Minutes - 20040131 - Laserfiche WebLink

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thanked the County Commissioners for being among the most progressive and capable county governments an the environment. He thanked the staff also. Richard Whisnant made reference to the water issue and said that there is a series of recommendations. There is one action item that came out of the drought in 1998-2000. They would like the County Commissioners to encourage OWASA and the University to continue the course in reclamation and saving potable water supplies. Also, regarding groundwater contamination, there is no one responsible in the County for monitoring what happens to incidences of groundwater contamination. They would like the County Commissioners to consider a staff position at the County level to monitor groundwater. He spoke about a staff person in Mecklenburg County that they were able to visit. Chair Jacobs asked if they have worked with the Board of Health on the groundwater issue. Richard Whisnant said that they talked in the report about the need for this position to connect with the BOH. They have not worked directly with the BOH. Chair Jacobs said that when he was on the BOH, there were some of these same concerns. There might be an opportunity for collaboration. Chair Jacobs said that one of the goals for County government is to be environmentally responsible. This might be something that the Commission for the Environment could work on. Commissioner Halkiotis asked about the person in Mecklenburg County and which division of the county she works under. Richard Whisnant said that she works in a generalized division. She talked about the importance of connecting with the health side of the county. She is not underneath this section. Commissioner Gordan asked Jahn Link about following up on this. Jahn Link said that the Board is encouraged to include the water specialist. Donna Dean said that this has already been included in the new positions for the budget. Chair Jacobs asked the Commission for the Environment to make a presentation to the BOH. Commissioner Gordon agreed. She said that this position would be non-regulatory and the BOH is regulatory. She said that she hopes that the Board does seriously consider adding this position so this important work can be accomplished. Commissioner Brawn said that the Commission far the Environment could be very effective if it understood what the County has already done ar is in motion to do and also looked at the spectrum of impacts as recommendations are made. Richard Whisnant said that some of the things that were done by the Board that helped them in the recommendations included the U. S. Geological Survey database. There is no one responsible to maintain the information and take it forward. They felt that the next step was to get someone to keep the work alive. Commissioner Brown said that she thought that soil and water conservation was holding all of this data. Commissioner Halkiotis said that there were other agencies that did not want the Commission for the Environment. He is glad he voted to put the Commission for the Environment in place. Chair Jacobs said that the Triangle J is trying to start an Air Quality Committee. He suggested that Richard Whisnant help in this effort. John Link said that if the Board of County Commissioners were to move forward with this position, then all of the work that was done by the U. S. Geological Survey would be used to help the person. Commissioner Gordan said that the most important item would be the program that builds on the USGS data. Advisory Board on Aging: Florence Soltys said that she was presenting because Chair of the Advisory Board on Aging, Jack Chestnut, was ill. She said that there are two major goals of the Master Aging Plan. One is to develop the non-profit agency by July 1, 2004. The other goal is to get the