Washington Conservation Commission

 

Minutes – June 20, 2007

Assembly time: 7:00 PM.

Present: Sandy Robinson, Mark Cummings, Jed Schwartz, Rich Cook, Nan Schwartz, Johanna Young, Lindley Rankine

1.0    Approval of Minutes: motion by Jed, Mark seconded, unanimous vote to approve May minutes.

2.0   Old Business: 

2.1   Energy Committee – Johanna Young and her husband Lindley spoke to us about forming an Energy Committee and what the committee might want to accomplish. She shared information from the Carbon Coalition about committees and projects they could tackle, such as lowering energy use at town facilities and public education. She mentioned that small grants are available for projects. Sandy talked about having this committee be under the Conservation Commission and everyone agreed that this would be a good fit. We will all ask around to see who might be interested in joining and we will let Johanna know. Rich mentioned the Recycling Committee and wondered if any of those members would be interested in taking part. He said he would get it in the Selectmen's meeting minutes from the 21st and we will speak about it again at our August meeting. Anyone interested in joining can contact Johanna at 495-1218 or email her at jsoulnh@aol.com.

        Lindley made a presentation about Compact Florescent Lightblubs (CFLs) with lots of interesting facts about how they save money and energy. He talked about their use and how to dispose of them properly when they eventually burn out. They should be recycled at the transfer station like any florescent bulb.

        Jed motioned to form the Energy Committee and Sandy seconded. The vote was unanimous. Rich will speak with the Selectmen about making it official.

2.2     Dredge and Fill Committee – Rich and Mark went out to check on the Zern dock application site and they approved of the project.

2.3     Adopt a Highway – We agreed on Saturday, July 28th for our trash pick up day. We will meet at the Town Hall at 9AM to do our usual route. We will reschedule for the 29th if it rains.

2.4     Natural Resource Inventory – Chris has been working on the writing portion of the NRI and will be sending more sections to us as he works on them.

We looked at the Conservation Plan map of priority areas (draft) This map shows the areas that are now protected and those that would be most important to protect in the future. We highlighted a few areas that Chris hadn't included for him to consider. Rich mentioned the existing town forests and we want to make sure that all these areas are on the map. We suggested using a different color so they would stand out a little better.

2.5   Watershed Issues – Eric Williams and Peg Foss from DES came out and met with people from East Washington and others about the Mill Pond study they had done. They are returning with someone from NRCS and State Department of Agriculture to do farm visits in the Purling Beck and Woodward Brook watersheds next Wednesday. They are going to work with everyone to help keep the Mill Pond cleaner for swimming and recreation and avoid closures due to e-coli concentration.

 

3.0   What's Happening in Nature? Tomorrow is the Summer Solstice, so everyone should go and enjoy the longest day of the year! Jed has saved several painted turtles trying to cross the East Washington Road. He always stops if he sees a turtle in the road, to pick it up and deposit it in a safe spot on the other side of the road in the direction it was headed, then it can safely continue its journey. Chances are it is a female looking for a spot to lay her eggs. Sandy saw deer in the pasture across from Sally Jenkins' old house and on the EW common. Several people had sightings of wild turkey hens with their large flocks of chicks, who looked to be only a few days old, walking around together and feeding. There was a sighting of a baby bear in Bradford near Route 114. We were reminded to observe wild animals from a distance but dont try to interact with them. It is, however, acceptable to move a turtle out of the road for safety reasons, see the "What's New In Nature?" page of our website for more information on moving turtles to safety. http://www.washingtonnh.org/WCC_Html/NewinNature.html

 

4.0     New Business – Rich mentioned that Ken Eastman had sent an email about the possibility of seeing both the International Space Station and the Space Shuttle fly overhead at 9:20 PM tonight if the sky is clear. We will all try to get a look at it.

 

5.0     Other Business - None

 

6.0       Correspondence:

                NH Recreation & Conservation Leader's Survey

              14 NH Lakes Congress and Annual Meeting Friday June 29th 8:00-4:00 Audubon's McLane Center

              LGC postcard announcing the release of "Knowing the Territory" about municipal law for NH Local Officials

              DES Notice of Administrative Completeness File Number 2007-00995 Michael Hall

              DES Notice of invalid Permit by Notification Zern File #2007-01206

              DES Wetlands and Non-site specific permit approval 2007-00995 Michael Hall   

7.0   Adjourned at 8:05 PM., our next scheduled meeting is July 18th at 7 PM at the Town Hall

Respectfully submitted,

Nan Schwartz

Secretary