Charlestown Township
Environmental Advisory Committee (EAC)
Meeting Minutes
Monday, March 11, 2024

Armstrong opened the meeting at 7:05

Attendees:
Carol Armstrong (Chair), Dan Walker (Vice Chair), Meg Solomon (Secretary), Pete Goodman
Guests:
Jill Green

February minutes approved.

Place Holders

(Reminder of EAC-initiated projects for next 6+ months):

New Business

Ongoing Business

  1. EAC Membership, presentation to HOAs - Armstrong/Green drafted a letter to give to Csete for distribution. Sent to EAC for input/feedback. We reviewed and revised the letter. Armstrong will revise and send to Csete.
  2. EAC Logo - no update.
  3. Recycling of Food and Waste in Charlestown - Solomon emailed Buck but did not hear back. She will reach out to him again. Talked to Colleen Falicki from Back to Earth Compost, met with Rachel Griffith and Gabrielle from Lancaster City. Colleen is sending reference information to Solomon She hasn’t yet received anything. Have notes and will send to everyone.
  4. Adoption of Charlestown Road, cleanup for PennDOT - next cleanup on April 13th at 8:00AM with rain date on 14st. Walker will send marketing material to Heleniak for distribution.
  5. Single Use Plastics Ban - Armstrong will identify the businesses impacted and send to Heleniak. He will provide contact information and we will reach out to schedule a meeting with the businesses. Soundararajan requested we use the April EAC meeting to discuss agenda for the meeting with the businesses.
  6. We ConservePA statewide conference February 24th - virtual conference - Armstrong presenting on our battery program. Armstrong to send us her slides.
  7. Nature News topic for April - keep the topic on sustainability. Email Csete about printing part of Jan Nature News in next Newsletter by April 15th.
  8. Invasive/ Native Species Day (combo event) - May 16th. Master Gardeners will not take this on if visiting homeowners’ properties is considered a liability for the township. Repeat children’s art contest for Native Species. Repeat table at Brightside Farm Park with assistance from Master Watershed Stewards; Armstrong will discuss with MWS-Chester County program.
  9. Bird Town program - Motel suggested presentation by PA Audubon on woodpeckers. No date yet. We jumped to Bird Town Silver status level. Thursday night is spring gathering for Bird Town and Goodman will present.
  10. Parks for a Sustainable Future - BoS agreed on potential sites of Charlestown Mill and Charlestown Park. Soil tests usually cost 500 - 900 dollars per site. Township must pay for the soil sampling. Once we get the data back, we can plan what needs to be done with Beyond Pesticides and Osbourne Organics. The BoS asked that we query other townships about their experience participating in the program and why they decided to participate.
  11. Township Newsletters - (due dates are 1/15, 4/15, 7/15, 10/15.) Solomon to pick a piece of NN and Goodman will do one on Bird Town.
  12. Riparian buffer maintenance - Outdoor updates beginning again in March. Goodman and Armstrong worked on Phase 2 buffer at Brightside last week. Goodman agreed with Armstrong’s proposal to get out there 1x per month. Goodman learned that Deerfield will mow their planting area.
  13. Review of PA Outdoor Corps to help with invasive removal in riparian zone of Brightside Park - No adult teams available to Charlestown for 2024. Discussion of request for consultant to dig out invasives. Armstrong to reach out to Heleniak again. Needs to happen soon.
  14. Battery Collection Program - 2 40 lb. boxes ready to go Fedex.
  15. Increasing Stream Temperatures - postponed until Spring. No update.

Meeting adjourned at 8:55.