z - Retired - Environmental Improvement Commission

. Meeting - Environmental Improvement Commission November 6, 2017, 6:00 PM Westmont Public Library, 428 N Cass Ave, Westmont, IL 60559 Meeting Minutes 1. Call To Order Glenn Gabryel called the meeting to order at 6:05 pm. 2. Roll Call In attendance: Glenn Gabryel, Mary Gabryel, Kate Johnson (arrived 6:25), Brittany Smith and Tyler Tieche. Absent: Mary McAuliffe Resignation: Kim Lombardozzi and Bob Van Hyfte in October 2017 Staff in attendance: Jon Yeater (Liaison) Resident in attendance: Christa Stanous 3. Pledge of Allegiance Led by Glenn Gabryel 4. Consent Agenda – Regular Meeting Minutes 10/2  Motion was made by Brittany Smith to approve the consent agenda. The motion was second by Tyler Tieche unanimously approved by voice vote. (Excluding Kate Johnson not in attendance at the time of the vote). 5. Reports a. Climate Action Plan (CAP)  Tyler reported on the status of the plan.  Glenn suggested submit based on current data  Pick up next month b. Green Speaker Series  Beth Botts - Nature Program  Jade Harris – Com Ed.  Glenn Gabryel and/or Jon Yeater will follow up. Motion was made by Glenn Gabryel to approve not to exceed $200 for the Spring Green Speaker Series. The motion was second by Brittany Smith and approved unanimously by voice vote 1  C. Richmond Education Gardens and Apiary Project and Fundraisers  Honey extraction approximately 120 pounds. A Clarendon Hills restaurant will bottle. Estimated selling price of $12 for an 8 oz jar.  Two Eagle Scout projects cleared the site and work on a rain garden. d. Rain Barrel Decorating Contest  Kate Johnson working on setting up for spring 2018. e. Conservation Foundation Tree and Shrub Sale  Raised approximately $655 for Richmond Education Garden.  Approximately 20 residents participated purchasing 60+ plants f. Pumpkin Smashing and Composting Events  Pumpkin Smashing held on 10/21 at the Wicked West Fest. 16 organizations were represented. Mary Gabryel and Glenn Gabryel volunteered.  Petty Cash of $24 was used to purchase pumpkins for the contest.  Pumpkin Composting Event will be held at Richmond Education and Apiary on 11/4. Weather was cold and raining. Keith Barr and Mary Lotz from Maercker School and Rosemary Grant from Prospect Elementary School volunteered in addition to Mary Gabryel, Glenn Gabryel and Kate Johnson. Approximately 59 families participated, 204 pumpkins collected including one 400 lbs. 22 Westmont, 25 Clarendon Hills and 10 Hinsdale. Subsequent to the meeting Waste Management reported 2.39 tons were collected. 6. Old Business a. Conservation in Our Community Program – The Conservation Foundation No updates at this time. b. Holiday Light Recycling Pick-up locations will be the South Fire Station and Westmont Public Library from November 20 to January 31. Bales Ace Hardware and Maercker School are also collecting and will drop at one of the locations. c. SCARCE Earth Flag program  Westmont is working with Scarce. A green audit is scheduled for December 5th. Approximately 75% of the staff will receive training. 2  d. Holly Day Activities  Plan to stuff recycling flyers in the 5K race packets  Tyler Tieche and Kate Johnson volunteered to walk the parade route with a Holiday Light Recycling Banner on Saturday 11/25.  Motion was made by Mary Gabryel for funds not to exceed $50 for materials and candy the parade. Tyler Tieche second the motion and unanimously approved by voice vote. e. Indiana Dunes National Lake Shore Dark Sky Designation Support  Motion was made by Glenn Gabryel to approve letter to support Indiana Dunes National Lake Shore Day Sky Designation Support. The motion was second by Kate Johnson and unanimously approved by voice vote. Exhibit C. f. Village Parkway Trees  Glenn Gabryel presented a draft resolution and education flyer.  After discussion the draft resolution was deferred to the December meeting.  Glenn Gabryel will coordinate production of a flyer with village staff.  