MINUTES
REGULAR MEETING
Tuesday, September 9, 2014 at 7:00 P.m.
Town Hall, 2nd Floor Conference Room
302 Main Street
I. CALL TO ORDER
II. ROLL CALL
Members Present
Walter Smith
Jerry Brophy
Robert Fish
Pat Ingellis
Richard Esty
Members Absent
Nina Garrett
Emily Grochowski
Land Use Department Staff Present
Sandy Prisloe, Environmental Planner
Kathleen Noyes, Recording Clerk
III. REGULAR BUSINESS
A. Minutes
MOTION to approve the minutes from the Conservation Commission’s Regular Meeting of July 8, 2014 as presented.; MADE by R. Fish; SECONDED by W. Smith; VOTED IN FAVOR: W. Smith, P. Ingellis, R. Fish, R. Esty, J. Brophy; OPPOSED: none; ABSTAINED: none; APPROVED: 5-0-0.
- Correspondence and Announcements
Commissioners received a copy of the August 2014 RiverCOG Report.
W. Smith shared an article from the 8/24/14 edition of the New Haven Register by Colin Kennedy entitled, “Debate continues over artificial turf fields and human health.”
He also mentioned an article from the 8/31/14 edition of The Hartford Courant entitled, “Long, Bitter Seawall Dispute Highlights Global Warming Concerns”. This article is about Mr. and Mrs. David Sams’ gabion retaining wall. Mr. and Mrs. Sams are residents of Old Saybrook, and the wall has been the subject of multiple court cases.
- Sea Level Rise Climate Adaptation Committee
W. Smith told Commissioners he has stepped down from the Sea Level Rise Climate Adaptation Committee.
J. Brophy reported on the August 28, 2014 SLRCAC meeting. James O’Donnell, Executive Director of CIRCA which is the Coastal Institute of Resilience & Climate Adaptation, UConn Avery Point, gave a presentation on the predictions of sea level rise and concerns of increased flooding and tidal surges in eastern CT.
The next SLRCAC meeting will be held on Thursday, September 11, 2014 at 3:30 in the 1st Floor Conference Room at Town Hall.
D. Sustainable Saybrook
R. Fish reported that E. Grochowski has stepped down as lead person for Sustainable Saybrook.
At the July 2014 meeting, only E. Grochowski and R. Fish were in attendance.
W. Smith and R. Fish plan to meet within the next couple of weeks to discuss the future direction of Sustainable Saybrook.
Sustainable Saybrook will have a booth at Family Day on the Town Green. This year Family Day is scheduled for September 21, 2014. The booth will have information on Sustainable Saybrook and solar energy.
- Wetlands and Aquifer Protection Commissions
The Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Commission is rewriting its Regulations. The Aquifer Protection Agency has not had any new applications recently.
The purchase should be completed by December 2014. The State of CT will then be working on plans for the land for the next year to year and a half.
W. Smith mentioned that at the previous Conservation Meeting, there was discussion about reimbursement for Commissioners for the cost of workshops and mileage. It was decided that reimbursement for mileage would be at the federal rate.
W. Smith talked with Town Planner Christine Nelson and S. Prisloe about putting together a newsletter.
Essex Printing will format a newsletter for the Conservation Commission at a cost of $65.00 for 100 copies of each publication. N. Garrett offered to handle this. W. Smith suggested Commissioners discuss the content of the newsletter every other meeting. The public will be able to subscribe to this 2-page newsletter from the oldsaybrookct.org website.
I. Saybrook Events
W. Smith has submitted an article for the next Saybrook Events.
IV. GUEST – Judy Preston – Alternative Landscaping – Town Guidance
J. Preston is the Long Island Sound Study Outreach Program Coordinator, and she runs the Advanced UConn Master Gardener Coastal Certificate Program. She also teaches a class at Three Rivers Community College.
J. Preston talked with W. Smith about having her Ecological Landscaping Class study and report on low impact design, model regulations and sustainable landscape. The power point she presented was based on the work done by her students which they put into a report entitled, “Alternative Landscaping Options for Municipalities – Plant Materials.”
She talked about municipal guidelines for planting systems, the importance of native plants to the ecology and how plants can sustain ecosystems.
W. Smith and N. Garrett attended J. Preston’s class. They spoke about ordinances, what not to plant and planting guidelines.
J. Preston discussed the CT Sea Grant’s Coastal Planting Guides for CT and RI that explain how to restore coastal buffer zones.
Doug Tallamy is a very well respected entomologist who studies the relationship between insects and the types of plants they need to eat. Insects pass energy from plants to the animals that cannot eat plants. The example he gives is that the native flowering dogwood supports 117 species of moths and butterflies alone.
J. Preston talked about land looking “messy” instead of manicured and tidy. Public perception is often that the “messy” land is not well cared for, yet it may be providing much needed biodiversity.
J. Preston showed photos of native plants and invasive plants located in different parts of Old Saybrook.
W. Smith would like to share J. Preston’s information with the Town’s Boards and Commissions. He is hoping it will aid them when they review landscape plans.
V. PROJECT UPDATES
J. Brophy mentioned that he went to the road ending at Hartlands Drive today. Members of the Conservation Commission, C. Nelson and S. Prisloe made recommendations for this area because it encroaches on the Town’s easement. To date, the property owner has not complied with any of the recommendations. J. Brophy is going to follow up with Zoning Enforcement Officer Chris Costa about this issue because it’s considered a Zoning Violation.
R. Esty reported that milkweed was planted at Founders’ Park.
VI. NEW BUSINESS
Quorum Policy
W. Smith asked that Commissioners respond by the Friday after the Conservation Commission agenda goes out, so we will know whether or not we will have a quorum for the next meeting.
November appointments
A number of Commissioner’s appointments are up in November. W. Smith plans to talk with each member individually before November.
VII. ADJOURNMENT
MOTION to adjourn the meeting at 8:30 p.m. until the next regularly scheduled meeting of the Conservation Commission which will be Tuesday, October 14, 2014, 7:00 P.M., Town Hall, 2nd Floor Conference Room, 302 Main Street; MADE by P. Ingellis; SECONDED by R. Esty; VOTED IN FAVOR: W. Smith, P. Ingellis, J. Brophy, R. Esty, R. Fish; OPPOSED: none; ABSTAINED: none.; APPROVED: 5-0-0.
Respectfully Submitted,
Kathleen Noyes, Recording Clerk
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