MINUTES
REGULAR MEETING
Thursday, September 11, 2014 at 3:30 P.m.
Town Hall, 1st Floor Conference Room
302 Main Street, Old Saybrook
I. CALL TO ORDER
Chairman L. Ritzhaupt called the meeting to order at 3:30 p.m.
II. ROLL CALL
Members Present
Larry Ritzhaupt
Janice Holland
Michael Momparler
Robert Yust
Doug McCracken
John Donnelly (arrived at 3:45 p.m.)
Absent Members
Jerry Brophy
Steve Tagliatela
Tom Gezo
Bill Webster
Land Use Department Staff Present
Sandy Prisloe, Environmental Planner
Christina Costa, Zoning Enforcement Officer
Kathleen Noyes, Recording Clerk
III. REGULAR BUSINESS
A. Minutes
MOTION to approve the minutes from the Conservation Commission’s Sea Level Rise Climate Adaptation Committee’s Regular Meeting of August 28, 2014 as presented.; MADE by D. McCracken; SECONDED by M. Momparler; VOTED IN FAVOR: L. Ritzhaupt, J. Holland, M. Momparler, R. Yust, D. McCracken; OPPOSED: none; ABSTAINED: none; APPROVED: 5-0-0.
- Correspondence & Announcements
L. Ritzhaupt plans to talk with Town Planner Christine Nelson to ask if the SLRCAC should add new members.
L. Ritzhaupt said that going forward, he would like Committee Members to start to set the SLRCAC meeting agenda for the next meeting at the end of the current meeting. He would also like C. Nelson to give input about topics for the next meeting.
IV. DISCUSSION – Methods of Projecting Sea Level Rise
L. Ritzhaupt said R. Yust would be presenting a power point about figures projecting and predicting sea level rise. At the end of 100 years, the sea level is projected to rise between 2 and 6 feet.
R. Yust explained that the sea level has been stable for thousands of years, and it’s now rising steadily. There is a level of uncertainty predicting exactly how much the sea level will rise by 2035. There has been no sea level rise study done specifically for Old Saybrook.
R. Yust used the Army Corps of Engineers Study/ NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association) data for his presentation because it offers various scenarios, and it’s a trustworthy source within the scientific community.
C. Costa and Committee Members discussed the predictions of 1-foot of sea level rise which is predicted for 2035 and 4-feet of sea level rise which is predicted for 2085 in terms of community flood preparedness and funding for insurance purposes. They discussed what numbers they want to use for sea level rise impact in their final report. They agreed to the 1-foot sea level rise prediction for 2035.
S. Prisloe explained the slide showing a map of the western part of Old Saybrook in 2035 depicting which areas would flood monthly in 2035 with a 1-foot sea level rise prediction. Another slide showed the areas of Old Saybrook that would flood monthly in 2085 with a 4-foot sea level rise prediction. These are not storm surge floods, but regular monthly high tides that would cause this flooding. In 2085, the total appraised value of affected properties from this flooding would be $250,000,00.00.
S. Prisloe talked about the geographic impact of the town from storm surges that could occur in addition to the predicted amount of sea level rise. He said he would need some technical assistance to show what this would look like for model and mapping purposes.
CIRCA (The CT Institute for Resilience and Climate Adaptation) is working on these numbers. The SLRCAC is planning to maintain close contact with Rebecca French who is the Community Liaison for CIRCA to get additional data when it becomes available.
L. Ritzhaupt handed out a short summary he created from James O’Donnell’s talk at the 8/28/14 SLRCAC meeting. The CIRCA presentation will be posted to the SLRCAC web site.
V. STUDY & REPORT
- Study – Connecticut Resources
- Inventory – Where Are We?
- Analysis – Where Are We Going?
- Plan – How Do We Get There?
VI. OUTREACH & EDUCATION
- Building a Level of Familiarity in Old Saybrook
- Measuring Community Values in Old Saybrook
VII. MEETING SUMMARY
Committee Members suggested topics for the 9/25/14 CC SLRCAC agenda. L. Ritzhaupt asked C. Costa if she would ask her Health Department contact to speak to the Committee about septic systems, molds, etc. There will be time at the next meeting for each of the three break -out groups to have discussion about their topics.
L. Ritzhaupt said he would meet with C. Nelson this coming week to clarify topics for the agenda.
VIII. ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned at 4:45 p.m. until the next regularly scheduled meeting of the Conservation Commission Sea Level Rise Climate Adaptation Committee on Thursday, September 25, 2014 at 3:30 p.m., Town Hall, 302 Main Street, 1st Floor Conference Room.
Respectfully Submitted,
Kathleen Noyes, Recording Clerk
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