Local, State, and Federal Policy:

The committee is still trying to figure out the best way to work with the other subcommittees. The two approaches that they identified were either looking at various policies and reporting them to the other subcommittees or waiting for subcommittees to tell them which policies to look at. On top of that they have been doing their own brainstorming and putting together action items. Their plan is to maintain a strong approach by bringing policies that look good to the table, but they strongly encourage the subcommittees to bring ideas and questions to them. Their plan is to develop different relationships with each subcommittee based on their differing needs.

Economic Development:

Has not met.

Public Education and Outreach:

They had several ideas to bring to the table, but their major ones involve utilizing media outlets to help educate the public on the issues. They would like to enhance the website, though it was noted that the Green³ site had the most hits on the City website last month. Another thing they are doing is looking for direction from other subcommittees on how to market the ideas they are coming up with. Their plan is to get the public excited about Green³ by letting them know what the committee is doing in the early stages of the project.

Recycling and Urban Forestry:

In terms of recycling, their group’s goal was to narrow down their top five ideas. A few that they are looking at include diverting solid waste into recycled products on an individual level, getting more participation from local apartment complexes and businesses, and educating and promoting recycling to the city as a whole. As for urban forestry, they would like to focus on more native grass planting in the area. They mentioned the Highway 2 median as a possible site and would like to get the community involved. Another idea that was mentioned was denser tree planting on I29. The subcommittee would like to work toward getting their goals organized and ranked by priority and feasibility.

Municipal Buildings and Facilities:

The subcommittee has been spending a lot of time looking at LEED’s energy requirements in an effort to understand them better. They have also discussed various ideas ranging from upgrading insulation, wastewater treatment systems, and auditing city pumps. They are working toward putting together an energy action plan that could include such things as building code improvements, before/after diagrams of retrofits (possible use for education subcommittee), and making sure building are working they way they were meant to function. Hard numbers are something the subcommittee would like to have soon in order to help set reduction targets. They also mentioned that issues that are often brought up regarding added initial costs. Understanding long-term savings is an important issue to them.

Alternative and Renewable Energies:

The group watched presentations at the EERC on wind energy, methane capture, and hydrogen fuels to help educate and update all subcommittee members. They were able to ask questions and look at some major energy-related issues. Their goal for the next meeting is to view a presentation on solar power and have a list of where they are at in terms of their research.

Land-Use:

To start, it was noted that they have been developing some good working relationships with the City and City employees. They are looking at existing situations and experiences in other communities and how they apply to Grand Forks. The Maryland “Smart Growth” plan is one that they have looked closely at, which defines goals and principals, as well as mechanisms for achieving those goals. Some of those mechanisms include: compact development, walkable communities with good trail systems, and preserving open space and farmland. Predictability of land-use is also an important issue to the subcommittee, as land owners should know what will happen to their land in the foreseeable future. The group also looked at examples from Oregon and Colorado. Their plan is to put together a set of recommendations by the next meeting and how those recommendations can be enforced.

Transportation:

Things the group looked at include increased ridership and the City fleet. They are looking at putting together some models of savings for different scenarios and want to have specific numerical goals set in the near future.

GHG Baseline:

They have a contract with the University of North Dakota and will be working closely with them on this endeavor, as well as frequently updating the resource committee on the progress of the inventory status.