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HomeMy WebLinkAboutNatural Resources Advisory Board - Minutes - 03/02/1988• MINUTES CITY OF FORT COLLINS kATURAL RESOURCES ADVISORY BOARD MARCH 2, 1988 Board Members Present: Sheryl Barr Suzanne Bassinger Dave DuBois Tim Johnson Board Members Absent: (excused) Bill Fischer Rich Fisher Staff Present: Roger Krempel Brian Woodruff Denise LaRue Ari Michelsen Pat Reed Robert Sanz Deborah Shimkus Bob Wilkinson Edith Felchle Approval of Minutes The Minutes of the February 3, 1988 meeting were unanimously approved as submitted. Committee Reports Education: LaRue stated that she was glad to see Shimkus had been involved in preparations for the February symposium. Sensitive Areas Plan Public Meetings Wilkinson reported that the third public meeting to discuss the Environmentally Sensitive Areas Plan was held February 29, with over 40 people attending. He stated that interest expressed by those notified of this meeting was much greater than that expressed by previous groups. He stated that notification of this meeting was the first correspondence referring to the "Environmentally Sensitive Areas Plan," instead of the "Wildlife Habitat Management Plan," and he speculated that this new name may have created the additional response. He stated that all meetings have been pretty good, with some positive comments and some concerns about property rights. Wilkinson stated that people tend to come to the meetings somewhat hostile, but leave feeling better, even supportive. A meeting with environmental groups is scheduled for March 16. A meeting with other groups will be scheduled later. Wilkinson stated that DNR will probably take the comments from the meetings and come up with some alternatives within the Plan. He stated that, at the February 29 meeting, some people seemed disappointed that the plan would not apply in the county. He stated that everyone seems to think it is a good idea, but there is a concern that it should be more in the form of guidelines and less regulatory, and that the plan should be promoted. There are concerns that rules will be applied to one group, e.g. some property owners, and not others, e.g., large developers. Some see this as another burden for property owners. 1 0 It was stated that Felchle and Wilkinson attended a meeting about mitigation banking recently. They will report on this at the April NRAB meeting. New Water Quality Organization DuBois reported that the new agency, which replaces the functions of the Larimer/Weld Council of Governments, is now functioning and things are going well. They cover Larimer and Weld counties, and have support from quite a number of entities. The official name of the organization is North Front Range Water Quality Planning Association. They have been designated by the Governor and by the EPA. From October '87 to January '88, they were funded with money designated from the old COG. They have 34 members, including two counties, 18 municipalities, five businesses, and seven special districts. Northglenn is a member, since their wastewater treatment plant is in Larimer County. Environmental organizations and community action groups may be members without having to pay dues. The organization charges dues based on the Water Quality Planning Association's budget and size of the member entity. The City of Fort Collins is the largest dues payer. Minimum dues for a voting member are $1000. Small communities can combine, to share dues and share a vote. The organization's office is in the new Loveland City Hall, address: Civic Center, 500 E. 3rd, Loveland, CO 80537, phone: 667-6130, X491. They developed an area -wide wastewater management plan, which must be updated annually. They review and make recommendations on site applications, review grant applications, are involved in special projects, and are involved with the State Water Quality Commission. Army Corps of Engineers Region -wide Permits Wilkinson reported on the new proposal from the Corps regarding region -wide permits. For Colorado, this would involve three different Corps districts. The permit would have allowed doubling of riprap along banks, and also would have allowed drop structures, without site specific review. DNR sent a letter to the Corps requesting exclusion of the Cache La Poudre River in the area designated as Wild and Scenic and in the area currently being studied as a National Recreation Area. This actually amounts to exclusion of the entire basin. The notice may be reissued. The region -wide permit is more viable in rural areas than in urban areas. Diesel Emission Legislation Woodruff reported that the Governor has appointed a task force to report on what can be done to improve smoke from all diesel engines. The task force will look at fuels, inspection and maintenance, and opacity restrictions. Recommendations will come out within the next month. A bill was introduced in the legislature to allow the legislature to act on task force recommendations. It has been amended so that no recommendations can be applied unless the legislature first passes a law. Regarding local action, Woodruff handed out a letter from Dr. Pielke, indicating that cities are not tied to state opacity regulations. The City can establish local regulations. Some idling restrictions are being considered state-wide. Benefits of opacity regulations include improvements in visibility and in toxic air pollution. The Fort Collins Police Department will go along with opacity restrictions if the restriction is tighter than the current 40% for 10 seconds, which has proven unenforceable. Woodruff will prepare a briefing paper to Council to see what their feeling is on this issue. Woodruff also handed out a letter from Dr. Pielke regarding inspection and maintenance enforcement for autos of out-of-state CSU students. Chamber of Commerce Air Quality Committee Woodruff reported that the Chamber's air quality committee is interested in taking on the public education aspect of air quality issues. They are particularly interested in education that would build support for eventual controls. They are interested in spending money on a study. Woodruff suggested that they wait until the NFRTAQPC gets underway. They might take on one of these tasks. The Chamber needs to know the funding requirements by Memorial Day in order to work them into the budget for next fall. Miscellaneous Michelsen handed out two items provided by Shimkus: the Environmental Leader's Forum Upcoming Activities, and an item on Phantom Canyon. Michelsen encouraged all NRAB committees to meet to pursue their goals. Rick Ensdorff updated the board on the planning council. He handed out the Air Quality Issues Flow Chart (attached), representing how air quality issues would be processed within the planning council. He stated that Larimer County and Loveland feel the format is acceptable but they are not excited about participating at this time. The County is mainly concerned with MPO issues. The lead planning agency designation is specifically to deal with traditional issues. The papers are going to the Governor March 3. A Memorandum of Agreement is being prepared. In the next couple of weeks, a briefing memorandum will be sent to Council outlining the planning council's structure and the intentions of Larimer County and Loveland. Ensdorff asked this board to make a recommendation to Council, stating concerns and opinions. It was asked whether the Foothills Air Quality Advisory Committee could handle regional air quality issues. Ensdorff stated that there was no opposition to that, but that aspect is not necessary for the lead planning agency. By the end of March they should have the lead planning agency agreement to the Governor. In the next couple of weeks, this board should advise Council of its thoughts on the planning council structure. NRAB may also recommend to Council the types of organizations they feel should be represented. Then the planning council will want input on committee make-up. Woodruff stated that we are ending up with a traditional MPO to do air quality transportation work. The planning council is focused on transportation issues. Later they may deal with other air quality issues. It was moved and seconded that NRAB's air quality committee be given the task of coming up with the requested recommendation to Council regarding the air quality transportation issues. The motion passed unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 9:20. i W W J W F- ~ O cc cd ^Q'uV O U} N W U D O r�� QcnQ w 4 o Z LLI O V I > aod D << O I JW� ce z I �z0 o l LU °o a o � Ll— U Z >' V V�J� ►z-<¢DOU C)i--QCYV ZounQZ ce,ZOZ w Z J Q d ""r"" O 1 L__=J