Environmental Commission

Madison  Environmental  Commission   Meeting  Minutes—September  27,  2012     Call  to  order  and  Open  Public  Meetings  Statement  at  7:30pm.   PRESENT:    Missy  Durham,  Jeff  Gertler,  Jim  Greene,  Susan  Niculescu,  Roy  Redmond,  Jeff  Sarrett,  Betsy   Uhlman,  Claire  Whitcomb.   ABSENT:  Stephan  Stocker,  Don  Links  (Council  Liaison).     Minutes:  The  minutes  of  the  meeting  of  August  30,  2012  were  approved  with  changes.   Guests:    Steve  Gabe,  Resident  and  Environmental  Lawyer.   Mail  received:    No  mail.   Discussion:   1. Leaf  Blowing:    Mr.  Steve  Gabe  presented  his  concerns  about  the  use  of  gas  powered  leaf   blowers.  His  observation  is  that  they  are  used  to  clean  driveways  and  parking  lots  when  there   are  no  leaves  around.  They  are  noisy  and  pollute  the  air  not  only  with  the  gasoline  fumes  but   also  by  blowing  whatever  detritus  (such  as  animal  feces)  is  lying  on  the  pavement  into  the  air.   He  would  like  to  see  them  banned  in  Madison  or  at  least  severely  limited  in  use.  Mr.  Gabe   presented  a  proposed  ordinance  which  would  ban  the  use  of  gas  powered  leaf  blowers  and   hedge  trimmers  in  Madison.  B.  Uhlman  noted  that  several  surrounding  towns  (Maplewood,   Morristown,  Montclair,  and  Princeton)  have  ordinances  limiting  the  use  of  leaf  blowers,  but  not   banning  them.  She  also  noted  that  the  draft  provided  by  Mr.  Gabe  is  based  on  an  ordinance  in   Berkeley,  California,  where  the  issue  of  clearing  leaves  in  the  autumn  is  minimal  due  to  the   different  climate  there.  There  was  general  discussion  in  which  the  committee  members  asked   Mr.  Gabe  to  provide  some  factual  evidence  to  support  his  claims  so  that  any  action  to  be  taken   on  the  part  of  the  committee  was  supported  by  facts.  S.  Niculescu  noted  that  OSHA  has   standards  which  restrict  the  noise  level  of  various  kinds  of  equipment  and  that  the  leaf  blowers   are  most  likely  covered  by  those  standards.  Mr.  Gabe  agreed  to  substantiate  his  claims  with   factual  evidence  and  to  re-­‐draft  the  ordinance  based  on  a  New  Jersey  municipal  ordinance.  Later   conversation  on  this  issue  noted  that  there  is  probably  already  an  ordinance  in  Madison   concerning  the  decibel  level  of  equipment  used.     2. Rain  Gardens  at  the  MRC:  Betsy  Uhlman  reported  that  they  are  in  the  process  of  being  dug  up   and  augured  to  allow  for  better  drainage  since  the  original  construction  was  not  according  to   the  stormwater  management  plan.  Roy  Redmond  asked  to  what  depth  was  the  auguring?  When   B.  Uhlman  responded  that  the  depth  was  2  feet,  R.  Redmond  commented  that  it  would  not  be   adequate  to  be  effective.  The  auguring,  he  said,  has  to  go  to  the  next  level  of  sand,  which  could   1      be  5  feet  down  or  more.  B.  Uhlman  noted  that  the  only  reason  that  the  Rain  Gardens  are  being   fixed  is  because  Morris  County  Mosquito  Commission  issued  a  warning.  The  Rain  Gardens  had   become  pools  breeding  mosquitoes.  B.  Uhlman  noted  that  the  new  soil  was  to  be  installed  the   next  day  and  then  new  plants  planted.  She  noted  that  in  addition  to  the  lack  of  drainage  the   DPW  had  been  working  on  the  Field  house  w/o  providing  any  effective  silt  fencing  and  the  silt   from  the  construction  was  being  washed  into  the  Rain  Gardens  further  contributing  to  the  lack   of  drainage.  