March 15, 2023 Monthly Meeting Minutes

Written By Ambler EAC

Link to original document

Attendees 

Members: Nancy Roecker-Coates, Will Nassau, Wes Pipitone, Hannah Lloyd, Kirsten Puskar

Visitors: Dennis Rowan, Judy Baigis, Matt Blair, Rick Denzien

 Quorum Met


  • Call to Order / Introductions 


  • Presentation: None 


  • Ways to Get Involved 

    1. Come to the Earth Fest steering committee meetings. 

      1. All dates on EAC website 

      2. Next Meeting is March 26 at 7pm in Ambler Borough Hall 

    2. Upper Moreland Earth Day Fair 

      1. Saturday April 22, 10am-2pm at Mason Mill Park

        1. 3500 Masons Mill Road Willow Grove PA 19090

        2. Conact: Constantine Woznyk - causticlamb@verizon.net 

      2. Is anyone in the EAC available and willing to table? 


  • Formal approval of minutes for February 

    1. All motion to approve

    2. Quorum met 


  • EAC Updates 

    1. Wes & Hannah tabled at Upper Dublin's Environmental Open House hosted by the Upper Dublin EPAB and taking place at the Upper Dublin Public Library on March 4

      1. Brief overview on the event.

        1. Spoke to some potential vendors for Earth Fest

        2. All indoor, in the library 

        3. The event had an hour of presentations  

    2. Vote on whether to send letter of support to borough council: Community Choice Aggregation for PA (CCA for PA)

      1. Memo to Borough Council Link

      2. Recommendation Draft Link

      3. Draft Memorandum Link

      4. Dennis Rowan recommended to send to Borough Council sooner than later so there there is time to look over the memorandum, which is non binding, and begin research into the necessary information in order to actually vote to have the CCA by Summer to Early Fall 

        1. This isn’t a yes vote, it’s giving permission to start exploring how we could make this work and what the details would be.

      5. CCA meets with PECO and other alternative energy suppliers 

      6. At the end of the contract there would be solicitor time, which is at cost to the borough 

      7. Renewable energy that is also less expensive since it is a group wholesale price - but residents and landlords can still opt out if they want to

      8. The borough doesn’t pay CCA for PA, the suppliers pay 3 mills to Jule for this and that is how they make their money 

      9. Jule is the advisor, Council picks who they want to bid on, as it is Amblers CCA for PA

      10.  Jule can also advise residents on how to take advantage of tax deductions for things such as electrification and weatherization that make your residence more environmentally sound 

      11. suggestion: Focus on outreach about this first so that there is awareness and chances to answer questions before deciding whether or not to send it to all of the council as a formal letter. 

      12. Public Comment: should it be placed on Borough Councils agenda? 

      13. Note: this is not just clean energy for borough buildings, it is for all within the borough including residents

      14. Public question: what have been common oppositions from other Boroughs? 

        1. ‘Have a lot on their plate right now’

        2. Wrongly thinking there is an initial yes / no commitment 

        3. Confusion over who controls energy  

      15. Decision made: The EAC will move forward with outreach first so that there is awareness and chances to answer questions before deciding whether to send it to all of the council as a formal letter. “.  Wes


  • Committee Chairs No new updates from Education and Outreach Committee, Open Space Committee or Creek Monitoring on Rose-Valley Creek. 


  • Education and Outreach Committee ABSENT


  • Treasurer (Wes)

    1. Please be sure to add any and all EAC expenses to the reimbursement sheet.

    2. Earthfest Advertising for Month of April at Ambler Theater - $280. Discounted from a business rate of $425 a month. 

      1. We would only do the month of April 

      2. Wes- please find out deadline 

      3. 30 second runs - 3X before every film 

      4. All EAC members voted yes to move forward with this 

    3. One confirmed Sponsor for Earth Fest

      1. PlumbPro 

    4. Bartlett Tree is considering sponsorship for Earth Fest 

    5. Earth Fest stage:

      1. For a company to come out and install this it is 1100

        1. This is the minimum

        2. Wes- ask if this includes insurance

        3. Wes- is this refundable if it rains us out both days?

      2. For rental only - 300 to do it yourself

        1. Wes - contact Borough Management about any possible legality issues 


  • Keep Ambler Beautiful Committee (Nancy) 

    1. Cell phone Recycling Program

      1. At the Wissahickon and Blue Bell Libraries

      2. These are collected and donated to Laurel House who recycles these and uses the funds for domestic violence victims. 

    2. Plastics Ordinance education & Updates

      1. Plastic bag ban activated on March 1

        1. 3 requests received from businesses to get a waiver to use up supplies on hand up and they gave dates that they believe they would be able to deplete the supplies by

        2. 1 business applied for above and also a financial hardship waiver - was told that they would need to show proof 

        3. All 3 use up waivers were allowed for - given the stipulation that you should be sure to plan for the next roll out (styrofoam). There is a year to adjust and plan accordingly 

        4. The rest of the plastic bag ban has been going well and has been generally well received 

      2. In a year (March 1 2024), polystyrene will be banned. 

      3. Eventually, straws will be only on request. 

      4. Education started, fliers and fact sheets available on Borough website. 


  • Shade Trees Committee (In Need of Champion)

    1. Possible volunteer interest in tree plantings

      1. No new updates

    2. Public comment: neighbors have been looking to order trees and wondering about the program 

      1. Even if we just do tree ordering and no planting, would still need a volunteer to do the admin work of ordering and delivering the trees 


  • Climate Action Committee (Wes)

    1. CCA for PA is discussed above

    2. RF100 meeting March 27, 2023 Zoom 

      1. When the link is available Nancy will share this

        1. Wes is interested in attending

  • New business

    1. Bird Town: Updates on community interest (?)

  • Redmond Brubaker is interested. 

    1. Tom Voter is following up. 

  • Redmond had two other people he thought would be interested. 

    1. Tom Voter is reaching out to them.

  • If all three above people are interested, we would have the three seats filled required to start a Bird Town 

  • Public comments 

    1. Cigarette Butts: have we noticed any decline? There has been a lot noticed around developments and homes getting work done. 

      1. It doesn’t seem like the attitude behind throwing out cigarettes as litter has changed as much. 

      2. Should the EAC advise members of the public that if they are picking up litter on the street side to practice safety measures? 

    2. Is the Borough tracking progress ready for 100? 

      1. No updates or progress 

      2. EAC survey about how many people have renewable energy?

        1. At Earth Fest, online on the website or a social media poll?

        2. Highlight businesses that are doing it to bring positive media attention. 

  • Updates from Borough Council: 

    1. See above under Single Use Plastic ban reception and waives 

  • Closing Thoughts 

  • There are two open seats on the EAC for membership.

  • Next meeting: Wednesday April 19th, 2023 at 7:00pm 

    1. Vote to make this meeting an additional Earth Fest Meeting

      1. All vote yes 

  • Adjournment

Ambler EAC
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