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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12062011NRB� �� HOME Of PELICAN ISIAND NATURAL RESOURCES BOARD MINUTES TUESDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2011 - 6:00 P.M. City Council Chamber, 1225 Main Street, Sebastian Chairperson Graves called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. 2. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited. 3. ROLL CALL: Present: Robin Graves - Chair Eric Spokas - Vice Chair Hank Kriss Gilbert Gordian Jr. Ann Lucier Albert Alvarez Lori Bender Jane Schnee (A) Alan NorthcOkt (A) Staff Present: Ginny Sieferd, Board Liaison and Donna Cyr, Recording Secretary 4. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: November 1, 2011 Regular meeting MOTION by Mr. Alvarez and SECOND by Mr. Spokas to approve the November 1st, 2011 minutes as written, motion carried. 5. PRESENTATIONS: Chairperson Graves introduced Kathy Hill, Education Coordinator, Indian River Lagoon National Estuary Program. Ms. Hill gave a presentation on Stormwater Runoff. (See attached PowerPoint presentation). Her purpose was to remind everyone that no matter where you live you have an effect on the Lagoon. She talked about muck and its effects on seagrass. And how it strips oxygen from the water that can kill fish. Muck is a mixture of silt, clay, decayed organic materials (pet waste, yard debris, etc.), sand and shell. Ms. Hill talked about Algae Blooms and its effect on the lagoon. Ms. Hill explained that local governments are using best management strategies for protecting the lagoon by having Swales, Retention Ponds, Sediment Traps or Baffle Boxes and Stormwater Parks. Ms. Hill also explained that there are five simple things everyone can do to help keep the lagoon clean. One was is to sweep your driveway of lawn clippings back on to the lawn instead of using a hose to wash the debris into the street and gutters. Second is to use fertilizers wisely if you are going to use them at all. Third is to compost your leaves and yard waste. Fourth is to never throw anything into a canal or storm drains. And fifth is to bag all of your pet waste and dispose of it properly in the trash. After the presentation Ms. Hill took questions from the board. Ms. Graves asked about the smell from the river, was this the algae dying? Ms Hill explained that it was and it is also something that has been around forever. There are reports that the first settlers noted at different times the lagoon smelled. Natural Resources Board Meeting December 6, 2011 Page Two Mr. Spokas asked about the traps filtering out hydro carbons. Ms. Hill said there is a new trap called the Second Generation Sediment Trap. She said it is very good at filtering out hydro carbons. The traps aren't as expensive as doing a retention pond. They can be under $100,000 depending on the size. Ms. Schnee asked what happens to the fertilizers that are removed from Stormwater parks. Ms. Hill said they can dredge the suspended solids. Another way is to harvest the plants from the wetland area and take them to the landfill. Ms. Bender asked what we can do to better educate the public on polluting & stormwater. Ms. Hill said she is holding workshops with Brevard County. By teaching the public about Florida friendly yards and focusing on how to control their own property and reducing use of fertilizer and pesticides. The best way to educate is to just get the word out. Ms. Graves asked Ms. Hill if she would be interested in conducting a workshop for Earth Day and she is interested. 6. PUBLIC INPUT: A resident asked about Johnson Seagrass. Ms. Hill said there has been a large algae bloom this past summer and because of this bloom there has been some seagrass loss. The man also asked about mercury in the lagoon she said she didn't have any data on this. Harvey Wheeler, Sebastian, thanked Ms. Hill for coming. He feels education is the best way to get the word out and we need to reach out to the children. SJRWMD has pamphlets that we should have here in City Hall to have available to pass out. Ms. Graves also mentioned using the internet and getting the word out that way. 7. OLD BUSINESS: A. Measurinq of the Bald Cvpress in the Buffer Preserve — Hank Kriss let the board know that he and Gil Gordian went out to the Buffer Preserve and the area was swamp land and the Bald Cypress tree was not measurable. 8. NEW BUSINESS: A. Review of Fertilizer Ordinance #0-11-19. Chairperson Graves asked the board to take the ordinance and spend some time and review it then bring their ideas to the January meeting. Ms. Sieferd said the ordinance looked good but she feels that there should be a time limit / time frame on how long it takes to become certified to apply fertilizer. She feels there should be a set time for commercial lawn maintenance workers to get their certification. 9. MEMBER MATTERS: Earth Dav 2012: Ms. Graves mentioned that members should think about possible vendors for Earth Day and she will send out an email with a"Save the Date" and let them know when and where it will be. New member, Alan Northcott gave a brief introduction of himself. He said he came from England in 1992, lived in a couple other States and has been in Sebastian for three months. He enjoys public service. Natural Resources Board Meeting December 6, 2011 Page Three 10 Ms. Schnee mentioned buying seedlings (Bald Cypress and Red Maples) from the Indian River Soil and Conservation District and planting them on CR512 near the City Compound. After some discussion it was determined that the property is private property. Ms. Sieferd will check to see if it is a problem to get about $50.00 from the Parks & Recreation Department to purchase some trees and plant them in different City Parks where needed. Ms. Sieferd will do some research on City Parks. She will email the list to the board. Mr. Gordian would like to go out to our Spoil Island IR1 every two months to survey the island and clean up when necessary. He would like to be able to contact other board members to join him. It was determined that it would be fine as long as the trips were Noticed and short minutes were taken. This can be done as a field trip. STAFF MATTERS: No staff matters. 11. Being no further business, Ms. Graves adjourned the meeting at 6:58 p.m. Natur I Resources Chairperson Signature � D e