Jeff  Sarrett  noted  that  there  is  another  problem:  due  to  the  lack  of  adequate   parking  people  are  parking  on  the  grass  next  to  the  parking  lot,  which  causes  the  grass  to  be   damaged  and  muddy  ruts  to  form  which  further  exacerbates  the  drainage  problem.  B.  Uhlman   reported  that  Bob  Vogel  had  agreed  to  forward  the  links  to  the  PK  Report  on  the  site  pollution.     3. Anti-­‐Idling:    Jim  Greene  reported  that  the  Council  passed  the  proposed  resolution.  He  also   reported  that  Tom  Haralampoudis  told  him  that  the  message  has  been  distributed  to  all   teachers  and  parents  in  the  school  system.  Claire  Whitcomb  noted  that  whatever  was   distributed  was  not  effective.  She  has  children  in  the  school  system  and  did  not  receive  any   notice.  She  suggested  that  maybe  a  presentation  to  the  PTO  might  help.  Missy  Durham  and  Jeff   Gertler  suggested  that  a  more  effective  approach  would  be  to  tell  the  children  to  ask  their   parents  to  stop  idling,  maybe  to  make  it  into  a  science  project  or  to  hand  out  a  card  with  the   facts.  Jim  Greene  stated  that  he  would  contact  the  science  teacher  (interested  in  environmental   issues)  and  the  teacher  of  the  Environmental  Club  at  the  high  school.  C.  Whitcomb  supported   this  idea—she  stated  that  they  are  equipped  to  do  science  projects  like  this.  However,  she  noted   that  an  earlier,  similar  program  at  Central  Ave  School  was  not  effective.  B.  Uhlman  asked  if  it   could  be  included  in  the  Driver’s  Education  classes  given  at  the  high  school.  C.  Whitcomb  noted   that  to  be  effective  we  must  approach  the  issue  from  several  directions  at  once.  M.  Durham   asked  if  there  was  any  hope  of  getting  support  from  the  police.  J.  Sarrett  noted  that  although   idling  is  illegal  there  is  no  fine  so  there  is  little  that  the  police  can  do.    B.  Uhlman  noted  that  in   Sustainable  Madison  they  are  conducting  a  fleet  inventory  and  she  hopes  also  to  raise   awareness  among  Borough  employees  about  idling.    B.  Uhlman  suggested  another  approach   might  be  to  have  a  HS  senior  talk  to  the  middle  or  primary  school  children  to  raise  awareness.  C.   Whitcomb  volunteered  to  write  an  article  for  the  newspaper.   4. Automated  Meter  Reading:  B.  Uhlman  reported  that  our  memo  was  sent  to  the  Council,  but  that   she  received  no  response  yet.  In  addition  to  our  discussion  she  also  mentioned  in  the  memo  our   concern  that  $20  per  month  is  a  high  charge  for  opting  out  of  the  automated  meter  reading.  J.   Greene  noted  that  Con  Ed  charges  based  on  “peak  demand”  which  was  during  the  day  so  they   encouraged  people  to  run  the  dishwasher  and  clothes  washer  in  the  evening  to  reduce  your   rate.     5. Bottle  Hill  Day:  C.  Whitcomb  noted  that  a  teacher  (Nancy  Hill)  has  set  up  a  competition  to  make   posters  about  recycling.  B.  Uhlman  noted  that  the  description  of  what  is  recyclable  in  the  ERI  is   inadequate.  C.  Whitcomb  noted  that  the  description  on  the  Rosenet  website  is  also  not  clear,   and  she  asked  if  it  could  be  upgraded.  B.  Uhlman  stated  that  we  could  clarify  it.  B.  