Minutes 10-14-2014 Early Comm. for Environment

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do with its solid waste. He said the Durham transfer station should only be a short term solution, but there is no long term answer. Commissioner Pelissier said it is great to see how these summits and reports evolve with the times. She referred to recommendation #2 under air and energy and the collaboration with civic organizations, and she asked for specific suggestions for undertaking this. Commissioner Pelissier referred to recommendation #3 on the incentives for green building techniques. She asked if staff is aware of other places that have done this successfully. David Neal said there will be discussion of this later on the agenda. Commissioner Pelissier asked if there are there any priorities of the CfE that the Board of County Commissioners should prioritize to address first. Jan Sassaman said with regard to priorities, he would like to the CfE and the Board to jointly come up with priorities. Commissioner McKee said he is impressed by this report, and he commended the CfE for an excellent job. He referred to the first item regarding land resources and the 12 percent protection goal. He asked if this includes farmers in the voluntary agricultural districts and the conservation easements. He said 12 percent of the County is a huge portion of acreage, and he would like an opportunity to discuss why this percentage was chosen. Loren Hintz said the report 10 years ago set this number at 10 percent, and the County is already at 9 percent protected at one level or another. He said this is why 12 percent was chosen. He said there are a number of ways to protect these areas. He said you need to have corridors from one protected area to another, and many of these corridors are waterways. He said no one has the specifics for reaching this number, and it is just a dream now. Commissioner McKee said it is good to dream. He said the efforts of soil conservation personnel to educate the farming community have resulted in an exponential increase in farms enrolling in the voluntary agricultural district. Steve Niezgoda said the maps he is referring to are shown on pages 27 and 28. Chair Jacobs said he would like to see renewed support for the Lands Legacy program listed as a common goal. He said he would hope that this would be part of the bond package, and if so, that the CfE would take the lead in educating the public about why protected space and natural areas are important for Orange County. He said there have been no decisions yet about what would be on the proposed bond, and a committee will be put together to determine this. Chair Jacobs said Clerk to the Board Donna Baker was able to provide information on past bonds, which showed that schools received 59.2 percent of the vote; the bond for parks, open space and recreational facilities got 54.8 percent of the vote; the bond for senior centers got 54.2 percent; and affordable housing got 52.4 percent of the vote. He said parks and open spaces are typically the most popular bonds in the United States, and in Orange County, schools are the most popular bonds, and parks and open spaces are second. Chair Jacobs said a lot of the things the CfE is referring to are being worked on or discussed by the Board. He said interviews are ongoing for a sustainability coordinator for Orange County government, and that position will systemically address a lot of the issues that have been raised. He said someone has to take a leadership role, and he is pleased that the CfE is so dedicated. Commissioner porosin said the report is outstanding, but he would challenge everyone to take a broader view of what environmentalism is as it relates to the impact on social justice issues. He said these things are interrelated, and he would push for them to look at the impacts of these issues on vulnerable low wealth communities. He said the flooding that occurred last year had a clear disparate impact on the most vulnerable people in the