Sustainability at Lake Superior College

Meeting Minutes 08/28/09

Members present:  Jim Drake, Kevin Futhey, Wade Gordon, Theresa Hornstein, Dave Israel, Britt Johnson, Carol Johnson, Cliff Koski, Glenn Merrick, Deanne Roquet, Jeri Schwerin.

Announcements

Val Vegar has resigned from the Environmental Council.

Cathy Carlson has ordered real coffee cups to be sold in the cafeteria and will offer cost savings to customers using their own cups or purchased cups.

Mark Winson is looking into eliminating water coolers around campus in an effort to cut costs.  Currently LSC has 21 water coolers, most of which also dispense hot water.  Hot/cold dispensers cost approximately $10 per month to operate.  Cold-only dispensers cost approximately $5-7 to operate.

The Environmental Council thanked Wade for providing a pizza lunch for Deb Rowe, students, and others during the LSC Duty Day.

Deanne announced that the Ken Burns PBS film on National Parks will air on the National Geographic Channel on September 27.

Wade announced that Dean Talbot of Minnesota Power is giving LSC a box of Kill-A-Watt meters.  Once all of these meters, along with those obtained through the MN Schools Cutting Carbon grant, are bar-coded, Wade will turn the meters over to the library to make them available for check-out.

Glenn announced he will be cooperating in a grant that is held by the National Center for Science and Civic Engagement. The grant is aimed at engaging students directly in restoration of Great Lakes ecosystems. He will have more detail after the Healing Our Waters conference at the DECC next week.

Committee Reports

Trail/BioRetention Pond: Glenn reported all three interpretive trail bridges are now structurally sound.

Old Business

MN GreenCorps: Sites have not yet been chosen for this year.  78 organizations applied, and approximately 9 will be chosen.  It is possible there will be 10 more available this fall, due to the positive response.

Duty Day: LSC Duty Day on August 18, 2009 went well.  Most staff and faculty are speaking well of the day and are working to implement ideas discussed.  Some staff/faculty felt some of the breakout sessions were not useful, but most comments were positive.

Styrofoam: Kevin and Britt have spoken with Mike Koppy of Machine Tech and asked that the Tool Club now take over the styrofoam collection, shredding, and distribution, as planned.  Kevin will set up a meeting with Tom Tonkin, Roger Johnson, Mike Koppy, Britt, and himself.

Conference Room Coffee Cups: Coffee cups for the conference rooms are complete.  Carol is arranging for the cups to be put to use.

EC Flowchart: Carol and Theresa proposed an Environmental Council flowchart.  Shannon will do revisions and send out to all council members.

New Business

EC Membership Survey: A survey will be sent out to all Environmental Council members regarding activity on the council.  Britt will send out the survey, compile the results, and report back at the next meeting

EC Meeting Times/Days: The council discussed this semester’s meeting time and decided on every-other-Friday from 9:30 to 11:30am in Gary’s office.  Council members are asked to attend any portion of the meetings their schedules allow.  Subcommittees will meet as determined by subcommittee members.

Student Involvement: The council discussed a need to recruit students, particularly for the MN Schools Cutting Carbon program.  A student senate representative is also necessary.

Cigarette Butts: The council discussed the issue of accumulating cigarette butts by Miller Creek, due to the LSC smoking ban.  It was decided this is not an issue for the Environmental Council, but rather an issue for Beth and Mark.

Environmental Council Duty Day Breakout Session: Carol reported the following discussion points brought up by faculty and staff that attended the EC breakout session she, Theresa, and Julius taught:

• Plants in the atrium are dying.  Carol will contact Gary K. to include with IE.
• The concept of a deposit on tableware, as other colleges are doing.
• Parking lot/Rideshare needs.  Mark and Wade are currently discussing this as part of LEED requirement
• Bringing in an EC representative to FYE classes.  Possibility of a virtual tour?
• Adding sustainability to everybody’s performance evaluations.  Wade and Stacey are looking into this.
• Earth Day should be on the yearly calendar.  Contact Heather Grillo?
• A need for more water fountains.

Waste Wise Annual Meeting: Waste Wise will hold its annual meeting October 6, 2009.  Kevin proposed and the council voted in favor of funding one EC member to attend the meeting, at a cost of $35.

Debra Rowe Power Point: Several people have requested Debra Rowe’s Power Point presentation from the LSC Duty Day.  Deanne will arrange this.

Environmental Council POs: Shannon will now do POs for the Environmental Council.

Living Green Conference: Wade has notified EAGLE that LSC has agreed to take over the Living Green Conference.  The council voted in favor of endorsing this transfer.

