Power Line is Coming to Town

Here's the schedule for ATC's construction of the transmission line across the Yahara Wetlands. Enjoy the view of the wetlands while you can. Helicopters will be setting the structures in the wetlands.

Energ!ze Monona: Buildings: Achieving Maximum Efficiency

It's your money: how can Monona save $?

Efficient buildings save the city on energy costs, lowering our tax bills and lessening the harms of wasteful energy use. Please join us for this, the third of six Energ!ze Monona forums, and learn, share, and save!

Buildings: Achieving Maximum Efficiency.
Designer Christi Weber, LEED AP, Design Coalition; and Janine Glaeser, Projects Coordinator and GIS & IT Specialist, City of Monona.

This forum will look at what is being done and what can be done to increase the energy efficiency of existing buildings, and to make new development and housing more efficient from the start. What directions look most promising for the future? What kinds of zoning or building codes would promote building more energy-efficient buildings and homes?

Wednesday evening, November 2, 6:30 - 8:00
Monona Community Center, Main Hall, 1011 Nichols Road
Refreshments will be served.

Please join the City of Monona, the members of the city's Sustainability Committee, and The Natural Step Monona for this forum. Through February, The Natural Step Monona facilitates a forum around energy: a 20- to 40-minute presentation followed by group discussion of Monona's challenges and opportunities and the key actions to consider for moving our city toward ever less reliance on fossil fuels.

Energ!ze Monona forums are part of the City of Monona's outreach efforts around the "25×25 Plan," a blueprint for generating 25 percent of the energy the city uses from renewable resources by 2025. This plan came from Monona's participation in the state Office of Energy Independence's Energy Independent Communities program.

Energ!ze Monona, Wednesday, October 19

Economic Benefits of Sustainable Energy and Sustainability with Jessie Lerner,Sustain Dane, and Jeanne Hoffman, City of Madison

Wednesday evening, October 19, 6:30 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Monona Community Center, Main Hall
1011 Nichols Road, Monona

Refreshments will be served.

Come learn about Sustainable Energy and how we can save money through sustainable measures.

Jessie Lerner, Director, Sustainable Business Initiative, Sustain Dane; and Jeanne Hoffman, Facilities and Sustainability Manager, City of Madison; with special guest Judy Ziewacz, who created the Energy Independent Communities program and has worked in government and in politics in Washington, DC and Madison for over 35 years.

This forum will give a summary of the benefits of moving toward more sustainable energy use. The advantages are varied and many. Despite often being depicted as too expensive, sustainable measures can and do save money. They also reduce costs for things we don't pay for on our energy bill, such as the health care costs of asthma from polluted air. How can we maximize the return on investment in Monona?

I hope you can join the City of Monona, the members of the city's Sustainability Committee, and The Natural Step Monona for this forum, the second of six. Once per month through February, The Natural Step Monona facilitates a forum around energy: a 20- to 40-minute presentation on the topic, followed by group discussion of our community's challenges and opportunities, and key actions to consider for moving toward ever less reliance on fossil fuels. If you're not from Monona, you are welcome to learn and share alongside us. There is much to learn, no matter where we live.

Energ!ze Monona forums are part of the City of Monona's outreach efforts around its "25x25 Plan," a plan to generate 25 percent of its energy from renewable resources by 2025. The plan came from Monona's participation in the Energy Independent Communities program of the state Office of Energy Independence.

More at mymonona.com.

Green Tuesdays, October 11: Gasland

FREE - MONONA PUBLIC LIBRARY - 6:30 P.M. TO 8:00 P.M.

This Tuesday, October 11: Gasland

"The largest domestic natural gas drilling boom in history has swept across the United States. The Halliburton-developed drilling technology of "fracking" or hydraulic fracturing has unlocked a "Saudi Arabia of natural gas" just beneath us. But is fracking safe? When filmmaker Josh Fox is asked to lease his land for drilling, he embarks on a cross-country odyssey uncovering a trail of secrets, lies and contamination. A recently drilled nearby Pennsylvania town reports that residents are able to light their drinking water on fire. This is just one of the many absurd and astonishing revelations of a new country called GASLAND. Part verité travelogue, part exposé, part mystery, part bluegrass banjo meltdown, part showdown."

Gasland will be paired with Forestry, a short film from Climate Wisconsin, a story of climate change from our own state.

