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6 <br />Commissioner Pelissier said that she wants to see a forum on this issue. Some people <br />are interested in the control of applications and some are interested in the science of biosolids. <br />She said that the fundamental question is whether this is safe, that this should be viewed as a <br />"stage" process, and some of the questions on page 14 should be addressed. <br />Commissioner Gordon said that she has some of the same questions as Commissioner <br />Hemminger about what a forum could do. She wonders whether a task force would be a <br />better method to address this issue. She said that OWASA may be willing to have its sludge <br />tested, but it is Class A. There are others that have Class B, and this is most worrisome. She <br />would like to know if there is any way to do the study that the Health Department proposed and <br />if not, then why. <br />Commissioner Jacobs said that he thinks the County's interest in regulating is to have <br />biosolids not put in environmentally sensitive areas and water quality critical areas. He would <br />like to explore some minimum standards. He would like to start off with a forum, which could <br />yield a task force. We also suggested finding out what kind of research the state was doing, so <br />that there is no duplication. Rosemary Summers said that she may have more information <br />tomorrow after the Health Directors' meeting. <br />Commissioner Yuhasz said that they need to know how dangerous biosolids are and <br />holding a forum could answer this question. He suggested having the person doing the state <br />study come to the forum. <br />Craig Benedict said that the location of the application of biosolids is involved in the <br />permit process. He said that the critical area maps that are designated watersheds by the <br />Environmental Management Commission have different shapes around the reservoirs than <br />what the County has. He said that maybe a regulatory avenue is that the County's watersheds <br />are more critical because they are so limited with headwaters. This might be a way that the <br />County can influence where biosolids are applied. <br />Dave Stancil said that the Department of Agriculture study will be interesting. He said <br />that the language in the legislation reads a lot like someone has been thinking about the same <br />things that the County has been trying to address. He will be curious to see how quickly the <br />study is released. <br />Rosemary Summers made reference to the research study and said that there were <br />farmers that did agree to have researchers look at their farms. She said that $10,000 was not <br />enough for the sampling that would provide the scientific validity. <br />Commissioner Gordon said that the County Commissioners need to decide how much <br />money to spend on research. She said that she is not convinced that a forum is worth <br />$10,000. <br />Dave Stancil said that the recommendation was to authorize staff to modify the forum <br />concept and to find some ground that addresses the Board's desired outcomes. <br />Frank Clifton spoke again in support of the forum. <br />Chair Foushee said that there is general support to move forward with the forum as <br />outlined in the Manager's recommendation, with the reservations articulated. <br />The Board agreed. <br />2. NC Mountains-to-Sea Trail - Orancte County Segment <br />Dave Stancil said that this is a follow-up on the NC Mountains to Sea Trail -Orange <br />County Segment. <br />Rich Shaw made a PowerPoint presentation. <br />BACKGROUND: The North Carolina Mountains-to-Sea Trail (MST) is a planned 1,000 mile <br />trail that will traverse the state from the Great Smoky Mountains in western North Carolina to <br />