Orange County NC Website
Attachment 1 <br />• Eisenhart asked how much of a role does cost play in the choice of products <br />used. Farmer said when using public funds price matters quite a lot. <br />• Gronback asked if Farmer uses a mixture of turf grass. Farmer said yes, <br />especially those that can outcompete the unwanted weeds. <br />• Stancil noted that many of the users of County fields — especially the Soccer.com <br />Center — demand high - quality fields that require special maintenance. He said <br />the center hosts many tournaments and college soccer showcase events. <br />• Bouma said he had performed a quick search for viable alternatives to 2 -4 -d, but <br />could not find anything suitable on line. <br />• Sassaman said he expects there is a fairly high level of safety and control for the <br />application of herbicides and pesticides on County sites by licensed staff. He <br />said he is more concerned about the use of these products by homeowners in <br />residential areas throughout the county. O'Connor and said she would like to see <br />more guidance targeted toward residential users of these chemicals. Stancil <br />noted that during the 2008 drought period the County held public meetings to <br />educate people about water conservation and the proper use of fertilizers. <br />• Becker cautioned that just because a product is EPA - approved and regulated <br />there may be alternatives that are better for the natural environment. O'Conner <br />agreed, but also noted that natural compost can also pollute streams. <br />• Gronback asked Farmer about the use of pre- emergent weed control products. <br />Farmer said he loves them because they often have a one -time application rate. <br />Bouma said he expects County staff would be welcome to a periodic review of its use of <br />herbicides and other chemicals, including the examination of alternatives. Farmer said <br />this discussion is helpful and timely because this is the time of year to identify product <br />needs for the coming year. <br />Bouma suggested the staff of DEAPR and AMS (Asset Management Services) meet <br />Periodically to discuss potential alternatives to some of the more caustic substances. <br />He said there are some non - profit organizations that monitor these issues and might <br />have some helpful suggestions. <br />CFE members thanked Davis, Farmer and Stancil for sharing this information. <br />V. Green Building Incentives – The CFE continued its discussion of potential incentives <br />for energy- efficient construction. Bouma provided an update on the Town of Chapel <br />Hill's early experience with the pilot commercial green building incentive in the Ephesus - <br />Fordham planning district. <br />Bouma reported that he had spoken with Jesse Freedman who, along with John <br />Richardson, had briefed the CFE on this program in April 2015. Bouma said the town <br />had only received three or four building permits for this district thus far, but only one of <br />those —an apartment building —is under construction. The town anticipates the <br />developer of that building will be applying for some kind of green building certification; <br />however it's unclear whether he would have done this regardless of the town's <br />incentives. Bouma explained that developers often choose to apply for such certification <br />as a marketing tool despite the high cost of applying and obtaining the certification. <br />2 <br />