Can't make it to this showing? These films will also be screened at the following Green Tuesdays & Thursdays: October 18, Oregon; and October 25, Mount Horeb.

Inflamed by hydraulic fracturing? Take action here.

Green Tuesdays & Thursdays: Creating awareness, sparking conversation, empowering change.

At Green Tuesdays & Thursdays Films & Lectures you can enjoy free screenings of films, presentations on a wide range of topics, and conversations about our world and how we can make it better, together. All are welcome.

Now in eight communities, Monona's Green Tuesdays are on the second and fifth Tuesdays of the month, from late summer through late spring. See the complete calendar here: www.tnsmonona.org/green-tuesdays-green-thursdays.

Whole Foods Market serves treats at Monona's Green Tuesdays, so come early and stay late for delightful food and drink.

The Green Tuesdays & Thursdays program is sponsored by The Natural Step Monona in collaboration with Oregon Working to Live Sustainably (OWLS), Mount Horeb Area Sustainability Network, RGPL Green Tuesdays (Cross Plains), the City of Middleton Sustainability Committee, Edgewood College, Sustainable Atwood, Madison College (MATC), and the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies. Green Tuesdays & Thursdays are brought to you by The Natural Step Monona, supported by the Madison Gas & Electric Foundation, the Dane County Environmental Council, and Richard and Judy Fritz.

Door Prize!
Bring your own water bottle or cup and be entered to win Richard Fortey's book: Life: A Natural History of the First Four Billion Years of Life on Earth.

Next Wednesday: Energ!ze Monona

Peak Oil and Monona with Justin Bloesch, UW Madison Student; and Bob Stoffs, Madison Gas & Electric.

The first of six free Energ!ze Monona forums is Wednesday, September 21 from 6:30 to 8:00 in the Monona Community Center Main Hall. Justin Bloesch, a UW-Madison student and graduate of Monona Grove High School who has extensively studied and presented on energy and sustainability, will give a short presentation on Peak Oil. Bob Stoffs, Community Services Manager for Madison Gas and Electric Company (MG&E), will share an overview of electric vehicles and MG&E’s charging stations, including two recently installed in Monona. The presentations will be followed by group discussion. Refreshments will be provided.

By learning about energy, and then discussing how Monona can work towards becoming more energy independent, Monona’s citizens can help the city realize its “25x25 Plan,” a blueprint for generating 25 percent of the energy the city uses from renewable resources by 2025. Says Bloesch, “The Energ!ze Monona forums are important because they help us prepare for the future. We must be prepared for a world in which more and more people compete for fewer and fewer resources.”

From his presentation on peak oil, attendees can “learn how the global oil market impacts people's everyday lives,” says Bloesch. “An event halfway across the world can affect even the economy of Monona.”

Stoffs will share information about electric vehicles (EVs), charging stations, and how MG&E is studying the stations. The information gathered from the study will help MG&E plan how to support the future energy needs of EV use in our area. This project is partially funded by a U.S. Department of Energy Stimulus Grant.

Asked about the biggest misconception about peak oil, Bloesch said it “is that the world will run out of oil. Instead, we will be finding expensive, hard to reach, inconvenient, and environmentally destructive forms of oil. The question is not ‘is it there?’ The question becomes ‘is it worth it?’”


Dave Toso, Electrical Engineer at MG&E demonstrates how to use this electric vehicle charging station, one of two just installed at the Monona Community Center.

Purty Pictures

Some photos I took of wildflowers along the Capital City Trail and of lily pads on Lake Wingra.

Monona City Council Preview - June 6, 2011

The Monona city council gathers next Monday. Several items of interest are on the agenda.  

* a. Consideration of Resolution 11-06-1781, 2010 Compliance Maintenance Annual Report (CMAR) Review and Recommendations (Director of Public Works).

b. Consideration of Resolution 11-06-1782 Authorization to Proceed with Planning for Tax Increment District Amendment (CDA). This resolution would begin the process of amending TID #2. City Redevelopment Districts can be viewed here (related but not the same as TIDs). Somewhat dated TID map.TID #2 is at the southern end of the city along Broadway.

* c. Consideration of Resolution 11-06-1783 Approval of Proposal from BT Squared for Design, Surveying, and Construction Engineering Services for 2011 Dredging Project (Public Works Committee). This item is a $54,000 engineering services contract. It concerns me that proposals were not sought from any other engineering firm. I copy the entire resolution below. BT Squared has done the engineering for the Belle Isle street project that is currently underway.

