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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06-06-2023 NRB MinutesNATURAL RESOURCES BOARD MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING JUNE 612023 I. Chairman Stadelman called the Natural Resources Board meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. II. Pledqe of Alleqiance was recited by all. III. Roll Call Present: Mr. Stadelman Ms. Callaghan Dr. Mosblech Not. Present Mr. Bradley (a) -- Excused Dr. Carrier -- Excused Ms. Ware -- Excused Ms. Billman Mr. Carrano Ms. Haggerty (a) (Zoom) -- Late Arrival Also Present: Ms. Lisa Frazier -- Community Director Ms. Felicia Gordian -- Environmental Technician Mr. Joseph Perez, AV Technical Assistant Ms. Janet Graham, Technical Writer IV. Approval of Minutes -- Mav 2.2023 All Board members having had a chance to review the Minutes, Mr. Stadelman called for a Motion. A motion to approve the Minutes of May 2, 2023 as presented was made by Mr. Carrano, seconded by Ms. Callaghan, and approved unanimously via voice vote. V. Announcements Ms. Gordian announced that the Treasure Coast Waterway Cleanup week is slated for July 15t' thru July 23rd. People can register to participate "virtually" throughout that week, or register to join us for the main event at the Main Street boat ramp on the 22nd. She will provide more information about the commercial shoot and Committee photo shoot when it is available. The Board members can sign up with the team name "City of Sebastian Natural Resources Board." In addition, on July 12t' the Treasure Coast 3 NATURAL RESOURCES BOARD MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING JUNE 612023 PAGE 2 Waterway Cleanup week's proclamation by City Council will be held. Mr. Stadelman added that people can sign up at tcwaterwavcleanup.com. VI. Agenda Modifications -- None VII. Public Input Raymond Osborne, 790 Belfast Terrace, Sebastian. He proposed establishing floating gardens. He has spoken with the Marine Resource Council about this project. He described that the gardens take out excess nutrients, and this would help the lagoon to establish some balance. He suggested doing some research to see if the City of Sebastian might consider a project like this, or at least doing a feasibility study. He suggested including civic groups that are in the Sebastian area and maybe the Chamber of Commerce. He asked if this could be discussed at a Natural Resources Board meeting. Mr. Stadelman suggested Mr. Osborne contact Ms. Felicia Gordian, Environmental Technician for the City of Sebastian, regarding this subject. Vlll. Unfinished Business A. Continue Sustainable Sebastian Prioritization Ms. Frazier presented slides on the screen which described the history and goals of the Sustainable Sebastian Initiative (SEE ATTACHED). She discussed each goal listed on the spreadsheets and described what the City staff have been working on regarding some of the goals. i. - Litter Quitter Status Update Ms. Callaghan thanked Ms. Frazier for her presentation. She related that the Litter Quitter project has been disbanded in Brevard County, and she queried whether Sebastian NRB would want to take the Litter Quitter program on. She did say that she has contacted someone at the Brevard Zoo, as the Zoo had partnered with the Keep Brevard Beautiful initiative. That person described wanting to implement a project that would promote low - waste and no -waste events, and Ms. Callaghan said that might be something that this Board may want to investigate. She did contact the lead for the Treasure Coast chapter of Surfrider. She hopes to talk to this lady again, as she was able to convince some of the restaurants in Stuart to become the equivalent of Ocean Friendly restaurants there, which is encouraging. She might give us some guidance. Right now, there are no restaurants in the Ocean Friendly program in Indian River County. Sebastian does not 4 NATURAL RESOURCES BOARD MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING JUNE 6, 2023 PAGE 3 have oceanfront, but there are concepts that can be applied in our context. She discussed what the Litter Quitter program and the Ocean Friendly restaurant program are about. She reviewed the sections of the slides that had been presented to this Board in thepast for the newer Board members to acquaint themselves with the history of the Litter Quitter Program. These slides were taken from 2019. She also discussed the status of Keep Indian River Beautiful (KIRB). She explained that Surfrider's Ocean Friendly Restaurant Program has mandatory criteria that are required and discussed those criteria. She stated that Sebastian NRB does not have to stay with the Litter Quitter project. Instead, the Sebastian NRB could call it Sustainable Sebastian Initiative, Businesses Against Waste, or something akin to that. She discussed ways of getting the word out/promoting the program. She then called for questions/comments from the Board members. Mr. Stadelman thanked Ms. Callaghan for her presentation, and there followed a lengthy discussion among the Board members and City staff as to how to move forward. Several suggestions were made. Ms. Frazier suggested that the NRB can create a marriage of some of the different programs that have been promoted in the past. She believes that her staff with the help of this Board can create a new comparison sheet that lists the cost of some of the items that could be used to promote the sustainability idea. She suggested that the Chamber of Commerce would want to partner with the NRB on this initiative, such as having a workshop or having some sort of open house, etc. to show restaurants and other businesses what they can do and show them the cost comparisons. ii. Determine Top 5 Sustainable Sebastian Priorities Ms. Callaghan stated that Item VIII (A) (ii) is to determine the top five Sustainable Sebastian Priorities, and this is an action item. Mr. Stadelman made a motion to table this item until the next meeting, it was seconded by Mr. Carrano. Dr. Mosblech questioned tabling the item, and there was additional discussion about how to move forward. She suggested that a motion be made at the next meeting to revisit this goal and how the plan is to be updated. She added that some of the critical Board members are absent this evening, and she suggests that it is very important to have all of them discussing this matter. After discussion, the vote was 3-2 in favor. Motion passes. Ms. Callaghan explained why she voted nay. Mr. Stadelman suggested that all the Board members should think about what should be considered as the top priorities, and that discussion should be had at the next meeting. There was continuing discussion regarding what should be considered top priorities, and there was confusion about this. Ms. Callaghan suggested that the action item for the next meeting be to determine the top five Sustainable Sebastian Priorities' goals, and Mr. Stadelman agreed. He stated that will give the Board more clarity. Dr. Mosblech stated that at the next meeting it is important s NATURAL RESOURCES BOARD MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING JUNE 69 2023 PAGE 4 to determine what the status of goal 1 is since Litter Quitter no longer exists. Dr. Mosblech stated that one of her concerns is that the Board does not regularly see what is happening behind the scenes, and the Board is only privy to what is discussed at these meetings. She said it was helpful to know that the City is making significant progress and that it is in the budget. Ms. Frazier said that will be done in the future. Ms. Gordian added that, once she gets more guidance as to the priorities, she will be able to help move the project forward. IX. New Business A. Board to consider Tuesday, July 11 th as the Alternative Date for the July NRB Meeting -- Original meeting set for Tuesday, July 4th (Independence Day) & City Hall will be closed Mr. Carrano made an initial motion to select July 11 th as the alternative date. After discussion, Mr. Carrano made a motion rescinding his motion changing the July meeting date from July 4th to July 11 th, seconded by Mr. Stadelman. Motion was approved unanimously via voice vote. A motion changing the meeting date from July 4th to July 18th was then made by Mr. Carrano, seconded by Mr. Stadelman, and approved unanimously via voice vote. X. Adiournment There being no further business, a motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Ms. Callaghan, seconded by Mr. Carrano, and approved unanimously via voice vote. j9 Date: C")Oz 7