Environmental Advisory Committee

EAC Meeting Minutes A meeting of the Environmental Advisory Committee was held at the Cortland Wastewater Facility on 3/2/2020. Attendees included (alphabetically): Bruce Adams (staff liaison) Annika Huber (non-member advisor) Noah Beck (co-chair) Jeremy Jimenez (committee member) John Busch (committee member) Szilvia Kadas (committee member) Diane Chu (committee member) Frank Kelly (co-chair) Donald Chu (committee member) Call to order at 7:00 PM Approved minutes of 2/17/2020 meeting Motion by Diane C, seconded by Noah B, approved unanimously New Business Frank K mentioned the proposed City solar project and that once the EAC is fully up and running that would be a type of issue the committee would become engaged in. The project will be discussed at the next meeting after more information is gathered. Jeremy J and Szilvia K related their individual efforts on incorporating community-focused environmental projects in their respective SUNY curricula. They also detailed conversations with John Suarez on applying for grant monies to fund these efforts. Opportunity to involve up to 36 SUNY students. John B described his correspondence with the director of video and television at SUNY Cortland regarding producing public outreach/educational materials. The director expressed interest in working with the EAC on developing such materials. Frank K led discussion regarding the importance of choosing projects with high likelihood of success for group’s early efforts in order to encourage wider participation in future efforts. Don C shared his research into issues surrounding recycling and what separates successful programs from “money hole” programs. Later in meeting he ran through the PowerPoint he had developed to date exploring logistics, recyclable marketing and comparative costs. Annika H related her research into food waste composting as applied to a county-wide program. She used Tompkins County and other programs as a model. She ran through a PowerPoint she had developed on the topic detailing logistics and funding issues. Diane C told of her conversations with a Cornell Master Gardener regarding food scraps collection and composting. She informed the group Cornell Cooperative Extension may be a resource for developing public outreach/educational materials on this subject. General discussion regarding the types of projects and efforts that may and may not be within the purview of the EAC. The EAC is a creation of and operates in service to the Common Council and City Administration. EAC efforts should take political realities into account though that need not deter aspirational efforts. Frank K mentioned John Suarez has said it may be possible to make SUNY Cortland students available to work on EAC initiatives if the work complements the students’ service engagement goals. The EAC reached a consensus to develop a proposed County-wide food waste collection and composting plan that can be presented to the Common Council as an actionable item the City can engage with the County on. By consensus and to avoid confusion, all info to be posted on EAC’s page on City web site to go through BA. Kat McCarthy, 1st ward alderperson, to be invited to April meeting so EAC can seek input on Don C’s and Annika H’s presentations. Adjournment at 8:05 PM Bruce Adams 05/04/2020 Submitted by Date of approval Page 2