Orange County NC Website
20 <br /> Brennan Bouma, Sustainability Director, reviewed the information below: <br /> BACKGROUND: <br /> At its November 8, 2018 work session, the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) reviewed <br /> staff-generated options on how environmental impacts could be holistically addressed in the <br /> framework of an agenda abstract. The Board provided feedback and proposed that the <br /> Commission for the Environment (CFE), which looked at the subject several years ago, review <br /> and advise on the topic. <br /> The CFE began discussing this topic in December 2018. Over the course of two subsequent <br /> meetings in January and February, staff presented the two draft agenda abstract templates that <br /> had been discussed by the BOCC, as well as several examples of the way an agenda item <br /> would be presented using each of the templates under discussion. <br /> The CFE endorses this initiative and recommends the attached Draft Abstract Template <br /> (Attachment 1) and the environmental impact prompts provided in Attachment 2 which are <br /> based on the County's Environmental Responsibility Goal and summarize relevant County <br /> goals. The memorandum provided at Attachment 3 provides more details regarding the CFE's <br /> rationale. <br /> The Manager has evaluated the prior discussion by the BOCC, as well as the feedback from the <br /> CFE. In light of all the input received, the Manager recommends that the Board consider moving <br /> forward with the abstract template provided at Attachment 4 and the environmental impact <br /> prompts provided in Attachment 5 which are based on the County's Environmental <br /> Responsibility Goal. <br /> FINANCIAL IMPACT: The addition of a consideration of environmental impact will add staff <br /> time to the development of agenda abstracts. To the extent that a consideration of <br /> environmental impact could lead to efficiencies in the use of County facilities and vehicles, the <br /> lifecycle benefits of those efficiencies may lead to avoided costs. <br /> Brennan Bouma made the following PowerPoint presentation: <br /> Potential Addition of an Environmental Impact Section to Agenda Abstracts <br /> ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br /> April 16, 2019 <br /> Current Abstract Template <br /> Proposed Abstract Template <br /> Proposed Prompts Page <br /> Summary <br /> • The Manager's recommendation: <br /> o Is simple and easy for staff <br /> o Maintains the open response format <br /> o Provides for statements on environmental impacts <br /> o Helps avoid staff confusion and conflict with current required development <br /> impacts assessments <br />