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Home My WebLink AboutItem V: 2015 SAB Annual ReportOn Saturday, April 18, 2015, the Sustainability Advisor y Board (SAB), thr ough collabor ation with Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance (FWWA), hosted their second Build Your Ow n Rain Barrel Wor kshop in Oshkosh at the Masonic Center. The workshop was made possible through a grant the City of Oshkosh r eceived from Citizens Natural Resour ces Association (CNRA), one of Wisconsin?s first conser vation organizations, in 2014. The workshop helped fur ther recommendations in the City's Sustainability Plan and was selected by SAB as a pr iority activity to help continue promoting sustainability in Oshkosh. The wor kshop was the largest event FWWA has held w ith over 40 local participants attending. The w orkshop began with Kelly Reyer, Outreach Coor dinator from FWWA, pr esenting on the importance of water quality and the many benefits a rain barrel provides, such as reducing the demand for tap w ater for law ns and flowers. Participants were then given a rain barr el kit and Ms. Reyer walked through the instructions. Wor king in small gr oups, each participant constr ucted their own rain barr el. Pr ior to leaving, City staff reviewed the Department of Public Wor ks Storm Water Management Credit Policy, which could provide par ticipants a reduction on their storm water utility bill upon successful completion of an application and installation of a rain barr el or some other stor m water management practice. Member s of the Sustainability Advisory Board (SAB) Education and Outreach Subcommittee and Planning Services staff w orked with the IT Division to complete a complete update of the Sustainable Oshkosh website in 2015. Much of the content from the old website was r etained or updated as a r esult of the project. In addition to updating the website, members of SAB also began incor porating content on the Com munity Developm ent Department's Facebook Page. Check out the website at the following link: www.ci.oshkosh.wi.us/SustainableOshkosh/ A Singl e Rain Bar r el Can hol d t he Equival ent of Running your hose f or 7-8 minut es Ci t y of Osh k osh Su st ai n ab i l i t y Ad v i sor y Boar d 2015 An n u al Rep or t RAIN BARREL WORKSHOP WEBSITE UPDATES HELP SPREAD AWARENESS Lar gest ev ent hel d by f ox-wol f wat er shed Al l iance The Sustainability Advisor y Board is just one of the many gr oups that helps organize Bird Fest, an annual community event to celebrate International Migr atory Bird Day. The 2015 Bir d Fest event was hosted on May 7, 2015, w ith many activities taking place dur ing the day at Menominee Park and also dur ing the evening at Galler y Walk in Downtown Oshkosh. The event has become ver y successful over the year s w ith approximately 150 participants attending throughout the day long event. Education and outr each was one of the top pr ior ities identified by the Sustainability Advisory Board (SAB) in 2015. Their efforts included hosting a booth at the Downtown Satur day Farmers Market thr oughout the summer. New in 2015, SAB members were invited to host a display at Oshkosh Corpor ation's Employee Sustainability Fair. Oshkosh was once again r ecognized as a "High Flyer " by Bir d Cit y Wisconsin in 2015. BIRD FEST 2015 Communit y Cel ebr at es Int er nat ional Migr at or y Bir d Day ICLEI MILESTONE 2 REPORT The City of Oshkosh is a member of International Council for Local Envir onmental Initiatives (ICLEI), w hich is an international association of local governments and national and r egional local government organizations that have made a commitment to sustainable development. ICLEI encourages local governments to complete the five milestone process (see below) to assist communities w ith achieving their gr eenhouse gas emission reduction goals. In 2014, the Sustainability Advisor y Boar d (SAB) approved Milestone 1 - Community-Wide Gr eenhouse Gas Emissions Inventor y Repor t. Shor tly after completion of the M ilestone 1 Report, the Planning Ser vices Division applied for technical assistance offered through East Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission (ECWRPC) to begin wor king on Milestone 2 - Reduction Target Settings. Kathy Thunes from ECWRPC worked with member s of the ICLEI subcommittee to resear ch other communities that have established reduction targets and w hat would be best suited for Oshkosh. Late in 2015, SAB agreed upon proposed reduction targets w hich w ill be pr esented to the Oshkosh Common Council in 2016. Sust ainabil it y Adv isor y Boar d wor ks Wit h East Cent r al Wisconsin Regional Pl anning Commission EDUCATION & OUTREACH Sust ainabil it y Adv isory Boar d City of Oshkosh Sustainability Plan approved Community-w ide Greenhouse Gas Inventor y completed Annual Bir d Fest / Designated Bird City Education & Outreach ? Farmers Mar ket & Events Build Your Ow n Rain Barr el Workshops (2nd event) Sustainable Oshkosh Website Updates Pol ice Electronic copies of annual r epor t, strategic plan, newsletter , & media releases Increased use of bike and foot patr ols Idling policy for patrol fleet to reduce fuel consumption Fir e Decr eased num ber of responding vehicles Reduced fuel consumption and vehicle w ear Replaced HVAC unit with m ore efficient model SAFE (Smoke Alarms for Everyone) Promoted new carbon monoxide detectors Tr anspor tat ion Safe Routes to School LED str eet lighting New bicycle lanes on High, Elmwood, Sawyer , Osborn, Knapp, etc. Bike sharr ows installed throughout the city Four hybrid buses Installed mor e efficient bus wash system Installed LED lighting at hotel/convention center parking ramp Pedestrian overpass on STH 21 & US 41 Launch of new transit ser vice brand Bike & Pedestr ian Plan approved New Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Com mittee Publ ic Wor ks Roundabouts at Jackson & Murdock; 9th & US 41 & Witzel & US 41 Stor mwater wet & dr y detention basins Automated water meter r eading Ongoing str eet and utility projects Sawyer Creek dredging Stor mwater cr edits for riparian lots & rain barrels or rain gar dens Automated garbage and r ecycling collection Libr ar y Energy efficient light r eplacement Public computer s on timers Lowered heating temper ature Email due date slips & online payments Mower blades raised Museum Weatherization of windows & door s Weatherization of Sawyer Home attic New high efficiency electric motor for boiler pump Replaced compact fluor escent lighting with LED lighting Installed low flow toilets Par ks & For est r y Designated Tr ee City Trees planted in ter races, parks & River walk Contr olling invasive species Menominee Park - m otion sensor lighting & efficient toilets in r estrooms Millers Bay Shor eland Restoration Rain barrels and Community Garden for Stevens Park LED trail lighting for the River walk Native plantings at the Leach Energy efficient updates at Menominee & Rochlin restrooms Use of compr essed natur al gas (CNG) vehicle Comprehensive Outdoor Recr eation Plan approved Communit y Dev el opment Inspector/Planner on duty ? (customer service) EVOLVE Digital Per mitting System = less paper & improved efficiency Laptops for field inspections = live updates Carpooling to inspections/meetings Accepting electr onic plans/applications Br ownfield cleanup Sustainability Plan Bike and Pedestrian Plan River walk Healthy Neighbor hood Initiative to improve neighbor hoods South Shor e redevelopment Marion/Pearl Avenue redevelopment Historic Distr ict pr eser vation/incentives mailing Human Resour ces Designated Well Workplace in 2014 Promotes Wellness Activities = free w ork out classes and wellness fair Wellness Com mittee SUMMARY OF ACTIVITIES ov er view of sust ainabil it y act iv it ies Compl et ed t o dat e