My concerns about the process are several:

Foremost is the lack of engineering proposals from other firms. We might have gotten a better proposal from another firm. BT Squared's involvement in the Belle Isle area gives them a better understanding of the issues relating to the dredging project. Is that factor enough to warrant exclusion of other firms from consideration?

Second, according to the resolution,"the Public Works Committee directed staff to work with BT Squared to develop a proposal to provide design and construction engineering services for the dredging...". Directing staff in that manner is not the PWC's role. I look forward to hearing more about the process at Monday's meeting.

Third, the absence of competing proposals is contrary to city policy for professional contracts in this amount. 

WHEREAS

, the 2011 Capital Budget includes of total of $250,000 for Belle Isle dredging to be

completed in conjunction with the scheduled 2011 street improvements to Tecumseh Avenue,

Neponset Trail, Nishishin Trail, Nishishin Trail NE and Pocahontas Drive in the Belle Isle

neighborhood; and,

WHEREAS

, the Public Works Committee, acknowledging the work completed by BT Squared to date as

engineer for the 2011 Belle Isle street improvements project, and recognizing the benefits of project

continuity, directed staff to work with BT Squared to develop a proposal to provide design and

construction engineering services for the dredging of the lagoons on Belle Isle; and,

WHEREAS

, BT Squared submitted a proposal (attached) which includes planning, design, permitting,

bid document preparation, and construction administration services to dredge silt from Lagoon du

Nord, Lagoon du Sud, and Sumac Lagoon on Belle Isle and pipe the silt to Winnequah Park for

dewatering during the fall of 2011 (Phase 1), then use the dredged material for the grading of a

section of Winnequah Park in 2012 (Phase 2); and,

WHEREAS

, the Public Works Committee, at its regularly scheduled meeting on June 1, 2011,

recommended that the City contract with BT Squared to perform Phase I of the work.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED,

by the Common Council of the City of Monona that Phase

I of the proposal by BT Squared to provide design, surveying, and construction engineering services

for the dredging of Lagoon du Nord, Lagoon du Sud, and Sumac Lagoon at a cost not to exceed

$54,130 is hereby approved, and the Director of Public Works is authorized to proceed with the

processing of an Independent Contractor Agreement with BT Squared to provide the aforementioned

services.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED

, that the Director of Public Works is hereby directed to investigate the

cost and permit requirements needed to dredge the inlet between Cove Circle and Squaw Circle and

to issue a future amendment to the contract with BT Squared to include design and construction

engineering for dredging at this location.

***

* d. Consideration of Resolution 11-06-1784 Award of Contract for 2011 Road Maintenance Program (Public Works Committee).

* e. Consideration of Resolution 11-06-1785 Award of Contract for 2011 Parking Lot Maintenance Program (Public Works Committee).

H. Miscellaneous Business.

1. Update on South Winnequah Road Safety Recommendations (City Administrator). I requested this report because I'm wondering what the status is of the actions required by the council (other than removing the Frost Woods stop signs).

APPROVAL OF PROPOSAL FROM BT SQUARED FOR DESIGN, SURVEYING, AND

CONSTRUCTION ENGINEERING SERVICES FOR 2011 DREDGING PROJECT

Divers Take a Stake in the Lake

From Dane County Land & Water Resources Department:

Long-time Take a Stake in the Lakes participant, Four Lakes Scuba Club has scheduled their final clean up dive for Saturday, June 4, 2011, with a Dive for DAN event (Diver Area Network, a diver safety association) at Mendota County Park, Shelter #1 from10 a.m.-4 p.m. Madison Scuba will also be hosting a dive at Law Park from 10 am - 2 pm. The dives and clean ups are a part of Take a Stake in the Lakes Days, June 4-19, 2011, promoting public awareness of and celebrating Dane County’s lakes and streams.

Dives also took place on lakes Kegonsa and Waubesa on May 14 and 15, and on Lakes Monona and Mendota on May 21 and 22 to take advantage of the clear water. Items commonly found during clean-up dives are anchors, broken glass and ceramic, and other garbage and trash.

