Citizens' Environmental Commission

MINUTES CITY OF DEKALB CITIZENS’ ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION May 3, 2018 The Citizens’ Environmental Commission held a regular business meeting on May 3, 2018, in Council Chambers at the DeKalb Municipal Building, 200 South Fourth Street, DeKalb, Illinois, 60115. Chairman Kenney called the meeting to order at 4:09 p.m. A. ROLL CALL The following members of the Citizens' Environmental Commission were present (indicated by x): X Dan Kenney (Chair) Ken Koch Mark Hein X Clare Kron X Bill Oleckno X Sharon Skala X Ann Shult The following ex-officio members were present (indicated by x): X Amy Doll, DeKalb Park District X Mike Holland, Kishwaukee Water Reclamation District Melissa Burlingame, Northern Illinois University Michelle Gibson, DeKalb County Health Department B. APPROVAL OF AGENDA MOTION - To approve the agenda. Ms. Kron moved to approve the motion, seconded by Ms. Shult. Agenda was approved unanimously by voice vote. C. PUBLIC COMMENT Bessy Chronopoulos commented there needs to be a review on what governs each Commission /Board. For clarity and accuracy, she felt there needs to be more consistency in protocol which would include how roll call was done, meeting minutes were recorded, etc. She would like to have available a list of who is on each Commission/Board as well as access to each Commissioner’s personal contact information so that private citizens could contact individuals. Mr. Holdeman replied that access to personal information will be addressed at the City Council meeting on May 14th. Due to privacy concerns, Chair Kenney suggested that each Commission member could have a city email address for commission business only. At this time, Mr. Holdeman remains the one contact person for reaching the commissioners. Ms. Chronopoulos also asked the Commission if there could be signage at the retention ponds along Sycamore Road which would alert drivers to geese crossing. As the retention pond in front of Lowe’s was polluted with algae and garbage, she asked how the City can enforce keeping the city’s retention ponds clean. Mr. Oleckno Citizen Environmental Commission May 3, 2018 Page 2 of 4 responded that the Commission did try to contact the owners of the properties involved but received only one response. Vaughn Kuerschner from Waste Management shared information about the “at your door” program. Both electronics and household hazardous waste are included in the program. He highlighted benefits including pick-up at residents’ homes. Service requests may be done by phone or e-mail, and 85% of collections will be recycled. Residents must call two weeks ahead of the desired pick-up date. Mr. Holdeman added the RFP for waste hauling does include this program as an elective. D. APPROVAL of MINUTES Ms. Kron moved to approve the minutes of April 5, 2018, seconded by Ms. Shult. Minutes were approved unanimously by voice vote. E. COMMISSION REPORTS 1. DeKalb County Health Department: Michelle Gibson (absent) Ms. Gibson has left her position at DeKalb County Health Department. 2. DeKalb Park District: Amy Doll The Garlic Mustard Pull will be Saturday morning, May 5th. There were over 50 volunteers that came for the Prairie Park clean-up day in conjunction with NIU Cares Day. June 23 & 24 will be the camp-out at Prairie Park. Bid documents have gone out for the Nature Trail Restoration project. 3. Kishwaukee Water Reclamation District: Michael Holland Construction progress has slowed down because of rain. Work on the parking lot project will have electric car charging stations. 4. Northern Illinois University: Melissa Burlingame (absent) Chair Kenney reported for Ms. Burlingame. Progress continues on assessing the NIU sustainability profile. The admissions department will be asked to recruit students interested in sustainability. Information about sustainability has been added to NIU Orientation. Additional requests include adding sustainable living ideas to new student housing information as well as offering sessions on personal sustainability through Employee Wellness. Funds will be requested to hire students to write an NIU sustainability plan for the fall semester. There have been updates made to the NIU Sustainability website, and there’s an onging search for no-cost ways to promote environmental sustainability. 5. City Staff Liaison: Tim Holdeman The Natural Landscape Ordinance that was submitted has been revised and is currently with the city attorney. Mr. Holdeman would like to report back to the Commissioners via e- mail as to what changes were made. It will be moving forward soon to the City Council for approval. 2 Citizen Environmental Commission April 5, 2018 Page 3 of 4 The Bike Share program launched on the NIU campus a couple weeks ago. For the trial period the bikes have to be returned to NIU property. Refuse and recycling proposals have been released. They should all be returned in a couple of weeks. F. NEW BUSINESS 1. Coal Tar Asphalt Discussion Because of Mr. Koch’s absence this will be tabled until the June meeting. 2. Exterior LED Lights Concern Ms. Kron distributed handouts regarding the potential negative effects of LED lighting on the environment unless appropriate wavelengths are used. Mr. Holland asked if we should prioritize our concerns as using LED lighting will save energy. Mr. Holdeman said a resident has also expressed health concerns about LED lighting, and the mayor has asked ComEd to respond. Mr. Oleckno would like a response on what the environmental impact would be. A public attendee, Keith Nyquist, self-identified as the author of the letter to the mayor, suggested that if there is an environment study it should be done by an independent entity. Mr. Holland commented there are two issues, light pollution and using the correct LED bulbs. Mr. Holdeman said there is a survey being sent out from ComEd in May, and after the survey is completed specific concerns will be discussed. Mr. Holdeman suggested the commission hold a public forum. Chair Kenney suggested drafting a letter to ComEd. Ms. Kron proposed that the Commission should bring to the attention of the Mayor, City Council, city staff, and residents of DeKalb concerns about adding LED lights to the city, and that it offers to moderate public forums addressing the health and ecological effects of LED lighting. Mr. Oleckno seconded the motion. Chair Kenney suggested researching current city ordinances that apply to installing LED lights. G. OLD BUSINESS 1. Food Security Amendment Update and Discussion Ms. Kron is awaiting action from Chair Kenney to pursue an ordinance change to allow backyard chickens in DeKalb. 2. Chapter 50 Revision and vote Mr. Oleckno had sent an email copy of the final recommended changes. It was discussed that if someone does leave the Commission she or he can apply again in the future if circumstances have changed. Ms. Kron approved the wording. Mr. Oleckno added one formatting change. Ms. Kron moved to approve the proposed change, and Ms. Shult seconded the motion. 3. Other Sustainability Plan Updates 3 Citizen Environmental Commission May 3, 2018 Page 4 of 4 H. ANNOUNCEMENTS Chair Kenney had toured Inboden’s Gourmet Meats and Specialty Foods and noted that it was using sustainable business practices. He recommended other commissioners also take the tour. Mr. Oleckno mentioned an article on turning recyclables into art. He also talked about advantages of using running lights on cars during the day, as it provides driving safety while using very little energy. Ms. Kron talked about plastic, recycling, and the fact that most plastic does not biodegrade. She suggested writing a letter from the Commission to Aldi’s because of all the food pre-packaged in plastic containers. Chair Kenney asked Mr. Kuerschner if plastic is removed from compost. Mr. Kuerschner responded that as much as possible is removed but not all can be screened out. Chair Kenney feels the Commission needs to work on more public awareness of plastic pollution instead of addressing corporate practices. Next Meeting: Thursday, June 7, 2018, 4:00 pm I. ADJOURNMENT Ms. Shult moved to adjourn the meeting, and Mr. Oleckno seconded. Motion carried unanimously by voice vote. Chair Kenney declared the meeting adjourned at 5:32 p.m. Respectfully Submitted: Linda Odom, Recording Secretary Approved by Voice Vote on June 7, 2018 4