Fall Creek Watershed Committee Minutes
June 7, 2001

Present: Sharon Anderson, Dave Bouldin, Joyce Gerbasi, Mary Hegarty, Phil Koons, Craig Schutt, Ken Woodman

Membership Recruitment

• Publicize meetings in local newspapers and Ithaca Journal
• Walk the neighborhoods and leave brochure
• Need a sub-committee to work up a brochure: Mary with layout support by John T. Mary will ask Yvette to work with her and make arrangements with John. She will draft something and put on the list serve.
• Send to community groups
• Announcements in Network News
• Encourage student involvement. Having some projects lined up. Such contacting a Cornell class on Watershed Management.
• Sharon is pursuing contact with the TC3 students that participated.
• A table at public events and occasions. Mary staffed a table at the Ithaca Farmers Market on a Sunday. Generally Sundays are more open then Sat.
• Put posters or brochures at WildWare, Farmers Market, Green Star Food Coop
• Soil and Water Conservation Newsletter
• Monitoring may want to have an additional focused PR campaign.
• Sharon will listen to Casey Stevens for a possible radio sport.

Water Monitoring

There is no further word on the RUSS unit for Fall Creek. A unit has gone into the lake. A guess presentation by Prof Harston or Cliff Callinan would be good in the fall.

Sharon will ask Roxy about a presentation on the Hydro Lab.

Future Meetings

July 5 meeting will be at 7:00 the Lake Como Inn – take Rt 90 east about one half way to the bottom of a long hill is Lake Como road. If get to Fall Creek, you have gone too far, turn north and go 3 miles, the lake will be on the right. Branch Road is a right turn off of Lake Como Road is on the West. "Branch Road" is between Lake Como Road and 41A. Ken had heard that Finger Lakes Land Trust (FLLT) is targeting property at inlet and outlet of Lake Como. Matt Young, is the only name he knows. Possible speaker at the July meeting? Sharon gave Ken some FLLT contact information to follow up on.

August no meeting

September 6. Virgil Dam at 6:30 Bring serious mosquito protection. Sharon will contact Henry Slater, Town Dryden Code enforcement for permission. Larry Carpenter, DPW who was quite involved with the dam, will actually do the tour.

Report on Fall Creek Tour

4 members (Yvette, Steve, Phil and Joyce) stopped at 4 locations:

Ithaca Falls water is more turbid, more silted up more than in the past.

Above Lake street bridge has good riffle for macro invert.

Beebe lake, water was quite cool. Beebe Lake looked clearer than below the falls. Above Beebe Lake at Forest home the water is very clear. What is happening in between?

Previously noticed a lot of run off where the north campus housing.

Storm drains come in right above the bridge at upper Beebe. Bouldin thinks there is also a significant amount that comes in below Beebe Lake.

Miscellaneous

Tompkins County funds nitrate levels. Jefferson County SWCD has done some work in this area. Craig will inquire. The water monitoring sub committee will discuss.

Lake Fest invited FCWC to have a booth. Mary will staff it, Sunday, August 26, 1:00-5:00.

Clean up – very well organized, OJ. Bagels and all the supplies were much appreciated.

Water Week – people were impressed with the work of the students. Lots of people picked up brochures the students had made. Very worthwhile.

submitted by Sharon Anderson