“Above water” clean ups are scheduled 9 a.m.-noon on Saturday, June 11 and Saturday, June 18, 2011 (information center at Law Park on June 18 only). More information on Take a Stake in the Lakes Days is available at www.takeastakeinthelakes.com <http://www.takeastakeinthelakes.com>.

Over the years, thousands of volunteers have removed hundreds of tons of waste from the shores of Lakes Mendota, Monona, Waubesa, Wingra and Kegonsa as well as rivers and streams in Dane County. During Take a Stake in the Lakes Clean Up events, groups, individuals and families adopt a beach, shoreline, boat launch, stream or river and collect litter and rake aquatic debris from the shoreline and shallow waters. Some volunteers collect trash while paddling their canoes or kayaks. Many groups then have a picnic in the park they’ve just cleaned up. Garbage bags, supplies and t-shirts are provided.

In addition to picking up garbage, volunteers also mark storm drains with colorful disks that are glued to the curb that remind folks to keep litter, leaves and grass clippings out of the gutters, which drain directly to the lakes.

To reserve your group’s favorite park, stream or stretch of shoreline, or to find out how you can help protect our beautiful lakes by sponsoring this annual event, contact Rhea Stangel-Maier at 608-224-3601 or stangel-maier@co.dane.wi.us <mailto:stangel-maier@co.dane.wi.us>. Volunteers may also go to the information center in Law Park on June 18 to register onsite.

To Dive for DAN, contact Ellen Evans at 835-9462 or president@FourLakesScubaClub.org <mailto:president@FourLakesScubaClub.org>. or to join Madison Scuba, contact Kim Olsen 279-3908 or kim@madisonscuba.com <mailto:kim@madisonscuba.com>. 

Take a Stake in the Lakes Clean Up events are sponsored by the Dane County Lakes & Watershed Commission, with support from Dane County Parks, Dane County Public Works and Dane County UW Extension, and is sponsored by many local businesses and organizations.

#  #  #

Green Tuesdays Films & Lectures

FREE - MONONA PUBLIC LIBRARY - 6:30 P.M. TO 8:00 P.M.

Next Tuesday, May 10: Blue Vinyl and Plastics--One through Seven

With humor, chutzpah, and a piece of vinyl siding firmly in hand, award-winning filmmaker Judith Helfand* and award-winning cinematographer Daniel B. Gold search for the truth about polyvinyl chloride (PVC), America's most popular plastic. From Long Island to Louisiana to Italy, they unearth the facts about PVC and its effects on human health and the environment. Back at the starter ranch, Helfand coaxes her terribly patient parents into replacing their vinyl siding on the condition that she can find a healthy, affordable alternative (and it has to look good!). A detective story, an eco-activism doc, and a rollicking comedy, Blue Vinyl shows the dangers posed by PVC at every stage, from factory to incinerator. Consumer consciousness and the "precautionary principle" have never been this much fun.

Also student short Plastics--One through Seven shows how one Wisconsin woman's idea changed an entire industry.

Can't make it to Monona? Catch these films in Oregon on May 17, Mt. Horeb on May 19, and Cross Plains on June 17. (Calendar here.)

*Helfand was an artist in residence as part of the UW-Madison's Arts Institute Interdisciplinary Arts Residency Program!

Green Tuesdays: Creating awareness, sparking conversation, empowering change.

Green Tuesdays Films & Lectures is a free series of films, presentations, and conversations that helps us become more aware of the resources we rely on and the actions we can take to better our world. Green Tuesdays start at 6:30 and run until 8:00. Sessions are on the second and fifth Tuesdays of the month, September through May. All are welcome. Whole Foods Market serves treats, so come early and stay late for food, drink, and conversation.

Green Tuesdays, a project of The Natural Step Monona and the Monona Public Library, now reaches four additional communities: Mt. Horeb, Middleton, Cross Plains, and Oregon.

Green Tuesdays is sponsored by The Natural Step Monona in collaboration with Oregon Working to Live Sustainably (OWLS), Mount Horeb Area Sustainability Network, RGPL Green Tuesdays (Cross Plains), the City of Middleton Sustainability Committee, Edgewood College, and the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, and is supported by the Dane County Environmental Council.

Finish Your Survey!

Hey! Yeah, you. You put that TNS Monona survey aside and forgot to fill it out out, dintcha?

Me too and then I remembered it and answered all the questions. Then I got invited to this cool event. Gnarly. Not on the DL at all.

