BAYSHORE REGIONAL WATERSHED COUNCIL

MINUTES

Thursday, February 8, 2007

Keyport Borough Hall

7:30pm – 9:30pm

Attendance:

Lou Andreuzzi (Union Beach)

Cynthia Bianchi (Leonardo)

Valerie Craig (Middletown Township)

Fran Donnelly (Hazlet),

Eugene Geer (Hazlet)

Liz Glynn (NJ WaterWatch/Monmouth University)

Sharon Laporta (Matawan)

Joe Martin (Middletown Township)

Kari Martin (Clean Ocean Action)

Bill McFarland (Holmdel),

Joe Pobega (Hazlet), 

Joe Reynolds (Atlantic Highlands),

Paul Rinear (Aberdeen),

Joe Sheridan (Keyport)

Steve Taylor (Middletown Township)

Ann Waters (Monmouth County Planning Board)

Andy Willner (NY-NJ BayKeeper)

AGENDA

1) BRWC official Website

New information is being posted on the council’s website all the time. Watershed members are encouraged to visit the website on a regular basis and to provide news and information to be posted on the website. Also, there is a need for written information about the waterways closest to each member’s home. There is a real need to educate people about our local waterways with the history and ecology of each creek. Members are encouraged to supply at least a few paragraphs of text for a waterway near their home on any topic they choose. 

2) Bayshore Regional Dredged Material Mgmt. Plan

The council received an updated MOA (memorandum of agreement) from NJDOT on Monday. Upon review, it was decided by co-chair, Joe Reynolds, and Project Manager, Steve Taylor, that the MOA now meets our requirement of properly including HAQLA has our fiscal administrator for the I-Boat grant. The MOA will be signed by all interested parties and mailed back to NJDOT next week.

3) FLAT CREEK NJDEP Project Grant Status

There was an active discussion among present watershed members as to how best utilize the remaining $44,000 of the Action Now grant from NJDEP for the restoration of Flat Creek. The BayKeeper provided some good ideas regarding stormwater structural BMPs. Perhaps one or two devices that would help to clean up stormwater and provide a means for the removal of sediment, floating debris and free-oil that enters Flat Creek could be installed. (For more information on this topic, see http://www.ent.ohiou.edu/~stormbmp/indexa.htm) In addition, the creation of rain gardens and the distribution of rain barrels were discussed. Co-chair, Bill McFarland, and Ann Waters of the Monmouth County Planning Board, have agreed to meet soon to discuss the final parameters of the grant.  

4) Bayshore Pump-Out Boat Forum

The BayKeeper provided council members with an overview of the Pumpout Boat forum that occurred on Wednesday, January 17th, inside Keyport Yacht Club. About 50 people were present at the forum, including Freeholder Barbara J. McMorrow, the Mayor of Hazlet, members of Assemblyperson’s Handle’s office, and various members of Keyport and Atlantic Highlands yacht clubs. A fundraising effort has begun now to acquire monies that will maintain a Pumpout boat for Raritan Bay & Sandy Hook Bay for five years. Funds can come from local businesses, municipalities, yacht clubs, and private donations. For more information about this topic, please see http://www.bayshorewatershed.org/bw/Current%20Projects/%2A%20Pump-Out%20Boat%20For%20Raritan%20Bay-Sandy%20Hook%20Bay

5) Open Space & the Preservation of Eight Endangered Areas

Stone Road Meadows (Hazlet/Union Beach): A sketch was shown to council members created with volunteer time by Christine Balinet. The sketch is one idea of what Stone Road Meadows could look like as a public park. One idea was suggested for another sketch to be created to illustrate what the land would look like fully developed. Lou Andreuzzi provided an overview of recent activities concerning the threats to develop the Van Mater portion of the site and the actions to preserve this site.

Freneau Woods (Aberdeen/Matawan): Paul Rinear and Bill McFarland displayed an aerial photo of Freneau Woods and its environs. Portions of the area where development is planned for appears to council members on the photo as wetlands. In addition, it appeared to council members that development would also be located along steep slopes. The total area threatened with development is about 100 acres. Council members agreed to go forward with promoting the historical and natural aspects of the area, and to use the slogan of “Preserve Freneau Woods.”

Leonardo Wetlands – Currently, proposed development plans for the wetlands located near the State Marina, have been withdrawn for the time being.

Bill McFarland reported that New Jersey Audubon is asking people to send an email to their legislators to support a resolution to renew the Garden State Preservation Trust fund. For more information, check out the website: http://ga1.org/campaign/gspt/

6) Osprey Platform Grant 

Four municipalities in the Bayshore region were awarded grants by Verizon to install osprey platforms this year. Those municipalities included: Aberdeen Hazlet, Keyport, and Middletown.

7) Middletown Kiosk Environmental Education

Recently, Middletown Township Environmental Commission Chair, Mike Fedosh, supplied Joe Reynolds with a key to open three information kiosks located in the Bayshore section of Middletown Township. They are located at Ideal Beach, near the mouth of Pews Creek, and near the Conover Beach Beacon in Leonardo. The council now has the opportunity to install environmental education materials and announcements in those kiosks.

8) Horseshoe Crab Education Signs

Jim Peck, Education Coordinator for the American Littoral Society at Sandy Hook, reported to Joe Reynolds that the signs to educate people about the moratorium on harvesting Horseshoe Crabs in New Jersey will be ready by the end of February. NJDEP has already approved the signs to put on view. The signs will be 9 X 12 white poly with black lettering with four holes for nailing.  There will also be kits available for putting them on chain link fences.

The watershed council has agreed to help ALS by placing 15 to 20 signs between Old Bridge Waterfront Park and Highlands Harbor.  The council will scout around to find actual physical places to put the signs and get the necessary permissions from marina owners or towns, and then tack them up.

9) Pews Creek Community Cleanup

Joe Martin, Chair of Friends of Pews Creek, reported that he has contacted Middletown Township to locate their code enforcement officer or the person that deals with clean communities’ violations. He would like to do some garbage/trash/solid waste awareness and other actions at the Bayshore area of Middletown, especially in the Pews Creek sub-watershed area. There are several businesses and a few houses where it is evident that garbage is either thrown directly to the ground or escapes from dumpsters/cans.

Mr. Martin is planning to schedule a clean up of the Pews Creek sub-watershed area. It will be a Friends of Pews Creek Winter Cleanup along Bray Avenue and possibly other thoroughfares intersecting the Creek. No firm date has been scheduled yet, but potential dates include: March 3, March 24, or April 7.  

 print