Green Team Meeting Agenda -- Nov. 17, 2018

BOROUGH OF SOUTH RIVER

GREEN TEAM COMMITTEE

AGENDA

November 17, 2018 -- Meeting at 48 Washington Street, 12 p.m.

GREEN TEAM COMMITTEE MISSION
The general purpose for the Green Team shall include but not be limited to:  Managing South River's participation in the Sustainable Jersey program; Encouraging the borough staff to pursue sustainable practices where possible and implement the Borough Council's environmental goals; At the recommendation of the Borough Council, work with the existing groups within the borough whose actions affect environmental issues so as to eliminate duplication and assure that important tasks are covered; Provide suggestions for further research and action by the Borough Council; At the direction of the Borough Council, provide advice and suggestions to the Borough Board of Adjustment and the Borough Historic Preservation Commission to assure that environmental issues are considered in their deliberations and action;  Manage and organize various ad-hoc environmental groups within the borough; Solicit and evaluate environmental ideas and suggestions from the community; and Promote the causes of sustainability within the Borough.

MEETING STATEMENT

Under the provisions of the Open Public Meetings Act, notice of the time and place of this meeting has been posted and sent to the officially designated newspaper, the Home News Tribune, and forwarded to the East Brunswick Sentinel.  

CALL TO ORDER

ROLL CALL

____Councilwoman Sandra Adelino (Council Liaison)    

____Sergio Labrego  ____Denise Batista ____Joseph Hyland   ____Richard Alai

____Mark Barry   ____Ruell Brown ____William Solnosky

____Ronaldo Rosales (Junior Member)   ____Brook Matthews (Junior Member)

SELECTION OF OFFICERS FOR REMAiNDER OF YEAR

■ Chairman

    Nominate ________ by ________  Second _______

    Yeas _____________________________________

    Nays _____________________________________

    Abstain ___________________________________

■ Vice-chairman

    Nominate ________ by ________  Second _______

    Yeas _____________________________________

    Nays _____________________________________

    Abstain ___________________________________

■ Secretary/Treasurer

    Nominate ________ by ________  Second _______

    Yeas _____________________________________

    Nays _____________________________________

    Abstain ___________________________________

PUBLIC COMMENT

The Green Team Committee values and welcomes public comment.  We request that speakers limit themselves to five minutes, to give an opportunity for all to be heard.  Written comments may be submitted to the Green Team Committee at the Borough Clerk’s Office during normal business hours, or e-mailed to southrivergreenteam@gmail.com

SUSTAINABLE JERSEY CERTIFICATION

■ Completed items

■ Near complete items

■ Other items

MINUTES

■ September, October meetings -- Deferred to Nov. 29 meeting

REPORTS

■ Council Liaison/Councilmember Report   
■ Community Garden Update -- Garden is closed for winter.

■ Transparency and Open Government Taskforce -- Review of Sustainable Jersey worksheets have begun, review of municipal and school websites planned, and press release soliciting comments from community issued.  Additional members to be appointed today.

■ River Advocacy Subcommittee -- Information gathering and outreach to stakeholders and municipalities ongoing this month.  Heather Fenyk, of Lower Raritan Watershed Partnership, will advise us on the community organizations that exist within the watershed.   Additional members to be appointed.

NEW BUSINESS/DISCUSSION ITEMS
■ Best Practices Report

■ Stand for The Other Pledge -- See resolution below.
■ Developing and encouraging green infrastructure

■ Ordinance updating Green Team membership and terms -- See attachment.

■ Establish “Green Teens” subcommittee of Green Team

■ Recycling

■ Volunteerbase

■ Future Presentations -- Landscaping with Native Plants -- Mark Grieco, landscape architect, will present ways of incorporating native plants into landscaping.  We are looking at early December or after the holidays.

■ 2019 Budget -- Informational item with timelines

RESOLUTIONS

2018-1.  RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE GREEN TEAM COMMITTEE OF THE BOROUGH OF SOUTH RIVER AS A PARTNER OF THE LOWER RARITAN WATERSHED PARTNERSHIP

WHEREAS, Lower Raritan Watershed Partnership (LRWP) is an organization committed to conserving, enhancing and restoring the natural resources of the New Jersey Watershed Management Area 9, the Lower Raritan Watershed; and

WHEREAS, the South River, a medium-sized river that is a tributary of the Raritan River, forming the eastern municipal line of the Borough of South River, is part of a sub-watershed of the Lower Raritan Watershed; and

WHEREAS, LRWP partners with citizens, nonprofit organizations, businesses, and government agencies all with the common goal of restoring the health of the Lower Raritan Watershed; and

WHEREAS, the Green Team Committee of the Borough of South River is desirous of working with LRWP to share ideas and provide input on work within the Lower Raritan Watershed; and

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED By the Green Team Committee of the Borough of South River, as follows:

• The Green Team Committee hereby authorizes a partnership with Lower Raritan Watershed Partnership for the purpose of sharing ideas and providing input on work within the Lower Raritan Watershed.
• The Green Team Committee recommends the Borough Council of the Borough of South River also partner with Lower Raritan Watershed Partnership for the betterment of our community.

