HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOUNCIL - AGENDA ITEM - 10/05/2021 - RESOLUTION 2021-092 MAKING AN APPOINTMENT TO THE L Agenda Item 17
Item # 17 Page 1
AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY October 5, 2021
City Council
STAFF
Tammi Pusheck, Interim City Clerk
Carrie M. Daggett, Legal
SUBJECT
Resolution 2021-092 Making an Appointment to the Land Conservation and Stewardship Board.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The purpose of this item is to fill a vacancy on the Land Conservation & Stewardship Board due to the
resignation of Kelly Ohlson upon his election to City Council.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends adoption of the Resolution.
BACKGROUND / DISCUSSION
This Resolution appoints one new member to the Land Conservation & Stewardship Board to fill a vacancy
from the resignation of Kelly Ohlson who left to serve as Councilmember.
On September 17, 2021, Councilmember Kelly Ohlson and Councilmember Susa n Gutowsky held interviews
for open positions on the Land Conservation & Stewardship Board. Both Councilmembers recommend Elena
Lopez for appointment. This term will begin immediately on October 5, 2021.
ATTACHMENTS
1. Application (PDF)
APPLICATION FOR BOARD OR COMMISSION MEMBERSHIP
ATTACHMENTS TO APPLICATION MUST BE LIMITED TO TWO PAGES
INCOMPLETE APPLICATIONS WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED FOR APPOINTMENT
If you have questions or need more information, contact:
City Clerk's Office (300 LaPorte Avenue) at 970.416.2525
Eligibility Requirements -1 year residency within the Fort Collins Growth Management Area
Board or Commission: Land Conservation and Stewardship Board
Name: Elena M. Lopez
Mailing Address:
Residence:
Home Phone: Work Phone:
Zip:
Zip:
Cell Phone:
Yes No
E-Mail Address: l
Have you resided in the Fort Collins Growth Management Area for at least one year?
Which Council District do you live in? District 5
Current Occupation: Environmental Scientist Employer: AECOM
Recent and/or relevant work experience (please include dates) My educational background includes a Ph.D.
in Environmental Endocrine Disruption (CU Boulder), a Master's in Environmental Biology (CU Boulder), and a
Bachelor's in Environmental Studies (USC). My scientific background is interdisciplinary and includes academic
research and industry consulting in human and wildlife ecophysiology. I currently specialize in complex data management
Recent and/or relevant volunteer experience (please include dates) I am engaged in local issues, particularly
those that advance environmental and social justice, ecological conservation, and science-based decisionmaking.
Currently, I serve as a Board member for Physicians for Social Responsibility Colorado. I have been active recently
in the local Sierra Club Poudre Canyon Group. I volunteered to collect signatures for the Hughes Public Open Lands
initiative. And, I have advised local citizens groups on the highly technical aspects of Oil & Gas operations.
Are you currently serving on a City board or commission? Yes No
If so, which one?
Why do you want to become a member of this particular board or commission? I would be honored to
serve the Fort Collins community by applying my knowledge and experience as an Environmental Scientist to advise
City Council and the Natural Areas staff in their role as the principal stewards of our City's Natural areas.
Have you attended a meeting of the board or commission you are applying to or talked to anyone currently on the board?
Yes No
If yes, please share your experience:
I appreciated the respectful and thoughtful discourse among LCSB members, and the Natural Areas department staff, even when
slight disagreements on strategies or next-steps existed. I also observed a real commitment by Board members and Natural
List any abilities, skills, certificates, specialized training, or interests you have which are applicable to this
board or commission:
Ph.D. in Environmental Endocrine Disruption & Master's in Environmental Biology (CU Boulder); Bachelor's in Environmental
Studies (USC). My scientific background is interdisciplinary and includes academic research and industry consulting in the
areas of environmental toxicology, and human and wildlife physiology. I have specialized knowledge in advanced environmental
ATTACHMENT 1
Briefly explain what you believe are the three most important issues facing this board or commission, and how do you
believe this board or commission should address each issue?
1) One of the most important issues facing the LCSB relates to current and projected increases in NA visitation
and recreational usage. To address this issue, the LCSB should work closely with the NAD staff to develop
scientifically, culturally, and economically sound visitor management strategies, while prioritizing
the protection of ecosystems and wildlife communities that constitute the essential fabric of our NA
system. When making vital decisions about visitor management and recreation, the LCSB should always
do so through the lens of sensitive ecosystem and cultural resource conservation.
2) Importantly, despite the aforementioned visitation and overuse issues faced by our natural areas, The
2019 Foothills Natural Areas Management Plan clearly states that our City's top priority for the Foothills
natural areas is to "conserve, maintain, enhance, and restore native plant and wildlife communities".
Simply stated, land and wildlife conservation are the transcendent priority for the NAD and the LCSB,
and the LCSB will likely be faced with taking a strong stance in defense of this conservation priority
when necessary, by making appropriate recommendations to City Council.
3) Another challenge facing the LCSB includes making recommendations on additional acquisitions of real
property for the NA Department. The acquisition of NEW lands for Natural Areas will further conserve
wildlife habitat and preserve western landscapes, and provide trail connectivity for recreational use
and education, hopefully easing the burden of increased visitation and overuse of our current NAs. New
acquisitions should also be made to honor the will of the voters who have funded and supported open
space tax initiatives time and again, and will be asked to do so again in the future.
