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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019-11-26-SLC-min Town of Lexington Sustainable Lexington Committee Minutes of Meeting of November 26, 2019 A meeting of the Sustainable Lexington Committee (SLC) was held in in the Hudson Room of Cary Hall. A quorum of seven was present. Members Present: Cindy Arens, Paul Chernick, Marcia Gens, Rick Reibstein, Todd Rhodes (vice-chair), Dan Voss (chair), Charlie Wyman Members Absent: Celis Brisbin Other Attendees: Mary Hutton, Archana Dayalu, Leah Rapperport (Solar Five), Mark Sandeen (for first item only) The meeting was called to order at 7:05 pm. I. Opportunity for the Town to install a Two-Way Vehicle to Grid EV Charging Station. Mark explained that Eversource has the highest peak demand charges in the country (which is a main reason we're putting storage in municipal and school buildings, as shaving the peak offers significant cost savings). Fermata Energy has developed a two-way electric charging station that allows a building to draw on the car battery to lower its peak. Fermata is a start-up, looking for case studies to help market its product, and has offered to give the town a charging station and to cover the monthly lease payment on a Nissan Leaf for two years. The town would be responsible for installation of the station and all other charges associated with the Nissan lease. The Town Manager is potentially interested and has asked someone to vet the proposal, and Mark asked that Sustainable Lexington do it. Some discussion followed about where the station might be installed (schools? DPW?); different buildings are on different utility rates, which has ramifications for savings. It was agreed that our energy folks (Dan, Paul) would review the details and we will discuss again (perhaps with a Fermata rep present) at the December meeting. 2. Minutes. The draft minutes of October 29, 2019, were approved as written. 3. New business: GWAC engagement with SL. Todd reported that Ricki Pappo has proposed some kind of a relationship between GWAC and Sustainable Lexington that encourages coordination and partnership on matters of mutual interest. Considerable discussion followed regarding what that relationship might look like, and any limitations that our role as a Selectmen's advisory committee places on any formal collaboration with others. Dan noted that Mark, when he served as chair, played an invaluable role in communicating with other groups (GWAC, Mothers Out Front,the League of Women Voters, etc.) and in bringing that information to committee discussions. Marcia agreed to discuss this more with Ricki, and it was agreed that we would welcome a GWAC member at our meetings. Sustainable Lexington Committee Minutes of November 26, 2019 4. Review outputs from First Friday (Nov 1) —League of Women Voters. Attendees agreed that it was a useful event, people were engaged, and the format worked well—lots of informal conversations and teaching moments took place at each sector display. Thanks to Cindy for compiling the additional ideas and votes people offered at the event, and to Todd for compiling the votes into a spreadsheet. It was agreed that we would post this to our website. Sector teams will weigh feedback from the event as they think about priorities for action. This led to a discussion about our reports to the Selectmen, and whether we should offer or encourage any articles for the annual Town Meeting in March. It was agreed that each sector team will consider feedback from the event, along with other information, and decide whether to propose any warrant articles for Town Meeting, and will share its conclusions prior to meeting again on Wed., December 11, to discuss possible warrant articles. 5. Update on meeting of the Energy/Building Sector Teams with Paul Gromer (Peregrine Energy) to initiate the update to the Net Zero analysis. Todd reported that he met the previous evening with Paul Gromer of Peregrine Energy, who has the contract do update the net zero inventory. Paul will do as much as he can with available data and then meet with the committee in January or February to report his progress and discuss what more might be useful to do. 6. Review of state legislative priorities. Charlie presented his and Rick's draft of a statement of legislative priorities that can be communicated to the Selectmen and which can also guide the committee when weighing future requests for recommendations on specific bills. He pointed out the division of priorities into first and second tiers, reflecting a desire to place an emphasis on measures that would result in economy-wide reductions in emissions. Some discussion followed about our lack of mastery of the details of every bill, and the preamble to the list of bills was modified accordingly, after which the statement was adopted by the committee. 7. New business (part 2): Toxics Use Reduction Task Force. Rick explained his concern about toxics in artificial turf and the lack of truly independent testing, and subsequent discussions about this with the Board of Health staff. This led him to think that an ongoing toxics task force would be useful that would include participation by both town staff and town residents with relevant expertise. After further discussion, it was voted to create a Toxics Use Reduction Task Force, chaired by Rick. Rick will put together a proposal to the Selectmen to endorse the task force's creation and approve town staff participation, which he will discuss with Joe and we will review at the Dec. 17 meeting. 8. Schedule meeting with the Energy Sector Team to plan for the solar canopy warrant article. It was agreed that the proposed amendment to the zoning by-law to remove restrictions on solar installations should be limited this year to canopies on commercial lots. The energy sector team (Dan/Paul/Celis) will consult with Joe. Discussion followed about the Historic Districts Commission, as many of the parking lots affected are in the HDC's jurisdiction. It was 2. Sustainable Lexington Committee Minutes of November 26, 2019 noted that some conversation with the HDC prior to Town Meeting would be prudent to obtain their support or at least lack of objection. 9. Guests. Ms. Dayalu had departed (Dan explained why she had attended, and will follow up with her). Ms. Rapperport introduced herself and described Solar Five, the company she works for, and their interest in Sustainable Lexington's work. She shared a couple of thoughts about the solar canopies issue, and offered that an opportunity for green businesses to meet and share their ideas would be useful, especially if done in collaboration with the Chamber of Commerce. Ms. Hutton explained that she was there on behalf of Mothers Out Front and would be attending regularly, and was welcomed. Next Meetings: The next meetings of the Sustainable Lexington Committee will be on Wednesday, December 11 and Tuesday, December 17, both at 7 pm. The meeting was adjourned at 9:35 pm. Respectfully submitted, Charlie Wyman 3.