Motion__________ Second_________ Favor__________ Opposed________

2018-2.   RESOLUTION DENOUNCING BIGOTRY AND HATE, SUPPORTING THE STAND UP FOR ANOTHER PLEDGE

WHEREAS, On Saturday, October 27, 2018, a gunman shouting anti-Semitic slurs opened fire inside the Tree of Life Congregation Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, killing eleven people and wounding six others; and

WHEREAS, The attack was the largest such attack against Jewish people on American soil in the history of our Nation; and

WHEREAS, Such a heinous, violent attack is regarded not only as an attack on the victims, their families, their community and the Jewish faith, but also an assault on American freedoms and the American way of life; and

WHEREAS, The Green Team Committee of the Borough of South River opposes such bigotry and violence against any and all people, in all forms; and

WHEREAS, The laws of the State of New Jersey and of the United States prohibit discrimination and violence against people by reason of, inter alia, their religion, race, ethnicity, culture, disability, gender or sexual orientation; and

WHEREAS, “The Stand Up For the Other Pledge,” which is promoted by the New Jersey Interfaith Coalition, a non-partisan organization, reflects the values of the members of Green Team Committee and of the community at-large to challenge bigotry aimed at members of other communities by speaking up; and

WHEREAS, “The Stand Up For the Other Pledge” has been taken many New Jersey residents, members of the New Jersey interfaith community and by the members of our State Legislature and by County and local government officials throughout the State of New Jersey.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED By the Green Team Committee of the Borough of South River, as follows:

1.  The Green Team Committee denounces the violent hate crimes committed by the assailant in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on Saturday, October 27, 2018.

2.   The Green Team Committee reaffirms the principles of religious tolerance, tolerance for those who do not profess any religious faith, and tolerance of other races, ethnicities and cultures; and reaffirms the principles of civility and respect as foundations of our American democracy and freedoms.

3.   The Green Team Committee calls upon its citizenry and the community at large to combat violence, hate, bias and prejudice by practicing tolerance, respect and civility towards others of faiths, races, ethnicities and/or cultures different than their own, and recognizing that by learning about and sharing our diverse cultures and faiths, we make our community stronger.  

4.  The Green Team Committee will take “The Stand Up For the Other Pledge” which provides:

While interacting with members of my own faith, or ethnic, or gender community, or with others, if I hear hateful comments from anyone about members of any other community, I pledge to stand up for the other and speak up to challenge bigotry in any form.

5.  The Green Team Committee hereby urges all residents of the Borough to take “The Stand Up For the Other Pledge” and encourages the Borough Council and all public bodies in the borough to pass resolutions denouncing bigotry and hate, while also supporting the pledge.

Motion__________ Second_________ Favor__________ Opposed________

2018-3.  RESOLUTION CONCERNING THE WILLIAMS/TRANSCONTINENTAL COMPANY RARITAN BAY PIPELINE

WHEREAS, The Green Team Committee of the Borough of South River has been a leader in efforts to protect our environment, waterways, become more sustainable, encourage conservation and shift to renewable sources of energy; and

WHEREAS, Williams/Transcontinental Company (Williams/Transco) is proposing to build a 23.4 mile natural gas pipeline through Raritan Bay from Old Bridge to Rockaway New York; and

WHEREAS, The project would not in any way serve New Jersey residents, the demand for more gas being described by Williams as being in Brooklyn and Queens, NY, where residents are reportedly switching from oil heat to gas; and the proposed WIlliams/Transco pipeline will be transporting fracked gas; and

WHEREAS, NY/NJ Baykeeper, Food and Water Watch, ReThink Energy, and other groups have expressed serious concerns, based on safety and health issues, for their residents as well as concern about potential harm to the environment, and local and county infrastructure; and

WHEREAS, If the Williams/Transco pipeline goes under Raritan Bay a gas leak, fire or explosion could contaminate this precious New Jersey Bayshore natural resource; and

WHEREAS, There have been explosions and/or fires at or within at least nine Williams Partners or Williams/Transco facilities or infrastructure, including one in Washington state that injured five people and led to the evacuation of people within a two mile radius of the facility; and

WHEREAS, The pipeline will cause seafloor disturbance and as a result negatively impact recreational and commercial fishing industries; and

WHEREAS, Environmental disturbance will lead to significant negative implications on native, keystone and endangered marine species that communities on the Raritan Bay and within the the tidal reach of the Raritan River rely upon for resources, tourism, recreation and economic benefit; and

WHEREAS, Limitation of global temperature increase due to the greenhouse effect depends on the replacement of CO2- emitting energy sources by other sources a quickly as possible; and

WHEREAS, Williams/Transco has not shown the results of their pipeline test to the governing bodies in any of the towns through which this 54 year old pipeline runs; and

WHEREAS, The gas compressor station has been constructed on land immediately adjacent to a PSE&G electrical station which, when the Susquehanna-Roseland project is completed, will have an electrical capacity of 500,000 or more volts; and

WHEREAS, There are very few examples in the country, if any, of a gas compressor station being located right next to a major electrical station; and

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED By the Green Team Committee of the Borough of South River, as follows:

1. The Green Team Committee opposes the construction and installation of ​a 23.4 mile natural gas pipeline through Raritan Bay from Old Bridge to Rockaway New York. Construction of the pipeline would adversely impact the health of Raritan Bay, shellfish and other benthic habitat, and recreational activities for surrounding communities; ​and
2. The Green Team Committee urges Williams Company to eliminate any further consideration for a pipeline; and
3. The Green Team Committee urges the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to deny any application for a pipeline and urge its representatives of the United States Congress, United States Senate and New Jersey Legislature to oppose this pipeline application; and
4. This resolution be forwarded to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection; US Senators Cory Booker and Robert Menendez; Congressman Frank Pallone and Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman.