Retreat: The council discussed a need to hold another Environmental Council retreat.

Recycled Paper: Carol contacted Mike in the copy center.  We currently use copy paper that is 0% recycled.  A switch to 100% recycled copy paper would cost $7500 more per year.  A switch to 30% recycled copy paper would cost $4000 more per year.

Motions

The council voted in favor of funding one Environmental Council member to attend the annual Waste Wise meeting on October 6, 2009.   The cost of the meeting is $35.

The council voted in favor of endorsing the transfer of the Living Green Conference from EAGLE to LSC.

Next Meeting

The next Environmental Council meeting will take place on Friday, September 11, 2009 from 9:30 to 11:30am in Gary’s office.

Meeting Minutes 08/28/09

Members present:  Jim Drake, Kevin Futhey, Wade Gordon, Theresa Hornstein, Dave Israel, Britt Johnson, Carol Johnson, Cliff Koski, Glenn Merrick, Deanne Roquet, Jeri Schwerin.

Announcements

Val Vegar has resigned from the Environmental Council.

Cathy Carlson has ordered real coffee cups to be sold in the cafeteria and will offer cost savings to customers using their own cups or purchased cups.

Mark Winson is looking into eliminating water coolers around campus in an effort to cut costs.  Currently LSC has 21 water coolers, most of which also dispense hot water.  Hot/cold dispensers cost approximately $10 per month to operate.  Cold-only dispensers cost approximately $5-7 to operate.

The Environmental Council thanked Wade for providing a pizza lunch for Deb Rowe, students, and others during the LSC Duty Day.

Deanne announced that the Ken Burns PBS film on National Parks will air on the National Geographic Channel on September 27.

Wade announced that Dean Talbot of Minnesota Power is giving LSC a box of Kill-A-Watt meters.  Once all of these meters, along with those obtained through the MN Schools Cutting Carbon grant, are bar-coded, Wade will turn the meters over to the library to make them available for check-out.

Glenn announced he will be cooperating in a grant that is held by the National Center for Science and Civic Engagement. The grant is aimed at engaging students directly in restoration of Great Lakes ecosystems. He will have more detail after the Healing Our Waters conference at the DECC next week.

Committee Reports

Trail/BioRetention Pond: Glenn reported all three interpretive trail bridges are now structurally sound.

Old Business

MN GreenCorps: Sites have not yet been chosen for this year.  78 organizations applied, and approximately 9 will be chosen.  It is possible there will be 10 more available this fall, due to the positive response.

Duty Day: LSC Duty Day on August 18, 2009 went well.  Most staff and faculty are speaking well of the day and are working to implement ideas discussed.  Some staff/faculty felt some of the breakout sessions were not useful, but most comments were positive.

Styrofoam: Kevin and Britt have spoken with Mike Koppy of Machine Tech and asked that the Tool Club now take over the styrofoam collection, shredding, and distribution, as planned.  Kevin will set up a meeting with Tom Tonkin, Roger Johnson, Mike Koppy, Britt, and himself.

Conference Room Coffee Cups: Coffee cups for the conference rooms are complete.  Carol is arranging for the cups to be put to use.

EC Flowchart: Carol and Theresa proposed an Environmental Council flowchart.  Shannon will do revisions and send out to all council members.

New Business

EC Membership Survey: A survey will be sent out to all Environmental Council members regarding activity on the council.  Britt will send out the survey, compile the results, and report back at the next meeting

EC Meeting Times/Days: The council discussed this semester’s meeting time and decided on every-other-Friday from 9:30 to 11:30am in Gary’s office.  Council members are asked to attend any portion of the meetings their schedules allow.  Subcommittees will meet as determined by subcommittee members.

Student Involvement: The council discussed a need to recruit students, particularly for the MN Schools Cutting Carbon program.  A student senate representative is also necessary.

Cigarette Butts: The council discussed the issue of accumulating cigarette butts by Miller Creek, due to the LSC smoking ban.  It was decided this is not an issue for the Environmental Council, but rather an issue for Beth and Mark.

Environmental Council Duty Day Breakout Session: Carol reported the following discussion points brought up by faculty and staff that attended the EC breakout session she, Theresa, and Julius taught:

• Plants in the atrium are dying.  Carol will contact Gary K. to include with IE.
• The concept of a deposit on tableware, as other colleges are doing.
• Parking lot/Rideshare needs.  Mark and Wade are currently discussing this as part of LEED requirement
• Bringing in an EC representative to FYE classes.  Possibility of a virtual tour?
• Adding sustainability to everybody’s performance evaluations.  Wade and Stacey are looking into this.
• Earth Day should be on the yearly calendar.  Contact Heather Grillo?
• A need for more water fountains.

