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Fall Creek Watershed Committee Minutes
August 23, 2000
4-H Acres
Submitted by: Mary Hegarty
Present: Phil Koons, Yvette Deboer, Sharon Anderson, Deb
Grantham (Dryden Town Board), Betty Wilson, Steve Penningroth, Roxy
Johnston (Water Resources Council), Erin Riddle (Sierra Club), Mary
Hegarty
Handouts: Sharon passed out permit for collecting invertebrates
and monitoring and a resolution from Cayuga Lake Watershed Network.
Steve passed out grant proposal for money to fund monitoring.
Agenda
Steve, Yvette and Kate Hackett of Tompkins Co. planning Dept worked
on the grant together. Steve pointed out that the fiscal agent is
Cayuga Nature Center (CNC) and said this organization is a very
good contact and especially supportive was Beth Livers of the CNC.
Steve pointed out that originally CLWN was asked to fund it but
for various reasons declined. One such reason being that CLWN had
already submitted a grant to WAG and did not want their name on
2 proposals for fear of perhaps lessening their chances of getting
either. CLWN is very interested in helping FCWC find other ways
to find money as well as very interested in collaborating and working
together with FCWC.
Discussion ensued as to what are we monitoring for and it is important
to confer with Kate Hackett of Tompkins Co, DEC, municipalities,
and citizens and volunteer monitors to decide what is most important
to monitor for. Steve pointed out that FCWC eventually should be
incorporated so we can phase out our formal ties with Cooperative
Extension. This is one of the purposes of this grant -- to get money
to stand on our own as a non-profit. It was also discussed that
it is very important that we share data with various users, town,
county, state, citizens, etc. Eventually all stakeholders around
the Cayuga Lake Watershed can use our monitoring model. Overall
Steve and Yvette said the whole grant writing process was a good
process and much was learned.
Steve explained that the grant they wrote will be submitted to
other funding sources and that he would like members of the committee
to read through the proposal he passed out and suggest any changes
at the next meeting and then to approve it to be submitted to other
funding sources at the next meeting as well.
Steve said the Lab he is setting up as a non-profit, which groups
like the FCWC and individuals can use, he expects to have up and
running this Fall.
Sharon informed the group that there are DEC funds available for
targeted topics and one topic is stream clean up. The Tompkins County
Water Resources Council (WRC) has asked FCWC to consider submitting
a grant with Trout Unlimited since we worked with them last spring
on their annual Fall Creek cleanup. Everyone liked the idea and
agreed to go ahead and submit a proposal. Phil will take the idea
to Trout Unlimited. The proposal is due Sept. 18th for the WRC to
review. Sharon and Betty agreed to write the proposal and Yvette
and Deb volunteered to review it. Some groups that people suggested
to contact who could work with the clean up were Sierra Club, Birding
group in Dryden (who have done a clean up in the past), the lake
Assoc. at Como Lake, the Cayuga Lake Watershed Network (CLWN), and
any others people & groups we can think of. Yvette suggested
categorizing and taking data on the garbage collected as a way to
monitor roughly year to year how much garbage is out there. Deb
pointed out the importance to emphasize in the proposal that most
of the money would be used in Tompkins County but that involvement
from organizations such as Trout Unlimited would encourage across
municipality boundaries. The focus would be on the watershed boundaries
which cross municipal boundaries, and that this is good for cooperation,
and public participation. Deb said she would contact Ellen Harrison
of the Cornell Waste Management Institute for the clean up day.
Sharon explained the funding for FCWC. WRC previously committed
to 1 1/2 years of funding to FCWC and thus far we have gotten money
for the first year and need the money for the 2nd year. Roxy reported
that there will be a meeting of the Funds committee. of the WRC
to clarify the issue of the funds and to make a decision. The available
funds may be split with the youth water monitoring program and the
Caroline watershed group.
Suggested future workshop topics to help reach the wider Fall Creek
watershed audience-
Deb initiated conversation about doing outreach around a particular
interest. She noted that not everyone wants to monitor but just
want to know how, for example, they can the stop or lessen erosion
on their private property. The stream clean up may be one way to
involve such people who don’t want to monitor regularly but
want to be involved in someway. Roxy and all agreed that it would
be good to work together with the Caroline watershed committee and
perhaps the stream bank erosion would be one such issue to collaborate
on. Deb will get to FCWC the names of people she knows in Dryden
and beyond who have specific concerns about erosion on their private
property, so we can contact them for this particular workshop. It
was agreed that we should expand our focus, target education, and
collaborate with Caroline watershed on some specific workshops.
Mary noted that we have been doing target education with having
different speakers present at the first hour to hour and ½
of our already schedules mtgs. We could continue this as well as
schedule events separate from our business meetings. Betty questioned
if there is gov’t. help for homeowners to do such improvements
like erosion control. Steve will ask Pat Riedy if he would like
to come and give a talk about Virgil creek. Steve will report at
the Sept. mtg. his findings.
It was agreed that FCWC will meet the 1st Thursday of every month
from 7-9pm and Sharon will check the availability of 4-H Acres as
the meeting place for all the meetings this Fall unless a special
workshop is arranged and we decide to have the meeting elsewhere.
Erin of the Sierra Club reported on the progress of their campaign
to clean up the so. end of Cayuga Lake. What would it take to have
public swimming again at Stewart Park is the question posed by the
Sierra Club’s campaign.
Steve would like to see different monitoring people to get together.
Mary agreed to contact the Crump’s whom she met at the CLWN
table at the Ithaca Farmers Market, about their monitoring of the
south end of the lake and Steve suggested contacting Steve Effler
of the Upstate Freshwater Institute, and to contact Walter Huang
of Toxic Targeting company.
Mary passed out the 2 articles from the Ithaca Times about the
lead found at the old Ithaca gun factory. She also passed out CLWN
brochures and membership envelopes. Betty announced CLWN Lakefest
2000 on Aug 27, from 1-5 at Cayuga Lake State Park. Erin announced
Sierra Club’s next meeting is Aug 29th, Tues., 7:15pm at the
Tompkins Transit Center on Willow Ave. Sharon passed out a copy
of the DEC collection license for macroinvertebrates and a portion
of the CLWN Web page that explains the affiliation of FCWC to CLWN.
So far what’s on the Agenda for next meeting
- Discuss mission statement
- PA. Monitoring tables and guide.
- Reports back from Potential users (objectives and list of users
in June’s minutes)
- Feedback to Steve on grant proposal
We ran out of time at this meeting to discuss this topic so please
review your PA guide and come to next meeting prepared to discuss
Table 1A, 1B,1C,1D. Since we did not discuss this topic at this
meeting the following is copied from July 20th minutes just to remind
members where we are at and what needs to be done. Table 1A needs
to be worked on as a group. Phil will glean info. From the toxics
targeting reports and also speak with Jim Finnigan and work on table
1C. For table 1D (what is the most pressing water quality issue?),
a survey was distributed for the Cayuga Lake watershed plan. Roxy
will look into getting results from the Tompkins co. or if possible
by municipalities that are part of the Fall Creek Watershed, to
help with this section. Please see July 20th minutes for the notes
at the end that might help with this discussion.
SEPTEMBER 7TH, 2000, 7-9PM AT 4-H ACRES
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