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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Citizens' Sustainability Committee 04/22/2019CC--YIT - & CITY OF PALM DESERT CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE MINUTES MONDAY, APRIL 22, 2019 — 3:00 P.M. ADMINISTRATIVE CONFERENCE ROOM 73-510 FRED WARING DRIVE, PALM DESERT, CA 92260 I. CALL TO ORDER Chair Dean Gatons called the meeting to order at 3:03 p.m. II. ROLL CALL Present: Member Berlinda Blackburn Member Dennis Guinaw Member James Henderson Member Vincent Heuring Member David O'Donnell Member Melinda Robertson Member Evan Trubee Vice -Chair Gregory Gritters arrived at 3:32 p.m. Chair Dean Gatons Also Present: Absent: Member Tommy Edwards Member Ralph Raya Gina Nestande, Councilmember Lauri Aylaian, City Manager Ryan Stendell, Director of Community Development Tom Garcia, Director of Public Works Heather Horning, Senior Management Analyst Amy Lawrence, Management Analyst Monica O'Reilly, Management Specialist II III. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS MR. KIM FLOYD, Palm Desert, California, spoke for himself and on behalf of the Sierra Club. He directed the Committee's attention to Desert Community Energy, which is an entity that provides electricity to Palm Desert and other Coachella Valley cities. He said if there is anything a local entity could do to address climate change, it is community energy. He briefly described the benefits and opportunities for being part of Desert Community Energy. He noted that the City Council could use some counsel on this issue. MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE APRIL 22, 2019 IV. CONSENT CALENDAR A. MINUTES of the Citizens' Sustainability Committee meeting of January 28, 2019. Rec: Approve as presented. Upon a motion by Member O'Donnell, second by Member Blackburn, and an 8-0 vote of the Citizens' Sustainability Committee, the Consent Calendar was approved as presented (AYES: Blackburn, Gatons, Guinaw, Henderson, Heuring, O'Donnell, Robertson, and Trubee; NOES: None; ABSENT: Edwards, Gritters, and Raya). V. CONSENT ITEMS HELD OVER None VI. NEW BUSINESS A. REQUEST FOR CONSIDERATION of a recommendation to the City Council for an electric vehicle charging station project. Management Analyst Amy Lawrence stated that a staff report was included with the agenda and offered to answer any questions. The Committee asked if the charging stations are additional stations at the proposed location, and are they frequently used. Project Manager Emily Roethler responded that currently there are five frequently used Level 2 stations. She noted that the proposed stations would need to be located on City -owned property to receive a grant for the stations. Member Berlinda Blackburn inquired if the proposed charging stations are at no cost to the City. Ms. Roethler said that the grant is for $140,000, and the City is required to match 25 percent ($70,000), which the $70,000 is available under the AB 2766 fund. She mentioned proposed stations consist of two new fast chargers and one Level 2 charger. Member Dennis Guinaw inquired if $140,000 is the typical cost for three chargers. Ms. Roethler said she looked at the cost of the other chargers installed and $140,000 seemed to be the typical cost. Member Guinaw asked if it is possible for the El Paseo courtesy cart to pick up someone that is charging their vehicle and take them to El Paseo to spend money. Director of Community Development Ryan Stendell responded that in the future, the City would desire for San Pablo Avenue to be an extension for the courtesy cart after the San Pablo improvements. 2 GAPlanning\Monica OReilly\Sustainability Committee\2019\Minutes\4-22-19 min.docx MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE APRIL 22, 2019 Chair Gatons asked if residents have to pay to use the stations. He also asked how people know the location of the stations. Ms. Roethler replied residents do not pay for using City -owned charging stations. However, there is one existing station that costs a resident to use because a different group maintains the station. The City would use ChargePoint's existing network and app to promote the locations of charging stations throughout Palm Desert. Staff noted that other charging stations in Palm Desert are at the Parkview building, Desert Crossings, Walmart Center, Westfield, College of the Desert, University of California Riverside (UCR), and behind the Apple store and Elephant Bar building. The parking lot to the north of City Hall would have the most charging stations. She did not know the statistics of how many employees or the public use the chargers near City Hall. Member Evan Trubee asked what AB 2766 is. Ms. Lawrence responded that it is a Subvention Fund Program, which are fees collected by the Department of Motor Vehicles. A portion of the fees go to local governments to fund projects such as charging stations. Therefore, the City would not use the General Fund to pay for the proposed charging stations. Member Guinaw moved to, by Minute Motion, recommend to the City Council to approve the electric vehicle charging station project. The motion was seconded by Member Robertson and carried by an 8-0 vote (AYES: Blackburn, Gatons, Guinaw, Henderson, Heuring, O'Donnell, Robertson, and Trubee; NOES: None; ABSENT: Edwards, Gritters, and Raya). B. PRESENTATION on public education and community outreach by Burrtec Waste and Recycling Services. Mr. Mike Veto, Burrtec Waste & Recycling Services (Burrtec), introduced Frank Orlett and Robert Rios from Burrtec. Mr. Veto provided the Committee with a folder that contained materials to educate the public about what they do, recycling, and other programs. He