Jon Yeater reported the Heritage Tree Ordinance was passed. g. 2018 Goals / Programs  Commissioners should submit ideas for the December meeting 7. New Business a. Budget Expenditures  Motion was made by Mary Gabryel and second by Tyler Tieche to expend not to exceed $100 for a plaque for Maercker School Green Ribbon Award b. 2018-19 Budget  Need to supply draft to village staff in January. Suggest target December meeting 8. Misc. / Action Plan a. Maercker School Recognition  The Maercker Ecology group will be recognized by the village board and will be making a short presentation at the village board on 11/9 highlighting the ecology efforts over the last year and their designation as a 2017 Green Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education. They are one of only 48 schools honored 3  nationwide for the award .that got them recognition  In addition, Maercker School is being recognized at the DuPage County Board meeting on11/14. b. Waste Management Collection Report and Food Composting Program were discussed. See Exhibit A and B. c. Du Page Solid Waste Management Plan Requested comments back to Jon Yeater by November 16th. d.Green Grovers is a new local group with environmental interests e. Annual Report Mary Gabryel will prepare a draft of the annual report for December meeting. f. Next Meeting December 6 9. Adjourn Motion to adjourn was made by Glenn Gabryel and second by Tyler Tieche and unanimously approved by voice vote. Meeting adjourned at 7:56 pm. 4  Exhibit C The Westmont Environmental Improvement Commission Westmont, IL November 6, 2017 Mr. John Barrentine, Program Manager International Dark Sky Association 3223 North First Ave. Tucson, AZ 85719 john@darksky.org Re: Indiana Dunes National Lake Shore Dark Sky Designation Dear Mr. Barentine, Please accept this letter as the full endorsement of the Westmont Environmental Improvement Commission for the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore to be designated a Dark Sky Park by the International Dark Sky Association. We fully support this request for dark sky designation. The Indiana Dunes are a short, feasible drive from Illinois, and throughout the year, many DuPage county residents travel there to enjoy recreational family activities in a beautiful and biologically diverse natural landscape. Dark skies hold a special place in mankind’s collective folklore and history. Cultures across the world have used the stars in the sky to form religions, to mark their locations, and to chart their voyages across the globe. As the stars become less and less visible across this country due to invasive lighting, dark sky spaces become more and more important. This designation will serve to raise awareness of the importance of protecting our country and our planet from light pollution, and related issues of conservation and seeking sustainable energy sources. The Indiana Dunes are an excellent site for such a designation due to the high volume of locals and tourists that come to enjoy the area both during the day and the night. Somewhere in recent history, Americans lost their connection with the stars. Midwesterners have certainly lost, over time, places to visit where the star-filled sky and the Milky Way galaxy are still visible. A prominent dark sky designation, in an eco-tourism site as popular as the Indiana Dunes, will invite us all to reconnect with the heavens and inspire us to light smarter, not brighter. Sincerely, The Westmont Environmental Improvement Commission  Waste Management Tonage Report 2017 2016 Volume Change Change % GARB RECY YW GARB RECY YW GARB RECY YW GARB RECY YW JAN 341.9 165.0 JAN 324.0 164.8 8.4 JAN 17.9 0.2 N/A JAN 5.5% 0.1% FEB 289.1 126.6 FEB 288.6 135.9 - FEB 0.5 (9.3) FEB 0.2% -6.8% MAR 329.8 152.1 MAR 316.8 151.7 - MAR 13.0 0.4 MAR 4.1% 0.3% APR 349.0 146.0 73.0 APR 355.8 159.7 60.4 APR (6.8) (13.7) 12.6 APR -1.9% -8.6% 20.9% MAY 418.3 163.8 95.3 MAY 377.8 156.1 68.7 MAY 40.5 7.7 26.6 MAY 10.7% 4.9% 38.7% JUN 443.6 174.1 74.6 JUN 397.3 172.7 81.5 JUN 46.3 1.4 (6.9) JUN 11.7% 0.8% -8.5% JUL 392.7 155.6 55.6 JUL 390.9 163.1 47.4 JUL 1.8 (7.5) 8.2 JUL 0.5% -4.6% 17.3% AUG 425.7 161.7 53.8 AUG 378.6 168.7 68.4 AUG 47.1 (7.0) (14.6) AUG 12.4% -4.1% -21.3% SEPT 404.0 149.5 34.7 SEPT 382.0 164.9 54.1 SEPT 22.0 (15.4) (19.4) SEPT 5.8% -9.3% -35.9% OCT OCT 338.9 141.4 61.3 OCT OCT NOV NOV 365.0 162.2 148.6 NOV NOV DEC DEC 349.0 174.2 20.4 DEC DEC Total 3,394.1 1,394.4 387.0 Total 4,264.7 1,915.4 619.2 Total 182.3 (43.2) 6.5 Total 0.5 (0.3) 0.1 11/6/2017 Jon, we spend some time trying to figure out why the tonnage changed on both Trash and Recycle and here is what we came up with. Starting in June we rolled out the new cart program which gave the residents a 96 gallon cart instead of a two-can limit which most cans were 33- gallon in capacity, so instead of paying for a sticker we think more trash was going into the recycle stream which now is going in a large container. I attached a picture of the last load the truck brought in on Friday and it was very clean except for a few bags but the load was close to 80-85% clean recycle. The other factor is precipitation. Our carts have lids and a good number of residents that have personal cans do not, so the trash cans will naturally weight more on garbage day if left outside all week or even for a night on trash day. We can monitor this throughout the year and see if we can recognize any patterns as to why these weights have changed. Any questions please feel free to contact me. Jim Gannon District Manager jgannon@wm.com  Westmont - Tonage Recycling 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 RECY RECY RECY RECY RECY RECY RECY RECY JAN 165.0 164.8 - 178.2 151.8 154.5 102.6 160.2 FEB 126.6 135.9 - 158.2 121.7 136.2 77.5 117.4 MAR 152.1 151.7 - 152.4 N/A 160.8 155.1 152.7 APR 146.0 159.7 - 158.7 N/A 148.9 162.6 143.0 MAY 163.8 156.1 - 200.8 N/A 177.1 145.5 140.5 JUN 174.1 172.7 - 191.1 N/A 172.6 167.2 163.4 JUL 155.6 163.1 - 170.0 N/A 165.7 173.4 148.7 AUG 161.7 168.7 - 163.9 N/A 182.8 183.0 157.2 SEPT 149.5 164.9 - 159.1 N/A 164.7 190.8 149.7 OCT 141.4 - 167.8 166.6 161.9 162.2 113.7 NOV 162.2 - N/A 159.4 199.7 182.1 154.7 DEC 174.2 - N/A 196.6 163.0 195.0 131.4 Total 1,394.4 1,915.4 - 1,700.2 796.1 1,987.8 1,897.0 1,732.5 YTD Sept Total 1,394.4 1,437.6 1,532.4 1,463.2 1,357.7 1,332.7  Residential Food Scrap Composting Program WHY COMPOST FOOD SCRAPS? HOW TO COMPOST There are many reasons to FOOD SCRAPS & recycle food scraps, including: TIPS TO REDUCE 1. It’s easy! Collect food scraps into a ODORS & PESTS container and set out as part of your 1. Collect scraps in your kitchen collector. Do not use community’s yard waste collection program. plastic or biodegradable bags to line your collector. 2. Reduces garbage and preserves landfill space 2. Empty foods scraps into your rigid yard waste 3. Reduces greenhouse gas production at landfills. container. 4. Creates compost. Food scraps help to 3. Set Out your rigid container (no Kraft bags) at the create a nutrient rich soil amendment that curb on regular yard waste collection day. improves soil health and function. Tips to Reduce Odors and Pests: You may want to line Compost rebuilds soils, protects topsoil from container with newspapers or paper towels/bags, empty erosion, conserves water and attracts frequently, rinse after use (with vinegar or dish soap so- earthworms and other helpful organisms. lution), sprinkle with baking soda, keep container closed. WHAT CAN BE COMPOSTED?  Fruits and Vegetables (includes unpainted holiday pumpkins)  Leftovers/kitchen scraps (includes coffee grounds, tea bags & filters)  Breads, grains, pasta and cereal  Meat, poultry, seafood (including shells and bones)  Dairy and Eggs (including shells; no liquids)  Paper Products (includes paper towels, plates, napkins, egg cartons and pizza boxes) DO NOT INCLUDE: Plastic, Styrofoam, glass, diapers, metal, liquids, grease, pet waste, or oil . For more information on backyard composting, how to and sales, visit swalco.org. September 2015