I'd put the tinyurl up here, but then the whole world would be taking Monona's survey. Just imagine the chaos.


Please remember that you are invited to a special event:

Sustainable Monona 2025

Thursday, May 5th, 6:30 - 8:30pm

Monona Community Center Main Hall

1011 Nichols Road, Monona, WI 53716

The students will share the results of the survey, the City will share information on its 25x25 Plan for Energy Independence, and you can share more of your thoughts and ideas about Monona’s future, too. There will be much to learn and to celebrate! The event is open to the public.

Please join The Natural Step Monona, the students, and the City for fun and fellowship, and to help them increase and improve their efforts to protect our natural world.

Refreshments provided.

Chromium-6 and Monona's Drinking Water

I recently looked into chromium-6 levels in Monona's drinking water. City staff reports that The city of Monona's most used well had "no detection."(Well #3 is located along Broadway/South Towne Drive near the Beltline).  Monona's other two wells had an average chromium-6 level of 1.24 ppb in the most recent testing. (Note: Monona's 2009 Waterworks Consumer Confidence Report showed total chromium at 2 ppb, but does not provide a separate test result for chromium 6.) 

The City of Madison Water Utility chromium webpage reports levels in its drinking water ranging from 0.4 to 1.8 ug/L or parts per billion (ppb).
 
All of these results are far lower than the EPA standard for total chromium (100 ppb), but EPA has not set a specific standard for chromium 6 (aka, hexavalent chromium) and all chromium is not created equally. The state of California has been considering adopting a 0.06 ppb chromium-6 standard (now reduced even farther to 0.02 ppb). The California Department of Public Health has considerable info. There are serious questions about whether such a standard is reasonably attainable.


Opinions vary on what are acceptable, reasonable levels, or safe levels of exposure to chromium-6 - or indeed whether there are such levels. The Environmental Working Group tested tap water in 35 cities. The average was 1.8 ppb. In that study Madison's water tested at 1.58 ppb. http://www.ewg.org/chromium6-in-tap-water

ABC News posted this story with contrary opinions from other scientists. (Scientists Say No Need for Alarm Over Chromium-6 in Drinking Water - Report on 'Erin Brockovich' Chemical' Called 'Alarmist').

While the story may be correct, I do take issue with couple things. The headline is like a fatherly pat on the head to all of us simple little people. "Don't worry, Father Knows Best". The sub-headline shouts that the EWG report was "alarmist". The story feels like the Official New and is really an opinion piece masquerading as straight news.

***

MORE INFORMATION ABOUT CHROMIUM


DNR has a PDF on chromium-6. http://dnr.wi.gov/org/water/dwg/chromium.pdf

The Madison Water Utility also has some good info and resources:

Madison Water Utility: Frequently Asked Questions about Chromium 6

US EPA – Basic Information about Chromium in Drinking Water

US EPA – Statement on Chromium-6 in Drinking Water

Monona Survey

Would you share just five to ten minutes of your time to help make a better community? That’s what The Natural Step Monona, the University of Wisconsin Nelson Institute, and the City of Monona are asking you to do starting tomorrow.

On Thursday, March 31, members of The Natural Step Monona and students from the University of Wisconsin Nelson Institute start knocking on doors to deliver a short survey about the ways you and your neighbors are adopting sustainable behaviors and how you learn about conserving the natural resources that support life. They will deliver the survey over the course of a couple of weeks. You can fill out the survey on paper and mail it back via prepaid envelope or fill it out online. The online link is noted on the survey delivered to your door.This research project is a collaboration between The Natural Step Monona, UW-Madison's Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, and the City of Monona. It includes an event on May 5 at the Community Center: "Sustainable Monona 2025." You are invited. Students will share the results of the survey, the City will share information on its 25x25 Plan for Energy Independence, and you can share more of your thoughts and ideas about Monona's future, too. The event is open to the public.

The survey is anonymous and confidential, and will help all of us learn how we can make more and better progress toward a more sustainable community. So, please answer the door, participate in the survey, and join your neighbors for “Sustainable Monona 2025” on May 5!

