Environmental Advisory Committee

WESTWOOD ENVIRONMENTAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE Westwood EAC Monthly Meeting Minutes March 2018 Meeting Date: March 19, 2018 Meeting Location: Westwood Borough Hall Meeting Opening & Roll Call Monthly Environmental Advisory Committee (EAC) Meeting was called to order at 1935 EST by Chair Guderian of the EAC . . . “This meeting, which conforms to the OPEN PUBLIC MEETINGS LAW, CHAPTER 231, PUBLIC LAWS OF 1975, is a regular Environmental Committee meeting. Notices have been filed with our local official newspapers and posted on the Municipal Bulletin Board.” Roll Call Present Absent Jeanne Guderian, Chair (JG) X Christine Blaney (CB) X Peter Grefrath, Committee Liaison (PG) X Norel Blundo (NB) X Boniface Kiamue (BK) X Angel Nass (AN) X Wilhelm Wang, Minutes, Secretary (WW) X Philip Bicocchi, Student member (PB) X Shaina Woodward, Student member (SW) X Point of Order In Secretary Wang’s absence, the Chair asked Mr. Grefrath to maintain the minutes for the March meeting. Public Forum • Opened, no additional members of public present, closed. Passing of the Minutes Voting on the January 2018 and February 2018 minutes will be held at the April meeting. CB, PG, JG, and NB will be eligible to vote. Committee Liaison’s Report Mr. Grefrath provided updates on the following to the EAC: • PG mentioned items he reviewed with the Governing Body, including the Trex Bench, BiState Watershed Clean-Up, and Banner initiatives. • Chair Guderian discussed propose language for the TREX bench plaques and the EAC agreed unanimously. JG will email the language to the Clerk and ask for a price quote from the vendor for five plaques to be voted on in April. • JG led a discussion and the Community Garden was selected as the site for the next Trex Bench. Page 1 of 3  WESTWOOD ENVIRONMENTAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE Westwood EAC Monthly Meeting Minutes March 2018 • Likewise, CB discussed language for the descriptive sign to be placed near the Rain Garden, and the EAC agreed unanimously. She also will send an email to the Clerk and ask for a price quote from the vendor to be voted on in April. • PG mentioned that there will be an Ordinance introduced at the M&C March Public Meeting changing the term of the EAC student members. • PG expressed concern about the lack of attendance for the fourth consecutive meeting and said he would call members to see if they wanted to continue their membership. Old Business Community Garden Report: • JG said she reached out to the Master Gardiner and there were no new developments to report. The Green Team: (JG) • JG had a minor discussion regarding results of the March meeting. • PG asked NB to attend the next Green Team meeting in April and ask if the two groups can work together for joint Pride Day booth and coordinate it. Trex Reusable Bags Program – Public Education and Outreach: (JG/AN) • JG reported that the current total for January is 460.5 pounds of plastic toward our 500 pound goal. • JG is developing a sign that highlights the importance of collecting single-use bags to be placed on top of the collection boxes. Complete Streets Program: (WW/AN) • No report. Pride Day Booth: (NB) • NB will attend Green Team meeting to discuss the theme of “Certified Wildlife Habitats” for the 2018 booth. • NB discussion continued regarding combining the effort with the Green Team. BiState Watershed Clean-up: (CB, NB, AN) • The Cleanup will take place on Saturday, April 28, beginning at 10:00 a.m. • CB said that she applied for a $300 grant from the County. • SW is asking for additional student volunteers at Westwood High School. • CB is talking to Rick Woods to see if we could get coffee/bagels for the volunteers. • CB discussed various ways the event could be publicized using social media. PG said he would ask the Clerk to put it on the municipal website. Page 2 of 3  WESTWOOD ENVIRONMENTAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE Westwood EAC Monthly Meeting Minutes March 2018 • The EAC asked PG to contact PB and see if he can get prizes again for the most creative discoveries. New Business Composting: (WW) • Following discussion, this will be taken off future agendas due to “negative” responses. Pesticide Uses: (CB/WW) • No report. Rain Garden Project: (CB) • CB had no report. Meeting adjourned, motioned by AN and seconded by SW promptly at 2040. Next Meeting – Monday, April 16, 2018 Borough Hall at 1910. Upcoming 2018 Meetings as Scheduled: May 21, June 18, July 16 (scheduled, unless voted not to hold), No Meeting in August, September 17, October 15, November 19 (adopt Master Gardiner Resolution), December 17 (vote on 2019 officers) Page 3 of 3