. Group agreed the event was successful and they would like to see it continued. Rosenthal questioned whether the Commission had pursued sponsorship for the event. They had confusion about what types of sponsorship were allowed for events. Group asked Weir how he came up with $1,000 as a request. He stated he had assumed the following: • Four $50 gift certificates for winning team= $200 • Twelve $25 gift certificates for team coaches = $3 00 • engraving of trophy= $5 0 • advertising (print work or tee shirts) _ $150 • food& drink at the event= $300 TOTAL= $11000 Group discussed the possibility of asking the Ashland Schools Foundation for sponsorship or financial assistance. They are hesitant to do so until the event is more well-established. Group discussed possibility of altering the motion to agree to support the event but not include specific detail of amount to use. They determined that having set a specific amount aside might be easier when other budget issues arise. Roll call vote: Buck, Hartman, Sohl, McGinnis, Weir, Silverberg: YES, Koopman: No. Motion Passes. Group requested that staff come back with clarification on the requirements and limits of outside sponsorship for events. 8. Wrap Up Group agreed to move the November and December commission meetings to the third Wednesday of those months to avoid the holidays. Those meeting will now take place on November 18 and December 16. The 2016 Earth Bowl date will be determined in September in order to better match up with the School District's calendar. Meeting adjourned at 7:48 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Diana Shiplet Executive Assistant