Minutes 04-13-2010 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Commissioner Gordon said that she liked the title Department of Environment and Parks because it is simple. She suggested not using abbreviations or initials when stating the department name. She would like any name that is picked to have Environment as the first name. Commissioner Pelissier said that she prefers Department of Environment and Parks because it is simple. She is hesitant to use Recreation since the towns have their own recreation departments. Chair Foushee said that she prefers Department of Environment, Parks and Recreation (DEPR) because the County is going through a process where the public is not sure what it is doing. She wants to be as clear as possible about what the County is offering and how people can access it. She would like to be clear that recreation is a priority. Commissioner Jacobs said that DEPR could also include an `A' for agriculture. He does not want agriculture to get lost in this. Commissioner Gordon said that she sees agriculture more as economic development, so she prefers Environment and Parks first, and Environment, Parks and Recreation second. A motion was made by Commissioner Hemminger, seconded by Commissioner Yuhasz to select Department of Environment, Parks, and Recreation. There was further discussion. Commissioner Hemminger accepted an amendment from Commissioner Jacobs to add "Agriculture" as the second word and select Department of Environment, Agriculture, Parks and Recreation. VOTE: Ayes, 5; Nay, 1 (Commissioner Gordon) Commissioner Nelson was not here. 3. Jordan Lake Partnership Update Dave Stancil invited Tom Davis, Water Resources Coordinator, to make a PowerPoint presentation. PowerPoint included only maps. The information is summarized below: The Jordan Lake Partnership (JLP) was formed in 2009 by several jurisdictions in the Triangle area with the main purpose of jointly planning for the sustainable future use of the water supply available in Jordan Lake. Attachment 1 lists the members involved in the JLP, including Orange County, as well as the objectives of this group. This partnership is committed to working together to access and use the region's water supply in a secure, sustainable manner. This is to be done through coordinated planning, system interconnectedness and through water conservation and efficiency measures. It is also an objective of the JLP to demonstrate that different local governments can work together to pursue a common goal — "to create environmentally sustainable, secure and mutually beneficial water supply strategies for Jordan Lake." The water stored in Jordan Lake, which is controlled by the North Carolina Division of Water Resources (DWR), is allocated to different "pools" for planning purposes: flood control storage, conservation storage, and sediment storage. Conservation storage represents approximately 6% of the total water present in the lake when the lake is full. Of this 6% pool, only 1/3 is available for water supply purposes; the remainder is committed to downstream flow augmentation to insure a minimum stream flow is maintained at Lillington, NC. Water that is removed from the lake for water supply purposes does not affect the amount of water that is reserved for downstream flow augmentation. Three rounds of Jordan Lake water supply allocations have been completed by DWR, with the first taking place in the late 1980s. At the conclusion of the third round of allocations, 63 million gallons per day (MGD) of the approximately 100 MGD available were allocated. Orange County has held a 1 MGD Level II allocation since 1988. Level I allocations are provided based on 20 year water need projections and when withdrawals are planned to begin within five years of obtaining an allocation. Level II allocations (Orange County currently has