Sustainability Commission

MEETING MINUTES SUSTAINABILITY COMMISSION September 17, 2015 The Sustainability Commission met in Community Conference Room of the Village at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, September 17, 2015. In attendance were: Present: Don Anderson, Chairman Daniel Dorfman Richard Heller Laurie Leibowitz Jerry Witkovsky Michael Shalen Brian Wolkenberg Absent: Gloria Threats Also Present: Andrew Lichterman, Assistant to the Village Manager Approval of Minutes Commissioner Heller motioned and Commissioner Shalen seconded to approve the minutes from the July 9, 2015. The minutes were unanimously approved. Public Comment Mr. Andrew Marwick expressed support for a transit oriented development in Deerbrook Mall and would like to see more green space encouraged in the redevelopment plans. Mr. Heller noted there is a lot of asphalt and open space at the mall. Chairman Anderson thanked Mr. Marwick for his comments and noted that the Village Board will be briefed on the sentiments of the Commission through meeting minutes. Energy Assessment Program Mr. Wolkenberg reported that as part of last year’s classroom activities with Kipling, we were able to achieve a template and structure to activate people and drive them to a destination with ideas of how to reduce energy consumption. This structure and partnership with Kipling should be leveraged to expand on activities with all of the District 109 schools. He suggested a possible vision for the Commission that includes the entire community rallied around the idea of being sustainable, measuring outcomes and celebrating milestones. Mr. Wolkenberg offered three specific steps to get closer to that vision. 1) Partnering with Kipling and District 109 schools on another classroom activity this year, learning from mistakes last year, and brining that activity into the homes. 2) Expanding the conversation to include the broader community (more connections, more classrooms, and more homes). 3) Establishing the Village’s role as an advocate that celebrates entities that make sustainable progress including utilizing the Village’s communication tools to amplify sustainable achievements in an effort to raise awareness. Mr. Wolkenberg noted that he participated in the District 109 Green Committee meeting yesterday. He noted that principles from all the District 109 schools were in attendance as well as Superintendent Lubelfeld. Mr. Wolkenberg noted the District is working to determine their baseline energy consumption and will then develop next steps to become Energy Star Certified. Mr. Witkovsky also encouraged us to continue discussions with the Kipling PTO. Mr. Wolkenberg reported that additionally, Kipling is pursuing a Green Ribbon Award, which is a comprehensive sustainable evaluation of the school’s criteria related to health/wellness, classroom curriculum and building efficiencies. Commissioner Heller noted that Shepard School has also completed significant energy efficiency building improvements. Mr. Wolkenberg responded that there is friendly competition amongst principles to be green. Mr. Heller restated the importance of keeping green initiatives visible to the community. He suggested promoting the Village’s street light conversion to LED light so that the community is aware of these actions. Mr. Dorfman stated the awareness need not only be about the reduction of energy. The awareness should also include education about the impact of greenhouse gases and how those emissions can be reduced through energy efficiency means. Ms. Leibowitz inquired about how to pull the classroom activities into the community. Mr. Wolkenberg suggested the Village offer a commonplace, such as the Village’s website, to report out on the sustainable things the schools and businesses are doing. Mr. Wolkenberg noted the schools also discussed the possibility of starting a compost program and a school garden. Chairman Anderson thanked all the Commissioners for their contributions. He requested that the group report back next month and focus on what we have learned works and keep improving upon our successes. He noted is it important to remain focused on a few specific tasks to achieve success and suggested that the Commission does not underestimate the value of celebrating wins to raise awareness. Ms. Leibowitz suggested attending public forums to also disseminate information and raise awareness. Water Assessment Update Ms. Leibowitz reported that she found that Washington DC had a plastic water bottle campaign but indicated that it might not have been as successful as they would have liked. Mr. Lichterman suggested that if the Commission wants to proceed with a campaign educating the public on the impact of plastic water bottles, one tactic might be for resident to take a pledge not to purchase bottled water for a year. This action could then be measured and it would be similar to other educational campaigns, such as the “Don’t Text and Drive” pledge conducted annually by AT&T. A discount water filter program may also be a good tactic if the Village could partner with a local retailer. Ms. Leibowitz suggested the Village partner with a retail store to promote sales of reusable water bottles. A taste test may also be a good tactic to utilize in a public forum. Chairman Anderson requested that Ms. Leibowitz try to determine what is the biggest hurdle preventing people from adopting reusable water bottles. There was speculation as to whether it is related to convenience, taste, or quality. Other Items Consortium of North Suburban Environmental Groups (CONSEG) Mr. Lichterman reported that he attended the CONSEG meeting on September 8 on behalf of the Sustainability Commission. He noted that a dozen municipalities were in attendance and shared updates from each of their respective entities. Several of the municipalities reported that they did not have Village sanctioned/appointed environmental committees. Other commissions did not have a structure or plan with defined goals to follow. In many ways actions of the Sustainability Commission were ahead of the other municipalities with items such as a commercial waste franchise, construction debris recycling ordinance, composting ordinance and more. Mr. Lichterman noted that he was one of a very limited amount of staff members in the room and suggested that future meetings be attended by Commissioners instead of staff. The next meeting will be held on November 10. AMLI Mr. Lichterman reported that AMLI has been designed to achieve a LEED silver certification and the property’s sustainable features have been added the Village’s website. Energy Efficiency RFIQ Mr. Lichterman reported that the municipalities of Deerfield, Glencoe, Highland Park, Lake Bluff, Lake Forest, Northbrook and Skokie have jointly issued an energy efficiency request for information-qualifications. Submissions are due on Wednesday, September 30.  SWALCO SWALCO advised there are not able to combine electronics collections with chemical waste collections. SWALCO prefers to keep the two events distinct and would have trouble providing manpower for an event of that scale. Mr. Lichterman noted that in the latest SWALCO report the Village disposed of 2,387 tons of solid waste and 1,174 tons of recyclables. Adjournment Commissioner Heller motioned to adjourn. Commissioner Dorfman seconded. The meeting was adjourned at 8:02 PM. Respectfully submitted, Andrew Lichterman Assistant to the Village Manager