Uhlman  noted   that  we  will  have  a  10’  x  10’  booth  with  tables  and  chairs  which  we  will  be  sharing  with   2      Sustainable  Madison  and  the  Community  Garden.  There  will  be  the  winning  poster  about   recycling  on  display;  brown  bags  for  leaf  collection,  J.  Greene  will  have  written  information  to   hand  out,  S.  Stocker  will  bring  plants  to  hand  out,  C.  Whitcomb  will  bring  a  basket  of  things  that   can  be  recycled  (Jim  Burnett  has  this  display).    We  will  solicit  responses  to  a  survey  of   sustainability  interest  in  preparation  for  a  Green  Forum;  a  raffle  will  be  offered.   6. Sustainable  Madison:  B.  Uhlman  reported  that  Drew  has  a  new  LEED  certified  auditorium,   offered  for  the  Green  Forum.  She  also  reported  that  members  of  Sustainable  Madison  are   working  on  a  Community  Asset  Map,  and  that  they  have  prepared  a  survey  which  will  be  handed   out  and  filled  in  by  interested  passersby  during  the  Bottle  Hill  Day.  Sustainable  Madison  has  also   had  a  meeting  with  Jim  Burnet,  Mr.  Codey,  and  Mr.  Maines.  Steven  Eget  has  been  working  on  a   draft  of  the  Municipal  Carbon  Footprint.  And  a  listing  of  Conservation  Easements  in  town  is   being  prepared.  Traditionally  Environmental  Commissions  have  been  in  charge  of  keeping  track   of  conservation  easements.  Roy  Redmond  noted  that  there  is  a  conservation  easement  on   Madison  Avenue.  B.  Uhlman  stated  that  there  may  be  as  many  as  12  such  easements.  Harriet   Honigfeld  is  going  through  the  county  records  to  identify  them.  Sustainable  Madison  would  like   to  reward  businesses  that  are  following  “green”  principles  and  also  houses  with  great   sustainable  or  native  landscapes.  The  next  Sustainable  Madison  meeting  is  on  November  7th.     7. Water  Conservation:  There  was  general  discussion  on  the  waste  of  water  in  automatic  sprinkler   systems  some  of  which  come  on  even  when  it  is  raining  and  some  of  which  are  on  every  day  or   for  too  long.  J.  Greene  suggested  that  next  spring  there  should  be  a  big  publicity  push  to   highlight  the  importance  of  conservation  of  water  and  odd/even  watering  days.  Claire   Whitcomb  noted  that  would  also  be  a  good  opportunity  to  promote  sustainable  lawn  care.  B.   Uhlman  suggested  establishing  a  meadow  at  the  MRC.  J.  Greene  noted  that  there  are  grasses   that  do  not  need  cutting  which  are  appropriate  for  meadows.  B.  Uhlman  would  like  to  invite   someone  from  Rutgers  to  give  a  course  in  Madison  on  sustainable  lawn  care.  C.  Whitcomb   would  like  to  get  J+M  Plants  to  carry  the  products  mentioned  in  the  course.     8. Orchard  Street:    R.  Redmond  reported  that  excavation  started  on  Monday.  They  found  a   manhole  filled  with  oil  coated  sediment  and  water.  Also  found  cut  open  tanks,  drums,   mattresses,  sewer  pipe  and  other  buried  garbage.  Regarding  the  garage  which  intrudes  on  the   site:  the  owner  was  contacted  and  it  was  offered  to  knock  it  down  for  free.  He  refused.  Then  it   was  offered  to  knock  it  down  and  re-­‐build  it  on  his  property.  That  offer  was  also  refused.  Now     the  town  needs  to  condemn  it.  The  excavation  at  that  location  on  the  site  will  have  to  be  6  foot   deep.  Madison  Housing  Authority  must  have  the  environmental  cleanup  done  by  November.     9. Meeting  adjourned:    The  meeting  was  adjourned  at  9:15  pm.       3