briefly described information on each flyer in the folder. He mentioned that Burrtec is going to create stickers to place inside the gray recycling containers to help identify what could and could not be recycled. He also mentioned that they speak at schools, donate compost, hold shredding events, and soon residents would be able to access their accounts online. Chair Gatons thought that throwing plastic bags in a plastic bag could be recycled. Mr. Veto said you could no longer recycle plastic bags in a plastic bag. Senior Management Analyst Heather Horning stated that staff is working on re - advertising and promoting plastic bag drop-off at some grocery stores for disposal. Chair Gatons commented it is confusing since the plastic bags have the recycling symbol on the bags. 3 GAPlanningWonica OReilly\Sustainability Committee\2019\Minutes\4-22-19 min.docx MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE APRIL 22, 2019 Ms. Horning understood how it could be confusing and said they are working on a program that people could access through -a website. She explained a person would be able to type in any item and find out how the item can be recycled. The website would show drop-off locations or if the item could be left curbside. Information would be available at www.r)almdesertrecvcles.com. She noted that the website is going to take another two to three weeks to finalize. Mr. Veto added that it is taking them longer to sort through recycling and by the end of the year China is not going to accept any recycling. Chair Gatons commented there is also confusion with recycling Styrofoam. Ms. Horning replied that only the big block Styrofoam is recyclable, for example, television or computer packaging. Member David O'Donnell asked if someone changes container sizes, is the rate for waste services reflected in the property tax roll or is there a flat rate. Mr. Veto answered that once the property tax roll is submitted Burrtec cannot make any changes. However, they could calculate the difference and process a check for the difference. Member Trubee commented that he is a residential and commercial customer. He inquired if commercial services could be paid through the property taxes. Mr. Veto replied no because commercial services have too many changes throughout the year. He noted that when commercial bins are contaminated, Burrtec would contact the customer and ask them to remove the item. The customer would need to remove the item from the bin and dispose of it appropriately. He informed the Committee of AB 1826, which sets forth statewide mandatory commercial organic waste recycling. Burrtec is meeting with restaurant employees to inform them of AB 1826. He said there would be a new bill, which would require residents to have a food waste program too. Councilmember Gina Nestande asked Mr. Veto if he would talk about the new bill. Mr. Veto said he would come back to a future meeting and talk about the new bill. He invited the Committee to tour their compost facility in Coachella and the Material Recovery Facility (MRF) in Fontana. Member Blackburn inquired if she could throw fruits and vegetables into the green bin. Mr. Veto replied no. Eventually, residents will be able to throw organics into the green bin. Once programs are in place, Burrtec needs to figure out where organic waste would go. Member Blackburn asked if Burrtec had any plans to implement a waste energy program using the organics. She said there are wastewater treatment facilities that 4 GAPlanning\Monica OReilly\Sustainability Committee\2019\Minutes\4-22.19 min.docx MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE APRIL 22, 2019 take fat oils, grease, and some food organics. The material is injected into the digesters to create some type of gas. Mr. Orlett gave a brief description of the anaerobic digestion process, which produces material that still needs to be managed. Member O'Donnell asked how much green waste could a person drop off at Burrtec's substation. Mr. Veto could not recall how much; however, he could find out. He noted that Burrtec does not allow gardeners to drop off green waste at the substation, only residents. Chair Gatons stated that he liked receiving a newsletter when it was included with the Burrtec statements. He said having a section in the BrightSide newsletter about recycling is great. While in San Diego, he noticed the garbage trucks had placards on the side of the truck about recycling, which is another form of advertisement and the education process. Ms. Horning mentioned that she spoke with the staff who handles the BrightSide newsletter, and they are acceptable to having a regular insert about recycling. She said staff could provide a demonstration of the website at a future meeting. Mr. Veto thanked the Committee for their time C. DISCUSSION on a plastic awareness campaign Ms. Lawrence said she and Ms. Horning met to discuss ideas for a plastic awareness campaign. Ms. Horning gave the Committee a copy of a flyer about the recycling of plastics. She informed the Committee that she planned to include the information on the website and in the BrightSide newsletter. Mr. Rios commented that the recycling of plastics such as plastics used for dry cleaning, paper towels, water, etc. discontinued in 2013. He briefly listed plastic items that are recyclable and items that are not. Councilmember Nestande clarified that China and other Asian countries are no longer accepting plastics and that Burrtec is now trying to reach out to the manufacturers to see if they would take the recycled plastic. Mr. Rios responded that they are reaching out to the manufacturers to help Burrtec take those plastics and change what they are doing. Chair Gatons referred to a new article he read in the Los Angeles Times that it is cheaper for manufacturers to make new plastic versus recycling. 