Environmental Advisory Board

MINUTES ENVIRONMENTAL ADVISORY BOARD FEBRUARY 9, 2024 MEMBERS PRESENT: Katherine Arnett, Niani Brown, Sarah Richard, Kathleen Turner (virtual), Brian Williams, Caroline Turnbull, Associate Board Member (virtual) MEMBERS ABSENT: Scott Eardley, Tim Pritchard, Hillery Spearman, Matthew Worsham STAFF PRESENT: Eric Borth, Mary Faulkner, Paul Fleischman, Julie Height, Keith Klein, Chris Lipson, Theresa McGeady, Carolyn Moore, John Musto, Michele Simmons OTHERS PRESENT: John Crocker – WPAFB Joe Forentz – WPAFB Gregory Plamondon – WPAFB George Walters – WPAFB Stacey Geiger – WPAFB Mark Lyle – WPAFB John Woodman – Solid Waste District Spencer Thomas – Public Health Sarah Holod – Public Health Walt Hibner – CenterPoint Energy Leslie King – MVRPC Bonnie Buthker – Ohio EPA (virtual) Leslie Blake – US EPA (virtual) Syed Quadri – US EPA (virtual) Nicole Goers – US EPA (virtual) Chairperson Katherine Arnett called the meeting to order at 12:02 p.m. and Introductions were made. Paul Fleischman introduced the guests from Wright Patterson Airforce Base. The group made a presentation on the WPAFB plans for PFAS mitigation and status of implementation. Approval of the December 2023 Minutes: Chairperson Katherine Arnett tabled the vote to accept the minutes due to not having a quorum. Kathy also gave a summary of the 2024 Annual Retreat. The focus for the year will be community engagement, with Niani Brown taking the lead on attending public neighborhood meetings and having a presence at local events. Staff Items: Paul Fleischman shared that the Source Water Protection Fund Board approved a two-year continuation of a service contract for the Micro CG well monitoring devices. These devices are part of an early warning system for tracking known plumes and for any new contamination. Paul also mentioned that they are working towards filling the vacant Risk Assessor position. He shared that the Dayton Fire Department representative on the Source Water Protection Fund Board, Christopher Rowlett, has been promoted to another position and a new lieutenant will replace him. Theresa McGeady shared that the “Adopt-a-Drain” program has been revised and relaunched. It is now managed online and is easy for adopters to use. An article in the Connections Newsletter about the program was recently sent to Dayton residents, which doubled the participation. Theresa will be reporting to the Ohio EPA with the Stormwater Annual Report which includes the following: There were seven river cleanups in 2023, with 6402 lbs. of trash collected. The Children’s Water Festival will be in May and volunteers are needed. Tech Fest will be February 17th and 18th and Environmental Management will have a table there. She is seeking volunteers to help man the table. There will also be a Sustainability event at the Second Street Market on April 11th. ENVIRONMENTAL ADVISORY BOARD -2- February 9, 2023 Sustainability: Michele Simmons mentioned the 2023 Sustainability Annual Report is complete and available on the City’s website. A link will be sent for easy access. The report highlights that there were over 6.5 million dollars in energy savings last year. Also, over 2 million metric tons of Co2 saved as well. In October, the Renewable Natural Gas Project was implemented, with construction due to begin between April and June of this year. The biogas is expected to start flowing this summer, which will eliminate half of the City’s carbon footprint. Law: John Musto gave an update that the DuPont settlement has been approved by the court. We have 60 days to submit our claim for damages. He wanted to thank the EAB for providing letters to the Ohio EPA, which he felt was helpful in bringing attention to the Carco site. The Ohio EPA director will be visiting next week to discuss Carco. Economic Development: Keith Klein shared that a small assessment project for a business on Springfield Street was done. The Ohio EPA has a program “Targeted Brownfield Assessment”. Through the sampling for this program, they found elevated lead in the soil. Thankfully the contamination was only in that spot, which was good news for the community. Public Health, Dayton and Montgomery County: Sarah Holod shared that an open house will be held at the Polish Club on February 27th for residents within superfund sites (Valleycrest, Valley Pike, etc.) to encourage them to allow access for vapor intrusion systems to be installed in their homes. The contractor, US EPA, Ohio EPA, Public Health will be in attendance and hosted by the Community Action Group. The Public Health Annual Report was presented at the Source Water Protection Fund Board Meeting on February 1st. Solid Waste District: John Woodman shared that at the last Styrofoam Collection Event, held on January 6th, almost 7,000 lbs. were collected. The event was held during adverse weather conditions, but still had over 550 cars participating. The next event will be April 13th at the Rose Music Center in Huber Heights. The Household Hazardous Waste Collection hours will return to every Tuesday from 1:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the beginning of March. The draft Five-Year Solid Waste Plan update is due in April to the Ohio EPA. After the EPA comment period, there will be a public comment period. Following that, later in the year, the plan will be taken to the communities for ratification before being finalized. A new project that is being worked on is a collaboration with the Dayton Dragons to host a zero-waste event at one of the games in August. More details to come as it is in the early planning stages. Five Rivers MetroParks: No Update University of Dayton: Sarah Richard shared that there will be a large-scale waste audit project at UD Arena later this month. MVRPC: Leslie King stated that today was the last day for public comment on the Primary Climate Action Plan. The plan is available on the website. The draft was the first to be released in Region 5, and possibly the country. A virtual presentation on the plan will be available on Wednesday, February 14. They are on track for a March 1st submission. MVRPC has been asked by the Ohio EPA to support a Southwest Ohio Comprehensive water study. This will help determining where businesses locate that require large amounts of water. There will be an Active Transportation Meeting on March 8th. Community Outreach: Please let Niani know of any volunteer needs. Old Business: None New Business: There are now three vacancies on the Board with the resignation of Matthew Worsham. Tim Pritchard and Kathleen Turner have also resigned. There are several applicants being considered to fill these positions. Encourage others to apply and attend meetings. Unfortunately, the lunches provided for EAB meetings do not qualify for the City’s policy for funding. Therefore, lunch will no longer be provided for board meetings. With no other board business to discuss, Sarah Richard made a motion to adjourn, and Brian Williams seconded the motion. The meeting was adjourned at 1:32 p.m.