Sustainability Commission

MEETING MINUTES SUSTAINABILITY COMMISSION October 27, 2016 A meeting of the Sustainability Commission was held on Thursday, October 27, 2016 at 7:00 pm at Deerfield Village Hall, 850 Waukegan Road, at 7:00 PM in the Community Conference Room 206. Chairman Don Anderson called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM. In attendance were: Present: Don Anderson, Chairman Laurie Leibowitz Gloria Threats Brian Wolkenberg Michael Shalen Chenlin Zhao Richard Heller Absent was: Daniel Dorfman Also present: Andrew Lichterman, Assistant Village Manager Approval of Minutes Commissioner Shalen made of motion, seconded by Commissioner Leibowitz to approve minutes of the September 15, 2016 Sustainability Commission meeting. The minutes were approved unanimously. New Commissioner Chairman Anderson welcomed newly appointed Commissioner Chenlin Zhao. Commissioner Zhao was born and raised in China and holds a PhD in material science and engineering from Virginia Tech University. He has worked as a research scientist and currently works as an internal consultant for technical development at ITW in Glenview. He is currently an MBA candidate and the University of Chicago. He has lived in Deerfield approximately 2 years. He looks forward to contributing to the community and positively impacting the Commission. Public Comment There was no public comment. Energy Conservation Commissioner Wolkenberg reported the subcommittee is working with Walgreens and has meetings setup with almost all the schools. The meetings will be a combination of PTO members, principals, and teachers at the various schools. Commissioner Wolkenberg and Commissioner Dorfman have prepared talking points in preparation for the meetings. They are still working to schedule meetings at Wilmot, Caruso and at the district level with Superintendent Lubelfeld. Commissioner Threats confirmed Walgreens wants to participate again next year and help make the programs more robust, pending final budget approval. Commissioner Wolkeberg noted that most of the meetings should take place prior to the next scheduled Commission meeting. After the meetings take Sustainability Commission October 27, 2016 Page 2 of 3 place the subcommittee will follow-up with the stakeholders to finalize commitments from each of the schools. Commissioner Wolkenberg confirmed that activities will again be centered around Earth Week. He commented that hopefully some of the new schools have ideas and materials that can be added to the current program. He noted that planning will take place throughout the winter and will include coordinating marketing efforts possibly with social media at the schools to build awareness. Commissioner Zhao inquired how we measure participation. Commissioner Wolkenberg reported that we receive results from an online survey and website traffic but noted that ideally we would like to have a measurement of energy consumption from the Village overall. Chairman Anderson requested Mr. Lichterman petition ComEd for the Village’s aggregate energy usage data so that we can compare year over year consumption. Commissioner Threats suggested asking students to measure their energy savings by using a carbon footprint calculator. Commissioner Wolkerberg agreed that a carbon footprint calculator would be a good addition to this year’s materials. Water Conservation Commissioner Leibowitz reported that the water subcommittee identified 3 areas to pursue related to water conservation and suggested promoting education around these 3 areas: (1) water usage; (2) storm water management; and, (3) toxins/chemicals (e.g. fertilizers, rags, etc.). Commissioner Leibowitz recommended continuing activities such as the water bottle taste test and suggested creating new programs to cover the 3 areas. She noted that CONSEG did not have resources related to water conservation. Mr. Lichterman noted that he would contact the City of Highland Park to determine if they have had success around their tiered water rate program. Commissioner Shalen reported the water subcommittee investigated irrigation systems and swimming pool in town and found that out of the 6,800 households there are approximately 1150 irrigation systems and 100 pools registered with the Village. Commissioner Shalen confirmed that he sees the commission’s role more as education and awareness rather than a direct impact on the environment and suggested that an education subcommittee may be appropriate. Chairman Anderson agreed that education is key. Chairman Anderson requested that the subcommittee create a timeline related to promoting the 3 areas of focus noting that there are natural times to discuss these initiatives. Chairman Anderson requested Mr. Lichterman provide a general update related to the Village’s plans around communications and promotions. Chairman Anderson inquired how the Commission can help the subcommittee. Mr. Lichterman suggested searching the Internet for successful programs around these initiatives and sharing information and resources with the subcommittee. Commissioner Zhao suggested utilizing videos to educate homeowners about their cross connections (i.e. storm sewer and sanitary sewer connections) as well as possibly offering a free inspection. Mr. Lichterman noted that he was recently invited by DHS Assistant Principal Joe Taylor to attend their staff meeting where they announced this year’s interdisciplinary topic of water. All classrooms will be incorporating water into their curriculum. Chairman Anderson extended an invitation for Mr. Taylor to attend an upcoming meeting to discuss how we can partner around this initiative. Other Items for Discussion Sustainability Commission October 27, 2016 Page 3 of 3 Mayors Monarch Pledge Mr. Lichterman reported that approximately 25 people attended the Monarch butterfly educational seminar that was held at the Patty Turner Center on October 1. The event was very well received. Business Electronics Mr. Lichterman reported that 418 lbs. of electronics were collected at the business electronics event at Deerbrook Mall on Sept 13. The vendor thought the location was ideal and would like to host another event at this location next year. Walk Audit As a follow-up to an inquiry received at the last meeting, Mr. Lichterman noted that the walk audit was intended to be a tool to educate, inspire and help communities plan how they might enhance an area to promote safe walking and biking. The Go Green group was the one that approached Illinois Bone and Joint Institute seeking a partnership. IBJI was interested since they believe a solution to the rise in chronic disease may lie in designing communities where people are intrinsically active. Unfortunately, all 5 available walk audits filled up before we were able to confirm a location. Lake County Composting Forum SWALCO is sponsoring a composting forum on November 10 from 1-3 p.m. at the College of Lake County where attendees can learn about food scrap initiatives in the County. Mr. Lichterman plans to attend and extended an invitation to the commission. Adjournment The meeting was adjourned at 8:20 pm. The next meeting is scheduled for December 1. Respectfully submitted, Andrew Lichterman Assistant Village Manager