Please specify any activities which might create a serious conflict of interest if you should be appointed to this board
or commission:
None
Upon application for and acceptance of appointment, board and commission members demonstrate their intention and
ability to attend meetings. If appointed, frequent nonattendance may result in termination of the appointment.
By typing your name in the space provided, I submit my electronic signature and application to the City of Fort Collins
and swear or affirm under penalty of perjury pursuant to the laws of the State of Colorado:
-that I meet the eligibility requirements of the position sought and
-that the information provided in this application is true and correct to the best of my knowledge.
Signature: Date:
Optional: How did you learn of a vacancy on this board or commission:
Newspaper Cable 14 City News (Utility Bill Insert)Website
Other (please specify)Friends and Colleagues
Elena M. Lopez, Ph.D. Summary Dr. Lopez is an environmental physiologist based
in Fort Collins. She earned a Ph.D. in Environmental Endocrine Disruption and a
Master's degree in Environmental Biology from CU Boulder, and a Bachelor's degree
in Environmental Studies from the University of Southern California where she played
intercollegiate varsity soccer. Elena's scientific background is interdisciplinary
and includes academic research and industry consulting in the areas of toxicology,
environmental endocrine disruption, and human and wildlife physiology. She has researched
the effects of persistent environmental contaminants on development and reproduction
in humans and other vertebrates. Elena currently specializes in complex data management
and informatics for human health and ecological risk assessments in the environmental
remediation industry. She also loves Linux and promotes open source/open data initiatives
and products. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Experience Scientist
IV-Environmental Data Management and Informatics (Toxicology/Remediation) AECOM Jan
2015 - Present (6 yrs 8 mos) · Provide data management and quantitative analysis
of environmental chemical pollutants in groundwater, soil, sediment, and soil vapor
for environmental investigations and remediation operations · Conduct advanced
statistical analysis of left-censored chemistry data using NADA R package · Perform
verification and validation of organic and inorganic analytical chemistry data against
established criteria set by federal, state, and local environmental regulatory agencies ·
Projects include Superfund remediation, NEPA/EIS, oil and gas, mining, U.S. DoD
military operations, power transmission, and transportation for both private and
public sectors · Manage, access, and mine enterprise-level databases (e.g., EQuIS,
ERPIMs, SQL Server) · Provide data deliverables, technical reports, and report-writing
support by generating appropriate graphs, charts, and tables ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Founder
and Research Analyst Twin Fish Enterprises, LLC 2014 - Present (7 yrs) Information
Science and Data Management Services Specializing in regulatory policy, health
& environmental science, and open data governance ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Project
Information Coordinator Specialist, Nitrate in Groundwater Project, SBX2 1 University
of California, Davis Sep 2010 - May 2012 (1 yr 9 mos) · SBX2 1, CA Nitrate
in Groundwater Project, Report to Legislature for SWRCB, Principal Investigator
Dr. Thomas Harter · PISCES Project, Principal Investigator Dr. Joshua Viers
(for United States Forest Service) · Center for Watershed Sciences Social Media
and Blog Management (beginning August 2011) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Educational
Consultant and Tutor EML Tutoring and Educational Services 2008 - 2010 (2
yrs) Provided tutoring and educational services in biological and physiological
sciences to undergraduate students in Boulder/Denver area, and to remote students
via Skype. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Online
Faculty Colorado State University Global Mar 2009 - Jun 2009 (4 mos) Served
as instructor for online course geared toward working professionals entitled "Data
and Decisions: Numbers in Everyday Life (Quantitative Reasoning)." ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Doctoral-level
Graduate Student/Researcher, Environmental Endocrinology, CU Boulder, 2002-2008 University
of Colorado Boulder 1998 - 2008 (10 yrs) Project: "Reproductive Disruption
in Colorado Fishes", CU Boulder/EPA Region 8 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Graduate
Student Instructor (M.A. and Ph.D.) University of Colorado Boulder, 1998 - 2007
(9 yrs) Laboratory Courses Taught ---------------------------
· Human Anatomy (10 semesters) · Human Physiology (3 semesters) · Comparative
Vertebrate Anatomy (1 semester) · Evolutionary Biology (1 semester) · General
Biology (2 semesters) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Master's-level
Graduate Student/Researcher, Environmental Endocrinology University of Colorado
at Boulder, 1998 - 2002 (4 yrs) Project: "The actions of methoprene acid on
-1-
RESOLUTION 2021-092
OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS
MAKING AN APPOINTMENT TO THE
LAND CONSERVATION & STEWARDSHIP BOARD
WHEREAS, a vacancy currently exists on the Land Conservation & Stewardship Board;
and
WHEREAS, the City Council desires to make an appointment to fill this vacancy on the
Land Conservation & Stewardship Board.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
FORT COLLINS as follows:
Section 1. That the City Council hereby makes and adopts the determinations and
findings contained in the recitals set forth above.
Section 2. That the following named person is hereby appointed to fill the current
vacancy on the Land Conservation and Stewardship Board with a term to begin immediately and
to expire as set forth below:
Land Conservation and
Stewardship Board Expiration of Term
Elena Lopez 12/31/2025
Passed and adopted at a regular meeting of the Council of the City of Fort Collins this 5th
day of October, A.D. 2021.
_________________________________
Mayor
ATTEST:
_____________________________
Interim City Clerk