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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2023-08-08-SLC-minSustainable Lexington Committee Minutes of Meeting of August 8, 2023 A meeting of the Sustainable Lexington Committee (SLC) was held by Zoom conference. A quorum of at least six was present throughout. Members Present: Paul Chernick, Lin Jensen, Andy Joynt, Rick Reibstein, Todd Rhodes (vice-chair), Dan Voss, Charlie Wyman Members Absent: Cindy Arens (chair), Celis Brisbin Staff Present: Maggie Peard Other Attendees: Jill Hai (Select Board), Charles Hornig, Gerry Yurkevich, Eileen Coleman The meeting was called to order at 6:05 pm. Todd referenced the opening statement requested by the Town Clerk and all members present responded that they could hear. Todd began by welcoming Jill as our new liaison from the Select Board. Discussion and Feedback on Draft Climate Action and Resilience Plan. Maggie reviewed the timeline and process for creating and finalizing the draft plan. KLA’s contract ends on August 31 and the draft will be finalized by then, with presentation to the Select Board for adoption sometime this fall. She explained that in addition to what’s in the draft, the working group and KLA have prepared “implementation blueprints” for 12 of the proposed actions; these will be incorporated in an appendix to come later. Maggie then opened it up to questions and comments, and considerable discussion followed. There was widespread agreement that the draft was well done, succinct, readable, and attractively presented. Among the comments, suggestions and topics discussed: •importance of implementing the plan; •value of exhorting readers to engage; •value of clarifying dual strategy of electrification and greening the grid; •need for clarity on who is being asked to do what; •printed handouts for residents; •reference dates for data; •clarity in GHG inventory about what is and is not included (air travel, Hanscom emissions, embodied carbon in goods consumed, etc.) (framework of Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions might be helpful); .1 Sustainable Lexington Committee Minutes of August 8, 2023 •health benefits of reducing carbon emissions; •plan to obsolete the Sustainable Action Plan and add the Getting to Net Zero planned actions to an appendix of the CAP with adoption of the CAP; •guidance/identification of priorities; •concern that references to Google Rooftop data presents an unrealistic expectation for the implementation of rooftop solar: •how the plan will be incorporated into the Town’s routine of planning and priority setting; •a role for the Sustainable Lexington Committee and Maggie in offering the Select Board suggestions for a process for implementation; •request to reference Hanscom expansion; •anticipated schedule for updating; and •concern that proposed actions aren’t sufficient to meet targets. Maggie thanked all for their comments, referenced the public forum on Thursday, August 10, and asked everyone to submit any further comments in writing by the 18th. Next Meeting: The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Sustainable Lexington Committee will be held at 6 pm on August 22, 2023. The committee voted to adjourn at 7:23 pm. Respectfully submitted, Charlie Wyman .2