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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2009-05-05 ENR Minutes CITY OF MAPLEWOOD ENVIRONMENTAL AND NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION May 5, 2009 515 p.m COUNCIL CHAMBERS - MAPLEWOOD CITY HALL 1830 COUNTY ROAD BEAST 1. CALL TO ORDER Chair Mason Sherrill indicated six out of seven commissioners were present, so there was quorum. 2. ROLL CALL Commissioners Present Chair Carol Mason Sherrill Commissioner Judith Johannessen Commissioner Carole Lynne Commissioner Frederica Musgrave (arrived at 540 p.m.) Commissioner Bill Schreiner Commissioner Dale Trippler Commissioner Ginny Yingling Staff Present Shann Finwall, Environmental Planner Steve Kummer, Civil Engineer II Citv Council Liaison Present Kathleen Juenemann, City Council Liaison 3. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Under Commission Presentations, Commissioner Yingling asked to give an update on Fish Creek under item "b". Commissioner Trippler made a motion to approve the agenda with the addition, seconded by Commissioner Lynne. The agenda was approved by a vote of 6 to 0 4 APPROVAL OF MINUTES February 3,2009 Commissioner Trippler made a motion to approve the February 3,2009 minutes, seconded by Commissioner Yingling. The motion carried by a vote of 4 to 0 vvth Commissioners Lynne and Schreiner abstaining. February 18, 2009 There were no February 18, 2009 minutes. They will be available at the June, 2009 meeting. March 3, 2009 Commissioner Yingling made a motion to approve the March 3, 2009 minutes, seconded by Commissioner Schreiner. The motion carried by a vote of 6 to 0 April 7, 2009 Commissioner Schreiner made a motion to approve the April 7, 2009, minutes with corrections (council member Kathleen Juenemann was present at that meeting and a sentence regarding trash hauling should say "trucks are equal to 1 000 car trips", not "treads" and the 1 sentence that read "Commissioner Trippler asked about the removal of sediment and storm water" should be changed to "'a commissioner' asked about the removal of sediment and storm water". Seconded by Commissioner Trippler. The motion carried by a vote of 6 to 0 5. NEW BUSINESS - There was none. 6. UNFINISHED BUSINESS - WIND TURBINE ORDINANCE Felicia Szott presented her research on wind turbines. She is interning with Maplewood for three months through Hamline University. She has been researching what wind energy consists of and studying wind turbine ordinances in other communities. She gave recommendations, listed below, of how Maplewood can continue with wind turbine exploration. She began her program with a Power Point presentation. Why permit for Wind? 1. Citizens have expressed an interest and the city should be prepared. Maplewood should have regulations and standards set to be aware of what processes they would follow 2. Retain autonomy Minnesota has allowed communities (counties, townships, and cities) to implement their individual vvnd turbine standards allovvng them to focus on the needs of a particular area. When a county implements an ordinance, cities and townships follow the same regulations as the county they are located in. 3. Personal benefits to wind energy Small wind turbine system owners could have increased property values, personal energy independence, emergency power back-up, and ability to avoid volatile energy costs. 4. Public benefits Reduced pressure on local electricity grids; a diversified energy portfolio; and institutions, such as hospitals, would have a fall-back energy source. 5. Processes/Permits If a party wishes to install a wind turbine on a commercial or non-commercial property, these could be processed as a permitted use, a conditional use, or an overlay district use. A permitted use allows installing a wind turbine without additional actions once a permit is received. A conditional use allows municipalities to control how wind turbines are built; and a set of conditions would need to be met. An overlay district is actually creating an area of the city exclusively for wind turbines. Ms. Szott then identified key factors Maplewood can study in creating a wind turbine ordinance a. Distinguish between commercial, non-commercial, and micro wind turbines. b. Acquire necessary permits for different types of wind turbines. c. Establish setbacks. d. Establish safety standards. e. Establish design standards. f Noise standards. g. Minimize infrastructure impacts. Wind Turbine Issues 1. Rooftop turbines in urban environments. Where the turbine is actually placed on the rooftop is important in regard to regulations. 2. Noise Modern turbines have advanced technologies making the blades more quiet and efficient. 2 3. Shadow flicker When sunlight passes through to large-scale turbines and reflects on the ground. 4. Visual landscape effects Aesthetic beauty, or lack thereof, of turbines. 5. Fences and attracted nuisance; Unauthorized access of wind turbines, such as climbing, trespassing in other ways. 6. Birds and bats, icing during the winter months, other hazards 7. Electrical signal interference 8. Straight voltage In summary of her research, Ms. Szott said Maplewood's next steps would be discussion, researching of standards and processes, creating draft language for an ordinance; and finally, implementing the ordinance. There were comments, discussion, and questions from commission members. Ms. Szott will be distributing a report and the neighboring communities' ordinances to the commission. She said she will send information to the commission on rooftop turbines and their impacts on bat and bird populations. Commissioner Yingling stated that in the future they may want to bring in a technical person to answer some of the commission's questions as well. 7. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION SLOPE ORDINANCE Steve Kummer, an engineer with the Maplewood Public Works Department, was present to talk about his research on slopes. He explained slope terminology; stating if there is a one percent slope, for example, the slope would have a one percent incline or decline over a hundred feet of roadway or path. He talked about grading and designing parking lots for retail outlets, strip malls, and other kinds of establishments. He had visuals of different kinds of slopes in the Maplewcod area. Mr. Kummer took photos of Fish Creek when he was visiting the CoPar land, and said there were low and high slopes, and cliffs and bluffs in the area. He described how he measures slopes with different types of levels. He talked about walking through the CoPar development, which has as much as a 50 percent slope. He said a bluff is defined as a slope draining toward public water. The Fish Creek area is considered a bluff. He discussed engineering properties and characteristics of stable slopes, which are ample vegetation and grasses. Sandy steep slopes are near water, and steep slopes are used in trench construction or mining. Mr. Kummer explained why Maplewood should revise the Slope Ordinance and the importance of protecting slopes. Erosion and landslides occur, and create a public safety issue. Aesthetics and wildlife are important because erosion of the slopes causes pollution of waters, and the city would want to maintain the existing drainage patterns as much as possible. There is historical significance for slopes, and preserving bluffs that are significant is important. He referred to the bluffs in Red Wing. which that city has preserved for many years. Most slope ordinances require some type of stability and analysis. It should be determined how much water is shed down a slope. He said that in some areas of Maplewood house rooftops shed down the sides of slopes. This is something that should be studied, and a few questions he said the city should ask is if 3 slopes benefit the quality of life for residents and business owners in the city and how; and what hazards the slopes should be protected from; and to what degree should the slopes be protected. Planner Finwall said commission members would receive a copy of Mr. Kummer's presentation, and they would continue discussion at the next meeting. Mr. Kummer suggested that a field trip would be beneficial to the commissioners. Chair Mason Sherrill said perhaps staff could arrange this, and they would revisit it. Commissioner Musgrave had several questions about this discussion, and had a map that she displayed. She asked some questions whether the banks of Fish Creek are bluffs or slopes. 8. VISITOR PRESENTATIONS Planner Finwall introduced Annie Bigalke and stated that she and Commissioner Johannessen met Ms. Bigalke at a Sustainable Communities Roundtable. Annie Bigalke was present to give a presentation on a group that she and students at Mounds Park Academy (MPA) have joined called Young Environmental Activists (YEA) of Minnesota. YEA Minnesota is a group of high school environmental activists, working towards more sustainable energy in schools and the community. She said it is completely student-led. There are students across Minnesota involved. It is important to get together to brainstorm, share ideas, and network. She said there are schools in their group that have vvnd turbines. MPA is considering the installation of a wind turbine. They had an energy audit and looked at ways they can save on energy. They changed lighting, put film over windows, and joined the Energy Challenge online. Other schools in Minnesota have solar panels, vvnd turbines, and are doing smaller things like biking to school, and having a "Iights out" day. At MPA they are planning to install a wind turbine, and they discussed putting solar panels in as well. She said as they did more research, they found that wind turbines produce more energy and are more cost effective. She said YEA Minnesota is still developing and growing. They attended a large event in Washington D.C called "Power Shift" where 12,000 young people and adults came together to talk about energy and the environment. Different environmental leaders from across the country attended, and there were workshops and speakers. The event closed by meeting at the Capitol with Senator Amy Klobuchar and other representatives. There was a large presence of high school students at the Capitol. She closed by saying it was exciting for her to see what Maplewood is doing for the environment and thanked Planner Finwall for inviting her. There were questions and comments from the commissioners. 9. COMMISSION PRESENTATIONS SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS Storm Water Subcommittee Commissioner Schreiner said he was not as far along as he would like to be with his report He will be researching the program that is used by the Capital Region Watershed district, continue his research, and look for avenues beyond education of citizens that would be feasible and inexpensive, and would have an extensive report by the next meeting. Greenwavs Subcommittee 4 Chair Mason Sherrill, Commissioner Johannessen, Natural Resources Coordinator Gaynor, Planner Finwall, and Parks Commissioner Carolyn Peterson are on this subcommittee and have been meeting once a month since January. Their main goal was to develop protective strategies for the four natural greenways in Maplewood. Chair Mason Sherrill stated that the subcommittee has completed a draft of the proposed goals and purpose of greenways and vvll have that available for the full commission's review in June. Trash Haulinq Subcommittee Commissioner Lynne and Commissioner Trippler are working on this subcommittee. Planner Finwall gave them a historical folder of trash hauling/haulers in Maplewood. They inspected the documents and wrote down thoughts and ideas that would be beneficial for the commission to discuss. Commissioner Trippler had an outline to distribute, and stated if anyone had questions to contact himself or Commissioner Lynne. OTHER COMMENTS Chair Mason Sherrill said that Maplewood vvll be reviewing Eureka Recycling's report on Recycling in the Parks in June. Chair Mason Sherrill stated the commission is not accomplishing everything they would like to, and said they would discuss longer meeting times, alternative days for their meetings, or two meetings a month; and there will be an e-mail sent out to that effect. 10. ADJOURN - 659 p.m. 5