Green Tuesdays Films & Lectures

Introduction to Organic Gardening with Erin Schneider

Tuesday, March 29, 6:30 – 8:00pm, Monona Public Library, 1000 Nichols Road, Free

Learn how to turn your yard into an “edible ecotopia” by attending this introduction to organic gardening from Erin Schneider, co-owner of Hilltop Community Farm, LLC, and a Fellow and Facilitator with the UW Office of Human Resource Development.

On tap from Schneider: how to look at garden design from a systems perspective—from the ground up—and then design our backyards and gardens in the image of an ecosystem. Schneider will emphasize site preparation and sustainable garden design for urban areas. She’ll also share ways to integrate perennials into a vegetable garden, information about plant guilds and plant community functions, and more tools for creating abundance.

Green Tuesdays: Creating awareness, sparking conversation, empowering change.
Green Tuesdays Films & Lectures is a free series of films, presentations, and conversations that helps us become more aware of the resources we rely on and the actions we can take to better our world. In Monona, sessions are on the second and fifth Tuesdays of the month, September through May. All are welcome. Whole Foods Market serves treats, so come early and stay late for food, drink, and conversation.

You can also enjoy Green Tuesdays (and Thursdays!) with our partners in Oregon, Mt. Horeb, Cross Plains, Madison, and Middleton. To see the calendar for all Green Tuesday and Thursday dates, go to www.tnsmonona.org/green-tuesdays-green-thursdays.

Green Tuesdays is sponsored by The Natural Step Monona in collaboration with Oregon Working to Live Sustainably (OWLS), Mount Horeb Area Sustainability Network, RGPL Green Tuesdays (Cross Plains), the City of Middleton Sustainability Committee, Edgewood College, and the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, and is supported by the Dane County Environmental Council.

Upcoming Green Tuesdays in Monona:
April 12: Big River/King Corn and An End to Slim Pickings
May 10: Blue Vinyl and Plastics—One through Seven

ALNC Needs Your Vote Too

A message from Monona's own Aldo Leopold Nature Center:

There Are Only Two Weeks Left To Help The Aldo Leopold Nature Center Win $10K!

Dear Doug,

As you may know, the Aldo Leopold Nature Center is competing against 11 other nonprofits to win Heartland Credit Union's "Go Local" contest to support our expansion project. This project will enable us to double our teaching capacity to 60,000 students per year.

We need your votes to win and there are only two weeks left to vote!!!

From now until April 3, 2011, visit https://www.heartlandcu.org/Go-Local/Finalists/Aldo-Leopold.aspx everyday to vote for our project.

If you vote everyday, we have a very good chance of winning the $10,000!

Every vote matters!! Our success depends on the number of votes our project receives, so please vote and help us spread the word by forwarding this email to your friends, family and colleagues!

Thank you, in advance, for voting for the Aldo Leopold Nature Center!

What are you waiting for?! Go stuff the ballot box.

Lecture:Engineering an Electrified Steel Interstate

FYI.

Engineering an Electrified Steel Interstate:


Oil-Free Transportation Options for the 21st Century

By Alan S. Drake, transportation researcher and independent consultant

Thursday, March 24 at 6:00 PM


1800 Engineering Hall


1415 Engineering Drive, Madison, WI


http://tinyurl.com/4nm2ete

Green Tuesdays Films & Lectures

Free films: The End of the Line and Getting Them Home

Date: Next Tuesday – 3/08/2011
Time: 6:30pm – 8:00pm
Location: Monona Public Library, 1000 Nichols Road

Imagine a world without fish. The End of the Line is the world's first major documentary about the devastating effect of overfishing. Scientists predict that if we continue fishing as we are now, we will see the end of most seafood by 2048. Solutions exist, but we have to act. Also student short Getting Them Home: a love story...with a wild streak.

Can't make it to Monona? Catch these films in Oregon on March 15, Middleton and Mt. Horeb on March 17, and Cross Plains on April 5. (Calendar here.)

Green Tuesdays: Creating awareness, sparking conversation, empowering change.
Share in learning and thoughtful discussion with others who care about creating a more sustainable world. Free films and presentations prime the conversations about the natural, social, and economic systems we rely on and ways to support more sustainable living. Monona's Green Tuesdays are on the second and fifth Tuesdays of the month, from September through May. All are welcome. Whole Foods Market serves treats, so come early and stay late for delightful food and drink.

You can also enjoy Green Tuesdays (and Thursdays!) with our partners in five locations: Oregon, Mt. Horeb, Cross Plains, Madison, and Middleton. The calendar for all Green Tuesday and Thursday dates: www.tnsmonona.org/green-tuesdays-green-thursdays.

