Stormwater Committee Meeting
June 9, 2008
Attending:
Ed Murtagh (Chair)
Ann Hoffnar
Holly Olson
Melanie Boerger
Jenny Reed
Neighborhood Raingardens
We discussed the latest DEP offerings to help us out. DEP won’t have their memo of understanding ready in time to help us with our
June rain garden installations, but they have a lot of leftover soil mix from the fair grounds rain garden they just installed. If FOSC partners with DEP and uses these rain gardens for outreach efforts (we were planning on doing this anyway), they will provide the soil mix, mulch and plants.
We will begin with the garden in Kit’s yard. This Saturday, June 14, at 10 a.m. some of us will help with the digging. Kit has worked out the logistics with Pam and DEP will deliver leftover rain garden soil mix from the fair grounds to Kit’s house. Kit has hired some people to do major digging as she plans to go down to 2 to 2 1/2 feet.
June 21, tentatively, we will install a raingarden at Holly’s house. Holly will invite neighbors and some of us will help too. Holly has plans for outreach: articles in the Forest Estates Civic Association newsletter; Forest Estates House and Garden Tour in the Fall; help from Valerie Ervin’s office; possible filming for use on webcasts.
We are planning on having most of the outreach activities in the fall when we have several rain gardens built. We can have a planting day and ask the Gazette to cover it. We will post the updated rain garden photos on the Forest Estates web site and use their email list also in our outreach efforts (Holly and many FOSC members live in Forest Estates.) We are hoping to have up to 10 new showcase residential rain gardens in place by fall. FOSC will also provide support as needed (example – help pay for labor to help excavate.)
We talked a bit about the goal to use these rain gardens to demonstrate to DEP that shallow rain gardens (under 12″ depth) can be very effective in soil that drains well. DEP is willing to monitor the results and perhaps change the criteria on the Rebate Application Form.
Other Topics
We talked about Spring Park efforts. The finished project is quite beautiful and a great success story.
We set a weeding workday at the Forest Park rain gardens (June 21).
We welcomed Melanie Boerger. Her background is in Environmental and Social Justice Law. She does some work in the Anacostia Watershed with AWS and Friends of Lower Beaver Dam. Her expertise will be helpful in our advocacy efforts.
Ed is working to get Neighbors of Northwest Branch to do a Stewardship 101 workshop–a follow-up to our Outreach 101 workshop.
Minutes prepared by Ed Murtagh and Ann Hoffnar