Waste Wise Annual Meeting: Waste Wise will hold its annual meeting October 6, 2009.  Kevin proposed and the council voted in favor of funding one EC member to attend the meeting, at a cost of $35.

Debra Rowe Power Point: Several people have requested Debra Rowe’s Power Point presentation from the LSC Duty Day.  Deanne will arrange this.

Environmental Council POs: Shannon will now do POs for the Environmental Council.

Living Green Conference: Wade has notified EAGLE that LSC has agreed to take over the Living Green Conference.  The council voted in favor of endorsing this transfer.

Retreat: The council discussed a need to hold another Environmental Council retreat.

Recycled Paper: Carol contacted Mike in the copy center.  We currently use copy paper that is 0% recycled.  A switch to 100% recycled copy paper would cost $7500 more per year.  A switch to 30% recycled copy paper would cost $4000 more per year.

Motions

The council voted in favor of funding one Environmental Council member to attend the annual Waste Wise meeting on October 6, 2009.   The cost of the meeting is $35.

The council voted in favor of endorsing the transfer of the Living Green Conference from EAGLE to LSC.

Next Meeting

The next Environmental Council meeting will take place on Friday, September 11, 2009 from 9:30 to 11:30am in Gary’s office.

Meeting Minutes 08/05/09

Members present:  Kevin Futhey, Britt Johnson, Carol Johnson, Diane Morin, Deanne Roquet

New Business

Diane announced she is leaving LSC for an Assistant Principal position at Proctor High School.

Diane and Carol have been discussing a flowchart for the organization of the Environmental Council.  Diane will put together the flowchart and give it to Carol before her departure.  The council discussed the need to organize and set goals and responsibilities as a council.  Deb Rowe will likely provide input on this matter.

Old Business

Duty Day (August 18, 2009):

• Deanne went over the list of those attending the dinner with Deb Rowe at 5:30pm on Monday, August 17 at Va Bene.  Those attending include:  Deb, Kevin, Britt, Carol, Cliff, Julius, Jim, Connie, Wade, and Kate Worley of WasteWise.
• Deanne and Wade will have a phone conference with Deb Rowe to discuss specifics of Deb Rowe’s visit.  They will also confirm that she will be paid a stipend $4750 to include expenses.
• Deanne and Carol will be picking up Deb Rowe from the airport at 1pm on Monday, August 17.  They will show her around Duluth until she is able to check into her hotel room at 3pm.  At 5:30pm Deb will meet others at Va Bene. 
• Deanne will pick up Deb Rowe in the morning for breakfast and be to LSC by 8am.
• Deanne will introduce Deb Rowe for her key note speech.
• Heather Grillo has agreed to provide, through Student Life, an Erbert’s and Gerbert’s lunch for Deb Rowe with LSC students.   Student Senate President Robert Scott is unable to attend.  It is hoped Erin Gregor, Connie Jamieson, and others will be able to attend.
• Julius will be presenting with Carol on the Environmental Council for duty day breakout sessions.  He will not be available to host AJ Matthew’s from WLSSD in her breakout session.  Kevin will locate a host.

Motions

No motions were made at this meeting.

Next Meeting

The next Environmental Council meeting will take place at 11:00am on Wednesday, August 12, 2009 in the Workforce Development Conference room.

Meeting Minutes 07/29/09

Members present:  Jim Drake, Wade Gordon, Britt Johnson, Carol Johnson, Cliff Koski, Deanne Roquet

New Business

Minnesota GreenCorps: Minnesota GreenCorps is a new program, coordinated by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.  It provides opportunities for college graduates to spend a year of service acquiring useful skills while supporting high-priority environmental activities at the local level throughout Minnesota.  Members will ideally be placed in pairs around the state, though not necessarily at the same site.  Deanne will work on the application to be a host site for one member, coordinated with an application from the city of Duluth for another member.

Old Business

Duty Day (August 18, 2009):

• Deanne and Wade will arrange a phone conference with Deb Rowe to discuss specifics
• Cliff and Britt will arrange a phone conference with Deb to discuss the GHG inventory
• The “invite” list for Deb’s afternoon breakout session is established.  Deanne will notify these people via email.
• Deb will have lunch with LSC students on duty day
• Deb will have dinner with specific LSC members Monday evening before duty day
• Wade is arranging a breakfast meeting for Deb and Kathy Nelson
• The “invite only” breakout session with Deb is being moved to the second session
• Theresa will not do a breakout session on home composting.

Living Green Conference: Wade will seek support of LSC administration in hosting the Living Green Conference.  Wade requested the Environmental Council write a letter of support to host the Living Green Conference as a campus.