Motion__________ Second_________ Favor__________ Opposed________

2018-4.  RESOLUTION APPOINTING ADDITIONAL MEMBERS TO “TRANSPARENCY AND OPEN GOVERNMENT TASKFORCE,” A SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE GREEN TEAM COMMITTEE

BE IT RESOLVED, THAT Angela Cadenas, of this borough; Orly Tamayo, of this borough; Irina DaSilva of this borough; Bella Silva, of this borough; and Rochelle Kipnis, former reporter for the Sentinel, be appointed to the Green Team subcommittee “Transparency and Open Government Taskforce” effective immediately.

Motion__________ Second_________ Favor__________ Opposed________

PUBLIC COMMENT

COMMITTEE COMMENT

NEXT MEETING DATE   Thursday, November 29, 2018, 7:30 p.m., 48 Washington Street.

ADJOURNMENT  at ________ p.m.   

Motion__________ Second_________ Favor__________ Opposed________

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ORDINANCE 2018-____

AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND AND SUPPLEMENT CHAPTER 22 ARTICLE XVIII - GREEN TEAM - SECTION 22-92

WHEREAS, the Borough Council of the Borough of South River has determined to amend and supplement “Chapter 22 Article XVII - Green Team - Section 22-92, Membership; term of office”; and

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED by the Mayor and Borough Council of the Borough of South River, County of Middlesex, State of New Jersey that “Chapter 22 Article XVII - Green Team - Section 22-92, Membership; term of office” is hereby amended and supplemented in order to add the following (additions are shown with underline, deletions are shown with strikethrough):

SECTION ONE.

§ 22-92
Membership; term of office; volunteers; reports.

A. The Borough of South River Council shall appoint seven Borough residents as regular members; and two four non-voting junior members chosen from South River High School attending a local public, private or parochial school, or being homeschooled, and who are resident in the borough during the school year to serve as the Green Team. The Green Team shall elect from among its members a Chair, Vice Chair and Secretary/Treasurer. Initially, two three members shall be appointed to a three-year term, two three members to a two-year term and three one member to a one-year term. Thereafter, all terms shall be for three years. The junior members shall serve one-year terms concurrent to their school year, with terms beginning September 1 and ending August 30. Additionally, a member of the Borough Council shall serve as an ex officio member of the Green Team. Ex officio members shall not vote. Further, in addition to regular members, the Borough Council shall appoint two Borough residents as alternate members.  Alternate members shall be designated, at the time of appointment, as "Alternate No. 1" and "Alternate No. 2." The terms of the alternate members shall be two years, except that the terms of the alternate members first appointed shall be, commencing January 1 of the year of appointment, two years for Alternate No. 1, and one year for Alternate No. 2. A vacancy occurring otherwise than by the expiration of a term shall be filled by the appointment of the Borough Council for the unexpired term only.  Alternate members may participate in discussions of the proceedings but may not vote except in the absence or disqualification of a regular member. No vote shall be delayed in order that a regular member may vote instead of an alternate member. In the event that a choice must be made as to which alternate member is to vote, Alternate No. 1 shall vote first.

B. The Green Team shall select Township volunteers to work on Green Team projects. The names of the Green Team volunteers shall periodically be submitted to the Borough Administrator and the Green Team Committee reports, minutes, etc., shall also be submitted to the Borough Committee Administrator, Mayor and Borough Council.  An Annual Report of the Green Team shall be made to the Borough Administrator, Mayor and Borough Council and filed with the Borough Clerk no later than January 30 for the preceding year.

SECTION TWO.

SEVERABILITY. The provisions of this Ordinance are declared to be severable and if any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase thereof for any reason be held to be invalid or unconstitutional, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining sections, subsections, sentences, clauses and phrases of this Ordinance, but shall remaining in effect; it being the legislative intent that this Ordinance shall stand notwithstanding the invalidity of any part.

SECTION THREE.

REPEALER. All Ordinances or parts thereof in conflict or inconsistent with this Ordinance are hereby repealed, but only however, to the extent of such conflict or inconsistency, it being the legislative intent that all Ordinances or part of ordinances now existing or in effect unless the same being conflict or inconsistent with any provision of this Ordinance shall remain in effect.

SECTION FOUR.

EFFECTIVE DATE. This Ordinance shall take effect upon passage and publication as required by law.

_________________________________

Mayor John Krenzel

_________________________________

Borough Clerk William Bray, RMC