Green Tuesdays is sponsored by The Natural Step Monona in collaboration with Oregon Working to Live Sustainably (OWLS), Mount Horeb Area Sustainability Network, RGPL Green Tuesdays (Cross Plains), the City of Middleton Sustainability Committee, Edgewood College, and the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, and is supported by the Dane County Environmental Council.

Mark your calendars for upcoming Green Tuesdays in Monona:
March 29: Organic Gardening with Erin Schneider of Hilltop Community Farm
April 12: Big River/King Corn with An End to Slim Pickings
May 10: Blue Vinyl with Plastics--One through Seven

What's That Funky Smell?

You may have noticed a peculiar smell around town recently - no, I'm not talking about the odor emanating from the East Wing of the State Capital. I'm referring to that gaseous sewer-like smell that has been hovering around the 5400-5500 blocks of Winnequah Road by the lagoon (between Winnequah Trail and Healy Lane).

I was contacted a number of weeks ago by a couple of residents and requested that city staff look into it. The city's contractor, McCann's Underground has been to the site and dug out some material (around the culvert under Winnequah, I think). The smell persists and was quite bad today (Monday).

[ADDENDUM]: The city administrator informs me that the city has also had MG&E at the sit and they have confirmed there is not a gas leak. City staff continues to monitor it. The suspected cause is decaying vegetative matter.]

Maybe they'll un-cover Jimmy Hoffa.

Monona City Council Report - January 3, 2011

The Monona city council met for the first time in 2011 last night sans the mayor who was attending the inaugural doings. As a result, I chaired the Finance meeting based on seniority and alder Wiswell chaired the council meeting as council president.

Here's the full agenda.

Here's the full packet.

Dane County Supervisor Robin Schmidt provided a very informative update on the county budget and a number of policy items. I will do a separate post on her report.


In regular business:

The council approved Resolution 10-12-1744 Amendment to Independent Contractor Agreement with Foth Infrastructure and Environment for Engineering Services for Monona Drive Phase II (Ad Hoc Monona Drive Advisory Committee). The costs will be split 50% Dane County, 25% Madison, 25% Monona. We will also pick up 100% the design costs related to Monona's water & sewer utility work.

We suspended the rules and voted on two non-controversial items:

The council approved Resolution 11-1-1746 Authorizing Right-of-Way Acquisition for Phase II of the Monona Drive Improvements (Ad Hoc Monona Drive Advisory Committee). This approval was needed so that real estate appraisals and acquisitions can commence for phase 2.

The council approved Ordinance 1-11-622 Amending Section 2-3-6 of the Code of Ordinances Concerning Municipal Court (City Clerk). The changes bring the ordiances into line with changes in state law.

We did not suspend the rules on a Resolution 11-1-1747 Approving a Renewal and Amendment to the Employment Agreement with the City Administrator (Mayor Kahl, City Attorney). The council discussed a two-year contract extension and pay raise for the city administrator in closed session. His pay would increase from $87,944 to $91,000 in 2011 and to $94,000 in 2012. Percentage-wise the raises are 3.47% and 3.2%, respectively. For the next meeting, I asked that we receive a copy of a salary survey done in the last year that covered this position and other department heads.

The council also heard a report from the city administrator of his performance reviews of the department heads.

The council approved appointments to the Sustainability Committee. Now that the committee is no longer ad hoc we needed to appoint members to the standing committee. With two exceptions, the current members were appointed to staggered 1-, 2-, and 3-year terms. George Kinsler decided not to stay on the committee because of time demands from business matters. Alder Mike Veserat indicated he could not make Thursday meetings (the committee chose the third Thursday of the month as its regular meeting date). Leslie Busse will take George's spot and alder Jim Busse will fill in for Mike at least through April.

a. Heather Gates (May 1, 2011 – April 30, 2014)

b. Jim Keck (May 1, 2011 – April 30, 2014)

c. Suzanne Wade (May 1, 2011 – April 30, 2014)

d. Nancy Moore (May 1, 2011 – April 30, 2014)

e. Nichole Hester (May 1, 2011 – April 30, 2013

f. Peter McKeever (May 1, 2011 – April 30, 2013)

g. Bert Slinde (May 1, 2011 – April 30, 2013)

h. Bob Miller (May 1, 2011 – April 30, 2012)

i. Pat Howell (May 1, 2011 – April 30, 2012)

j. Leslie Busse (effective immediately – April 30, 2012)

k. Alderman Jim Busse (effective immediately through April 18, 2011).