Motions

No motions were made at this meeting.

Next Meeting

The next Environmental Council meeting will take place at 11:00am on Wednesday, August 5, 2009 in the Workforce Development Conference room.

Meeting Minutes 7/21/09

Members present:  Cliff Koski, Deanne Roquet, Julius Salinas, Kevin Futhey, Jim Drake, Britt Johnson.

New Business

Facebook: Jim suggested the Environmental Council set up a Facebook site for visibility.  Jim will contact Gary Kruchowski regarding this.

Old Business

Duty Day (August 18, 2009):

• Kevin will add a Facilities Overview after the morning break, during the 10:45 to 11:30 session.
• Deanne is arranging a dinner (at Va Bene?) for Deb Rowe and specific LSC faculty and staff.
• Deanne is arranging a lunch at LSC for Deb Rowe and specific LSC faculty, staff, and students.
• The first breakout session given by Deb Rowe will be invite only.  The second session will be open for registration.
• Kevin will contact WLSSD regarding a breakout session on “Being Green”
• Kevin will contact Kate Worley of Wastewise regarding a breakout session on “Sort-a-dumpster”
• Deanne will contact Dean Talbot or Wade Gordon regarding a breakout session on reducing home energy use.
• All breakout sessions will be scheduled for 1.5 hours to allow time for discussion, room changes, and breaks.
• Deanne, Kevin, and Britt will contact breakout session speakers for a short description of each session.
• Tentative schedule:

8:00 – 8:30  Refreshments

8:30 – 9:00 – Kathleen Nelson – Welcome and introduction to the Presidents Climate Commitment

9:00- 10:30 – Deb Rowe – Key Note Speech “Bringing a Perspective of Sustainability to LSC”

10:30 – 10:45 – Break

10:45 – 11:30 – Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory Summary, Clicker Commuting Survey and Facilities Overview (to make employees aware of the Presidents Climate Commitment, and how the greenhouse gas emissions inventory leads into the climate plan)

11:30 – 12:30 – Lunch

12:30 – 3:30 – Concurrent breakout sessions (Either 1 or 1.5 hours each) to engage employees here at LSC and at home to work toward the goals of the climate plan.

Motions

No motions were made at this meeting.

Next Meeting

The next Environmental Council meeting will take place at 11:00am on Wednesday, July 29, 2009 in the Workforce Development Conference room.

Meeting Minutes 7/14/09

Members present:  Cliff Koski, Deanne Roquet, Dick Haney, Julius Salinas, Kevin Futhey, Diane Morin, Britt Johnson.

Announcements

Food Summit: The Superior Grown Food Summit, organized by the Locally Adapted Food System Collaborative (LAFSC) will be held at UMD on Saturday, November 14, 2009.

Old Business

Living Green Conference: EAGLE is closing down and looking for an organization to take ownership of the Living Green Conference.  This discussion is tabled for now.  Jan Conley of EAGLE will need to be notified by September.

Duty Day:

• Deanne and Missy continue to work on a contract with Deb Rowe.
• Deanne will attempt to arrange an earlier arrival time for Deb to allow time for a dinner meeting with the LSC Environmental Council.  Deanne will also attempt to arrange a later departure time for Deb to allow time for a public session Tuesday evening.
• Diane is researching discounted hotel prices for Deb.
• Cliff is formulating a list of ‘salient points’ for Kathy Nelson to highlight on Duty Day during her opening speech.  Several EC members suggested she discuss her motivation to sign the ACUPCC, support LEED certified buildings, etc.
• Diane and Britt will make arrangements to open the LSC Duty Day to other colleges, charge admission, and offer CEU’s.
• Kevin will contact Kate Worley regarding a “Waste-Sorts” break-out session.
• Several new break-out session ideas were discussed:
  • RSPT efforts (Glenn)
  • Simple steps to be green
  • LSC Environmental Council – What we’ve done, Where we’re going
  • Rain Barrels / Composting  (WLSSD)
  • Worm composting (Theresa)
  • Weatherizing your home (Dean Talbot)

UMACS Workshop: Erin, Cliff, Julius, and Britt will attend the UMACS Climate Action Plan Workshop on Wednesday, July 15, 2009 at Macalester College.   Mindy Granley, UMD Sustainability Coordinator, will also attend the workshop.

Motions

No motions were made at this meeting.

Next Meeting

The next Environmental Council meeting will take place at 9am on Tuesday July 21, 2009 at Bixby’s Café.  This meeting will be preceded by a collaborative meeting with other Twin Ports colleges at 8am, of which all EC members are welcome to join.