HomeMy WebLinkAboutNatural Resources Advisory Board - Minutes - 01/21/2015MINUTES
CITY OF FORT COLLINS
NATURAL RESOURCES ADVISORY BOARD
Date: Wednesday, January 21, 2015
Location: 215 N. Mason, Conference Room 1A
Time: 5:30–8:00pm
For Reference
Bob Overbeck, Council Liaison 970-988-9337
Susie Gordon, Staff Liaison 970-221-6265
Board Members Present Board Members Absent
Harry Edwards Joe Halseth
Robert Mann Alexa Barratt
John Bartholow
Jeremy Sueltenfuss
Nancy DuTeau
Staff Present
Susie Gordon, Staff Liaison
Dianne Tjalkens, Admin/Board Support
Melissa Hovey, Senior Environmental Planner
Jen Shanahan, Environmental Planner
John Stokes, Natural Areas Director
Guests
David Tweedale, citizen
John Bleem, Platte River Power Authority
Dan Baker, CSU
Call meeting to order: Harry called the meeting to order at 5:31pm.
Agenda Review: Elections will be moved to February meeting.
Member Comments: None.
Welcome of New Board Members: Jeremy works for the Colorado Natural Heritage Program as an
ecologist.
Nancy is an environmental microbiologist. She is on the Poudre Landmarks Foundation board that manages
historic City properties.
AGENDA ITEM 1— Climate Action Plan Update
Melissa Hovey, Senior Environmental Planner, provided final modeling information/data that has been
developed for climate strategies recommendations which will be presented to City Council on February 17.
Melissa first gave an overview of fugitive dust and the many sources in Fort Collins; she will provide a
complete presentation to the board at the February meeting as part of her outreach to the community
regarding dust control strategies. Members are encouraged to visit the website to download draft documents,
take a quick survey, and provide comments (http://www.fcgov.com/airquality/fugitive-dust.php).
The Climate Action Plan was first developed in 1997, updated in 2008, and a second update is now
underway. The update includes strategies to achieve 80% reduction from 2005 greenhouse gas (GHG) levels
by 2030 and become carbon neutral by 2050. The emissions inventory shows community-wide GHG is
primarily from electricity, ground travel and natural gas. The business-as-usual forecast takes into account
the same behaviors plus added population. Other scenarios add regulations and actions Platte River Power
Authority has modelled. Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) helped develop strategy areas: new growth,
existing buildings, transportation, energy supply, Road to Zero Waste, and carbon sequestration. Strategies
can reduce emissions significantly, very close to carbon neutral. In the first decade there will be significant
net costs, especially in infrastructure. In 2030 we begin to see net savings. Not calculated costs include:
impact of public health improvement, social and economic benefits, resiliency, increased jobs, vehicle miles
traveled (VMT) reduction, grid stability factors, and storage. The document staff is developing for Council is
a feasibility study to see what takes to reach the goals. We will develop guiding principles for financing,
including what to implement and when, later. Likely immediate actions include piloting a Utility Services
Model, expanding an efficiency program partnership with Platte River, implementing car/bike/ride share
programs, waste stream optimization, the Georgetown University energy prize, etc. We are looking next at
who pays and who saves, and how to fund initiatives. Other goals include community leadership that attracts
financing and innovation. Two more public forums will be held this month and the report goes to Council’s
work session on February 17.
Discussion/Q & A:
• Do these technologies exist?
o Feasibility being studied. Implementation after Council approves, which will take multiple
years.
o Expecting technological innovation to occur.
• What happens in 2029 on Scenario 1 graph?
o Assumes Rawhide coal-fired plant taken offline.
• Do the savings assume a carbon factor cost?
o Yes. For coal and natural gas. In dollars per ton, prices are $11/ton in 2020 to $60/ton in
2050 for coal.
• “Aspirational goals” seems like double-speak.
o Purpose is to deliberately set a high bar as a commitment the City makes.
• Graphs show supply of coal goes to zero in 2030?
o Platte River is on resource planning timeline to consider diversification. Strategic Plan is
available online (http://www.prpa.org/sources/strategic-plan/). Platte River has models
running longer-term but City asked for shorter timeline. Used City’s models to model power
loads. Most added renewable is PV solar equal to peak load of City. Graph shows simple
method to reduce GHGs. Must take out all coal. Not necessarily realistic in this time period
(15 years). Need storage and controls to have that much solar.
o People are misperceiving this as a commitment.
• Model is good to see what it takes.
• Assumptions made to do the modeling are unrealistic.
o Shows the challenges. Those are realistic.
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• Need to better call out significant challenges, rather than present as roadmap. Tell limitations.
• How do we get community to buy in, since it will cost more? Going to more electric, will it be
available?
o RMI developed feasible adoption rates.
o First five years $300 million cost for infrastructure changes.
o Billions to build new generating facilities.
o Studying how affects rate payers.
o High confidence in 20% reduction by 2020. 80% by 2030 low confidence/low probability.
Necessary infrastructure changes would be dramatic and quick.
• Group edited memo to Council.
Bob moved to adopt the draft memo to Council supporting the CAP update. John seconded.
Motion passed unanimously, 5-0-0.
Public Comments: None.
Review and Approval of December minutes
Bob moved and John seconded a motion to approve the December 17, 2014 NRAB minutes as amended.