5 GAPlanning\Monica OReilly\Sustainability Committee\2019\Minutes\422-19 min.docx MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE APRIL 22, 2019 Mr. Rios said China and other Asian countries are accepting some materials. However, there are strict standards. However, if one container is contaminated, they reject all containers. Vice -Chair Greg Gritters asked what is happening to the plastics that are recycled separately. Ms. Horning responded that there are people who buy the plastic, which is separate from Burrtec and a separate program. She did not know who the buyers are or to whom they are selling the plastic, but she could look into it. Member Blackburn asked if Burrtec has collaborated with CarbonLite Industries in Riverside. Mr. Rios replied yes. CarbonLite purchases the PET bottles (translucent soda bottles) from Burrtec. They also work with another company from the Los Angeles area. Mr. Floyd addressed the Committee and asked Burrtec to come up with ideas to reduce the amount of trash generated in Palm Desert. Mr. Veto commented that there are many basic and simple ideas such as water bottles. A person does not need to go to Costco to buy a 42-pack of water bottles. People need to use reusable water bottles and straws. Chair Gatons referred to Page 8 of the Sustainability Plan, Section 1989. He said that four years ago the City diverted 72 percent of its waste. He is curious to see how the City could increase the percentage even further. He asked Burrtec if it is critical to take off the lids. Mr. Veto replied no. He commented that it is important to start educating youth so they understand recycling when they grow up. The youth could educate their parents. Ms. Lawrence mentioned the Youth Committee is going to Lincoln Elementary School for a sustainability party to educate children in the after school program. Chair Gatons said there are many bottles and cans thrown in the gas station trashcans and he doubted the gas station employees are sorting the trash. He asked if the City should encourage a recycling bin at gas stations. Ms. Horning communicated that the City has a recycling consultant who visits businesses about recycling. She said the City could focus on revisiting and encouraging businesses about comments made by the Committee. Ms. Lawrence provided the Committee with a reusable bag and straw and noted that staff would be giving these items out at City events. They are also looking at ordering sporks. All items would be branded with www.Dalmdesertrecvcles.com. Lastly, she gave the Committee a copy of an ordinance done by the City of Berkley about single - use foodware and litter reduction. 6 GAPlanning\Monica OReilly\Sustainability Committee\2019\Minutes\422-19 min.docx MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE APRIL 22, 2019 D. REVIEW of Palm Desert's Environmental Sustainability Plan. Chair Gatons said the last update was four years ago. He asked if the plan is on schedule for the five-year plan. Mr. Stendell believed that was the Committee's intent and the Committee asked for the plan to be added to the agenda to start the process. He suggested the Committee look at the goals and think about where the City is going in the future. Chair Gatons recommended updating the photo on the front page of the plan. Vice -Chair Gritters noted that the plan has many good goals and policies. He pointed out that the plan did not have much about waste management. He felt it was important to recognize that priorities change and it is a good idea to reset the priorities. Member Guinaw said he focused on the Materials Management section. He suggested looking at the section with more depth, then go through each section of the plan. Chair Gatons commented that he enjoyed the figures provided by SunLine approximately five years ago. He would like to see figures on how many young adults are using the bus services. Vice -Chair Gritters liked Member Guinaw's suggestion of reviewing one section at a time. Mr. Stendell suggested that staff provide a report on the Top 20 list and discuss Materials Management then review a section at each upcoming meeting. Vice -Chair Gritters felt that it is always great to celebrate achievements. Therefore, it would be great to see what achievement there has been, acknowledge that things change, adapt, and fine-tune the City's priorities going forward. From a water management standpoint, he would like to know how much progress was made. He knows that the Coachella Valley Water District (CVWD) has done a lot in reducing the water budgets for people to force them to use less water. He said there might be new technology out there that the City could collaborate with CVWD to promote. Member Vincent Heuring commented that when there is leaking pipes, water goes down into the ground and people do not know there is a leak until they get their water bill. He mentioned that his church (St. Margaret's) is using 400,000 gallons of water a month. Member Blackburn asked for clarification on urban forestry in the City of Palm Desert. Mr. Stendell defined urban forestry as the City's urban canopy and tree footprint. He said if there was a choice between carports or a tree to provide shading, a tree would keep the temperature down. Member Blackburn asked if the City has conducted an updated inventory of trees. 