Braintree Conservation Commission
Wednesday, September 25, 2019
Unapproved Minutes
Present: Tom Cooch, Linda Morse, Paul Shriver, Sandy Stephen
Guest: Paige Greenfield, Planner at Two Rivers-Ottaquechee Regional Commission
Mr. Cooch called the meeting to order at 7:00
No Public comments
Two Rivers-Ottaquechee Regional Commission (TRORC) Presentation
Ms. Greenfield enumerated the various ways in which TRORC might be able to help our commission and the Town:
- mapping, including new high-definition LIDAR maps
- environmental planning, including Emerald Ash Borer mitigation
- grants
- water quality work, such as riparian planting
- municipal planning
- transportation
- emergency management
- energy
2018 Knotweed Spraying Inspection
On July 26, Mr. Cooch and Ms. Richmond-Hall toured the areas sprayed last summer by Jerold Kinney. They agreed with the assessment given by Kinney to the Selectboard: some areas showed significant improvement, such as the guard rail patches along Thresher Brook Road. and the west side of Brainstorm Road north of Bruce Anderson. In other areas the spraying was much less effective, such as the section of Peth Road around the junction with Hockman Hill Road.
We do not yet have a list of the areas being sprayed this year.
September Newsletter
Mr. Cooch said he had not made any progress on another newsletter for this summer. The next issue will likely be next spring.
Fall Presentation
No one had any immediate ideas regarding a topic for a public presentation, such as those offered last year on deer yards and on vernal pools. It was agreed that commissioners would bring ideas to the October meeting.
Mr. Cooch suggested that the commission could host a workshop on making wood duck nest boxes that could then be stationed around Mud Pond in the Spring. This might or might not also involve a slide presentation and talk on wood ducks by someone from the ANR.
Approval of Minutes
Minutes for the past three meetings were approved: July (Ms. Richmond-Hall), June (Mr. Cooch), and May (Ms. Richmond-Hall).
The commission had already approved in June minutes for the May meeting submitted at the end of May by Mr. Cooch. Ms. Richmond-Hall subsequently submitted her minutes and these are the ones now posted and approved.
Mr. Cooch expressed his belief that the minutes needed to be sent out within five days of the meeting, both to the Administrative Assistant (by Vermont statute) and to all the commissioners. It is difficult to remember what transpired well enough to approve or make corrections if too much time has elapsed.
Next Meetings
Our next meeting will be on our normal 4th Wednesday, which is October 23. Our November meeting would normally be on the 27th, which is the day before Thanksgiving. We decided to cancel the November meeting altogether and hold our December meeting on the 11th.
Meeting adjourned at 8:10 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Tom Cooch