10/27/2005 BLUE RIBBON COMMITTEE Minutes

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to - The Chairman said: "Let me ask you this question-You've done this in Sandwich, Barnstable but you haven't done it in Mashpee at all as part of in the school system? Lee Gurney stated: '"Orae of our action items is have the town manager or board chairman contact the school superintendent and have it go." Glenn Santos said: "There's information out there on the DEP Web page for the teachers and the principals. That's education. Along with other lines, were tallying about fertilizer and all that. I'll try to send it out to everybody tomorrow, there's a company out there, Agrisource, and they are basically the pioneers of composting and recycling of yard waste and materials. They've taken river dredging and done salt-water marsh restoration projects. The fields up in Danvers, it was deplorable, basically what they did was put organic layers on the fields. It's something the town might say, listen we're going to do this innovative new system, it's all organic, you cut the fertilization down from six applications, down to like three or four a year. In the fields they lowered their watering by 40%. Water conservation and a lot less fertilizer go on the ground. Because they were putting in organic. If you understand loam and compost, your organic count is two, it isn't too good, but if it's up around seven, then it's really good. The grass and the plants and everything do a. lot of that too, everybody's getting flyers sent to their house. Compost is recycling. Rather than going down the street to buy peat moss, you have a leaf pile in your back yard and you take that compost and that s great for growing plants or whatever, There's a lot of stuff out there. In the school, that's pretty much in place, that's prem much where it is and bow they can use it. That's something that I say,just for instance "The ball fields down here on Rte.130 they used organic and it came out beautiful. I'm going to do that+" The Chainnan said: "That's true, leading by example is one of the best things we can do and as you pointed out, there's a lot of material out there and we don't have to reinvent the wheel. Making the right recommendations giving the recommendation to the school, they have a program, that's definitely the way to go. That's something I thin they would be very receptive to. These are the types of kind soft things that we can do to help move forward and addressing small ways. And if we have enough of all these small things, we can make an impact. And continue to get the picture out on the bigger things. We don't have on our list there." Barbara Kane said: "'I'd tike to see what they do currently. I have no idea what they do.}} The Chairman spoke {`One of my other hats is: What are our educational people doing in conservation and nitrogen." ella Elizenherry spore: "'Being very clear, compile a list of recommendations to the Board ofSelectmen," The Chairman stated: We are supposed to come up a plan that we can give to the constituents so that they can vote on something.