HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 03-25-2009
Sustainability Ad Hoc Committee
March 25, 2009 meeting minutes
Present: Robert Tabor, John Holt, Donna Rhoden, Eric Winterstein, Linda Bartz, Allen Gilbert, Amy Brunjes
Staff and Guests: Sandra Bogan, ERD; Scott Taylor, Pollution Prevention
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The meeting was called to order at 10:10
The chairman and vice chairman were not present. Eric Winterstein made a motion for Amy Brunjes to act as
chair for the meeting. Allen Gilbert seconded the motion and the motion passed unanimously.
The members introduced themselves, as well as the guests. John Holt is now serving as a committee
member for the Conservation Alliance.
The first order of business was to approve the minutes from the January meeting. Donna Rhoden motioned
to approve, Councilwoman Bartz seconded, and the motion was approved unanimously.
Amy asked for the benefit of the newest members, to recap how the committee got started, what has taken
place thus far, and what are its objectives. Sandy Bogan gave a brief recap.
Sandy Bogan also recapped the January meeting that was held at the SLC Solid Waste Department.
The group discussed waste reduction strategies and what other cities, counties, and countries around the
world are doing. The group looked at
A Regional Resource Recovery System website which showed
strategies for zero waste and eco-industrial parks as part of the economic strategy of a community:
http://www.indigodev.com/Eipresrecov.html
The group discussed a prudent approach to making recommendations for St. Lucie County would be to:
Take inventory of what’s being done and is currently in place.
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Determine if there is a strategic plan for the county in regard to waste management
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Understand what regulations Solid Waste is operating under, what are the obstacles and
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limitations
Set waste reduction goals, look for partnerships
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Donna Rhoden pointed out that regulations are imposed by other entities, so in order for us to make
suggestions, we need to be cognizant of regulations. For example: water and wastewater is governed by
DEP, SFWMD, and DCA. Water use permits are 20-year permits, but reapplication is made every 5 years.
They have right to increase or decrease allocations, stress alternative water sources, etc. Donna also pointed
out that 90% of water from PSL Utilities comes from the Floridan aquifer, only 10% is from the surficial
aquifer. PSL is in better shape than cities further south.
John Holt thought we really needed to get back to basics and follow the natural laws that regulate
sustainability; that regulators don’t think about the basics.
Sandy pointed out that while John might sound like a ‘purist’ to some, he has a point, in that the next wave
of green technologies will be an effort to imitate nature, aka biomimicry.
Amy brought the group back to the issue of waste and pointed out that we really needed to deal with one
very large issue at a time if we wanted to be successful. What are the steps we can take to reduce waste?
The conversation turned to fluorescent bulbs, and the issue that the landfill charges commercial entities a
certain amount per bulb. This discourages private entities like FPUA or FPL to try to facilitate proper disposal
of bulbs by having collection spots.
Allen Gilbert also shared that our schools teach programs on recycling and green programs, and even
separate items, but the garbage truck puts them all together and hauls it off. So it’s very difficult and
frustrating because the students see this and wonder why their effort is being undermined.
Eric Winterstein made the recommendation that the Solid Waste Department should waive the charges to
commercial haulers to facilitate collection and proper disposal, even if it’s for a limited timeframe, like 2 or 3
years.
Robert Tabor added that even some of the condominiums and retirement communities would collect the
bulbs, but not if they’re going to be charged.
Sandy asked if this would be any commercial entity or would focus on public-private partnerships? The
answer was both, it would need to apply to all commercial entities to ensure high participation.
It was pointed out that if FPUA, or others wanted to provide the service of collecting bulbs, they’d have to be
careful that they don’t break, because they’d be dealing with hazardous waste. There will need to bepeople
at these collection places to hand the bulbs to, to avoid breakage.
The group discussed Eric’s motion, and thought it should be packaged in a more comprehensive set of
recommendations. Eric agreed to withdraw his motion until a future date.
The next meeting was set for April 22 at 10am at the Oxbow Eco-Center.
Sandy let the group know that the next item on the agenda was a suggestion JP wanted to make, to have
the committee potentially look at creating a Green Action Plan for the County, like other places have done,
such as Delray Beach, Orange County, Sarasota, etc. This would be in lieu of going issue by issue. This could
be something to think about and discuss at the next meeting.
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Sandy announced the Earth Day celebration to be held on April 18 at the Oxbow from 10am till 3pm.
Sandy also updated the group on Green Government Certification, indicating that the County is working
toward Gold Certification by summer 2009.
Scott Taylor introduced the Pollution Prevention Coalition that he is pulling together in St. Lucie County,
similar to numerous Coalitions that have been established around the state. He described how the Palm
Beach Coalition has been very successful at bringing together diverse stakeholders such as developers,
business people, regulators, conservationists, and scientists. Anybody interested in being a part of the St.
Lucie County Coalition can join their meetings currently being held at IRSC. For more information, Scott can
be contacted at rpcvtaylor@gmail.net
Eric made the motion to adjourn, Linda Bartz seconded it, the motion passed and the meeting adjourned at
11:37