7 GAPlanning\Monica OReilly\Sustainability Committee\2019\Minutes\4-22-19 min.docx MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE APRIL 22, 2019 Mr. Stendell responded he did not remember when the City did the last inventory. He said the City took a GIS inventory of every single tree in the public right-of-way and on City -owned property. He did not know if the City has kept the data updated. He noted that the City does not have data on private facilities. For new development, Member Blackburn asked if there is a City ordinance that states how many trees per square footage. Mr. Stendell replied yes. He explained the number of trees is determined by the parking ratio and context of the development. Vice -Chair Gritters asked staff to remind him about the outcome of the parking ratio due to the heat island effect. Mr. Stendell responded that the Committee recommended changes to the ordinance, which were implemented. At one point, the City required too many parking spaces. Now the City is allowing developers to develop buildings in parking lot areas. He mentioned a perfect example is the Walmart on the corner of Fred Waring Drive and Highway 111. There is a new building being developed in an area that used to be parking spaces. Member Trubee commented that the Coachella Valley ranks low in air quality and wondered if the Committee has discussed leaf blowers. Vice -Chair Gritters answered that particulate matter is the issue and not carbon monoxide (CO) or the gas. He believed the problem with the Coachella Valley air quality is dust and particulates. Councilmember Nestande wished the leaf blowers could have bags. Mr. Stendell reiterated that for the next meeting staff would prepare an update on the Top 20 and focus on the Materials Management section of the plan. VII. CONTINUED BUSINESS None Vill. OLD BUSINESS None IX. REPORTS AND REMARKS A. Staff 1. SCAQMD Commercial Electric Lawn and Garden Equipment Incentive and Exchange Program. 0 GAPlanning\Monica OReilly\Sustainability Comm1ttee\2019\Minutes\4.22-19 min.docx MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE APRIL 22, 2019 Ms. Lawrence circulated a flyer about the Lawn & Garden Equipment & Exchange Program as an informational item. She shared that she found two other programs: 1) a Residential EV Charging Incentive Pilot Program that will provide up to $250 for installing a residential Level 2 charger, and 2) a Replace Your Ride Program. A person is eligible to receive up to $9,500 if you replace an older car, high - polluting vehicle, upgrade to a hybrid or electric vehicle, or get vouchers for rideshare or public transit passes. B. Committee Members Chair Gatons commented that in his non -gated community they are not allowed to use leaf blowers early in the morning. However, on the other side of the wall City landscape contractors start at 5:30 a.m. He encouraged the City Council look at the hours because it is unique when he is lying in bed and could hear the landscapers on the other side of the wall. Mr. Floyd interjected that the City of Palm Springs passed an ordinance outlawing gas landscape equipment and replacing with an electric. Member Trubee asked how successful is the SCAQMD Commercial Electric Lawn and Garden Equipment Incentive and Exchange Program. Ms. Lawrence responded that she received the information and shared it with the City's Landscape Division, and they have not noted how successful the program is. Director of Public Works Tom Garcia disclosed while he was in Palm Springs, the funds were exhausted in approximately two weeks. Vice -Chair Gritters stated there are three issues with blowers: 1) noise, 2) combustion, and 3) dust and particulates. He stated that electric blowers do not help mitigate dust. He pointed out that creating new rules and regulations, such as outlawing gas - powered blowers has no significant impact on air quality and places an unfair cost burden on the gardeners who must purchase new expensive equipment that is not as efficient. Mr. Stendell said staff would look into getting statistics from the SCAQMD programs. Member Blackburn suggested that the City consider Earth Day 2020 and the City consider participating by awareness. She noted the following website is a good resource, www.earthday.orq. Member Henderson asked why the Citizens' Sustainability Committee only meets quarterly and should meetings change to meet more frequently. Mr. Stendell responded that over the years the City has had to consolidate and compact staff positions. Besides the Sustainability Committee, Ms. Lawrence is also in charge of the Art in Public Places Program and the Youth Committee. Unfortunately, he stated that it has to do with the allocation of resources caused by the recession and City funding. 9 GAPlanningWonica OReilly\Sustainability Committee\2019\Minutes\4-22-19 min.docx MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE APRIL 22, 2019 Member Henderson inquired if the Committee communicates in between meetings to talk about the ideas discussed during the meeting. Chair Gatons replied that communication usually comes from the City. Ms. Lawrence added that communication between committee members is discouraged due to the Brown Act requirements. Member Robertson and Member Trubee commented that they look forward to being on the Committee. Chair Gatons communicated that he lives off Hovley Lane West. He said when he calls the City to report meters are leaking water, they tell him to call CVWD and CVWD tells him to call the City. The area is in a landscape district that is taken care of by a contractor hired by the City. Mr. Stendell requested that Chair Gatons send him or Ms. Lawrence a message about a leak, and staff would figure out who is supposed to take care of the meter. X. ADJOURNMENT With Committee concurrence, Vice -Chair Gritters adjourned the meeting at 4:40 p.m. Monica O'Reilly, Recording Secr to 10 GAPlanning\Monica OReilly\Sustainability Committee\2019\Minutes\4-22-19 min.docx