Green Tuesdays Films & Lectures

FREE - MONONA PUBLIC LIBRARY - 6:30 P.M. TO 8:00 P.M.

Next Tuesday, January 11: A River of Waste, plus student short, America's Dairyland

A heart-stopping new documentary, A River of Waste exposes the huge health and environmental horrors of our modern industrial system of meat and poultry production, a system dominated by the use of arsenic, antibiotics, and growth hormones, a system which dumps massive amounts of sewage into fragile community waterways. This film provides evidence of the harms caused by our massive consumption of cheap meat and poultry. Student short, America's Dairyland, invites you to meet today's milk producers and cheese packers - Farmer Johns and Farmer Juans, the new faces of dairy production.

Green Tuesdays: Creating awareness, sparking conversation, empowering change.
A free series of films, presentations, and conversations that help us become more aware of the resources we rely on and the actions we can take to better our world, Monona's Green Tuesdays are on the second and fifth Tuesdays of the month, from September through May. All are welcome.

Green Tuesdays, a project of The Natural Step Monona and the Monona Public Library, now reaches four additional communities: Mt. Horeb, Middleton, Cross Plains, and Oregon. To see the calendar for all Green Tuesday and Thursday dates, go to www.tnsmonona.org/green-tuesdays-green-thursdays. Whole Foods serves treats, so please come early for delightful food and drink.

Green Tuesdays is sponsored by The Natural Step Monona in collaboration with Oregon Working to Live Sustainably (OWLS), Mount Horeb Area Sustainability Network, RGPL Green Tuesdays (Cross Plains), the City of Middleton Sustainability Committee, Cottage Grove Green Tuesdays, and the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, and is supported by the Dane County Environmental Council.

Upcoming Green Tuesdays in Monona:
February 8: Trees with Sean Gere of Gere Tree Care.
March 8: End of the Line and Getting Them Home.

Greener Monona

If not Bluer and Brighter (or was it Breezier?), we are making progress in making Monona greener in at least two ways: using less energy and saving greenbacks in the process.

The Monona Sustainability Committee met this week and  heard from a citizen about excessive outdoor residential lighting, discussed several initiatives, and heard a report on the city's 25X25 Plan.

New Staff: The new committee staff for the Sustainability Committee, Andrew Hagen and Jeff Greger attended the meeting. Andy is the city/school cable guy. Jeff is the Assistant to City Eng./GIS Specialist. He did much of the work to put the 25X25 plan together, esp. data collection and analysis.

Pat Marsh will continue to staff the committee on an as needed basis.

The agenda is here. We also handed out homework to the committee members, but, hey, could you help me do my homework? Pleaaaassse?
 

Green Monona Tour. Putting the Tour on Cable TV and city website.

We want to record green things people do/have/practice in their homes or businesses. They do not have to be on the actual Green Monona Tour to be on the Virtual Tour. These clips will be on the website and cable channel. We will add a few as we can and they can be filmed at any time of the year. Suggestions welcome.




Green Monona Map.

Green Tips. 25X25 Education Initiative


As part of the city's 25X25 Plan, we are committed to doing community education intiatives. The Committee wants to come up with "5 Tips that You Can Do" and build an education program around them. Put up the list all over town.

Some could be easy, some could be hard. We need to express the idea/thing/practice in a few words. Suggest a green tip.

***

Personally, I'm hoping we can work in the Green Weenie somehow - Pittsburgh Pirates, Bob Prince and all that.



The Committee is still working on defining the purpose of the map. We are looking for examples (and have found some).

http://www.greenatlas.org/intro.html with a map of Milwaukee.

http://www.greenmap.org/

http://www.opengreenmap.org/home

And one for Dubuque: http://www.opengreenmap.org/greenmap/dubuque

Watch this video - a 9-1/2 minute PBS clip about Dubuque about the greening of that city. (There is a bit of the East Coast bias - sort of "Gosh, Dubuque, Iowa?)

Racine Google Map.

What places/businesses/projects around town should be on the map? Suggestions welcome.