Motion passed unanimously, 4-0-0. (Harry had to leave to attend another meeting before the vote.)
Correction: bottom of first page; email from Susan Strong. Should say “with” instead of “about.”
AGENDA ITEM 2—Poudre River Ecological Response Model
Jen Shanahan, Environmental Planner of the Natural Areas Department, and Dan Baker, Civil and
Environmental Engineer at CSU, presented the Ecological Response Model (ERM), which is being released
this month to several advisory boards and City Council.
The ERM was recently completed and the full report is available on website
(fcgov.com/naturalareas/pdf/erm_executive_summary.pdf). This project is an objective identification of river
condition for the Poudre through Fort Collins, and looks at three geographically distinct reaches. The report
can be used to inform priorities and set goals. ERM team includes volunteers, CSU, U.S. Forest Service, U.S.
Geologic Survey, Nature Conservancy, and City of Fort Collins. The model shows condition of ecological
indicators: channel structure, aquatic life, riparian habitat, and fish. Flow scenarios are the primary input, and
flow is the master variable. They learned that the river has been changing and that taking out water has
environmental impacts: lower flow volumes accelerate trends. Low and high flows are critical. In recent
years the river has been crossing the threshold for sustaining ecosystem functions. Flow management is not
the only solution or problem. Have increasingly entrenched river, aquatic life has reduced diversity and
resilience, and riparian habitat is dependent on high flows. Sustainability can be affected through
management. Diverse woody forest offers habitat, slows flood waters, provides nutrient cycling and
filtration, etc. Lee Martinez Park has a functioning riparian zone. Steep banks limit riparian habitat regardless
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of flows. We can expect a drier river; the goal is to improve function of flows. Extreme floods and droughts
will happen. Maintain function of refreshing the riverbed even with limited channels. With lower flows, and
under current management, river is on trajectory of decline. If we can achieve target thresholds of flows, can
have more self-sustaining river.
Discussion/Q & A:
• Isolated reaches to determine where slopes make a difference is a good idea. Management
implications?
o Use results to inform community dialogue. Data helps in working with others. Formulate
quantitative idea of what City wants. More a social question. Strings attached to adding flow.
• Report is a resource. How does it get used? Would like to see aspirational goals. Can the City be
proactive on direction?
o Better to say what we want as opposed to what we don’t with entities that have water rights.
Quantitative information helps inform probabilities. Second part of project is community
dialogue. Need to develop standards for river health to share/influence outcomes. Lots of
pressures and needs on this river. Fort Collins has limited influence/control. To achieve river
health metrics/standards, need collaboration.
• What is a specific project that would come before Council that would be affected by this resource?
Example: proposed kayak park.
o Kayak park would have nominal impact. Doesn’t change flow or large section of river.
o Connectivity issue, and fish passage not included in this report. Kayak park would remove
Coy diversion. That reach is over-widened. Discussion of reworking shape and can get more
function in turning over river bottom.
• How do you decide which impacts of which projects are worse/better?
o ERM is decision support tool that could impact projects. Northern Integrated Supply Project,
we don’t yet have hydrology from that report. Will select projects most likely to be permitted
to run models and may make recommendations/influence permitting agencies and mitigation
plans.
o Model is coarse because we converged a lot of data and analysis from different disciplines
which makes results more simplified. Changes in flow patterns have dramatic changes in
results.
• Windy Gap: Forest Service was angry about environmental impact statement, that applicants claimed
ecosystem so badly stressed already that Windy Gap might as well get built because won’t make it
much worse. This model shows river is deteriorating. Might someone say, may as well continue to
build because river is too far gone already?
o Can show with this model that we are within range of uncertainty. In case study could show
range of feasible numbers.
o This document could concern those developing water projects and who don’t want water
projects. Report shows taking water out of system has negative impact. To predict future,
must look at water projects because they are likely to happen.
• If have to go to public about metrics for NISP, can that happen by June?
o Yes. Public engagement process can only happen after internal establishment of river health
targets.
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o Staff will come to boards, then Council work session. Must get new Council familiar with
river and projects, supplemental draft will come out, and then staff must make quick
response.
o Identify what matters most internally in departments (Stormwater, Utilities, Parks, etc.). Then
can set metrics.
o If provide rivers with building blocks can sustain themselves. River has adjusted, including
narrower channels, changes in foliage, etc. If river on life-support, will fall on natural
resource agencies to prop it up. High cost to maintain.
• Plans for formal publication with independent peer review?
o Planned, but not in time frame of this summer.
• Board requested emailed copy of presentation.
• Presenters will return to board with River Health Targets in spring.
AGENDA ITEM 3—Board Elections: moved to February
AGENDA ITEM 4—Other Business
Review City Council’s 6-Month Planning Calendar/Agenda Planning
• February: Lincoln Corridor and Dust Control Manual on agenda; Susie requested Bruce Hendee
attend; board elections
• March: Contract for recycling center as it affects haulers and community recycling center
Announcements/Open Board Discussion
• Climate Action Plan will come back to board with implementation plans. May be asked to hear about
transportation strategies.
• Poudre River Forum: Is it presentation only, or seeking input?
o Presentation and dialogue: question and answer and panel discussions with opportunity for
audience questions. Will have questionnaire for Poudre Runs Through It group to further
healthy working river.
Meeting Adjourned: 7:33pm
Next Meeting: February 18
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