HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 09-02-2010 - 3aORANGE COUNTY
BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT
Meeting Date: September 2, 2010
Action Agenda
Item No.
SUBJECT• Designation of Eurosport Soccer Center as a Groundwater Guardian Green Site
DEPARTMENT: Environment, Agriculture, PUBLIC HEARING: (YIN) No
Parks and Recreation
ATTACHMENT: INFORMATION CONTACTS:
Groundwater Guardian Green Site. Tom Davis, 245-2513
Brochure Dan Derby, 732-4352
Groundwater Guardian Green Site Logo Curt Farmer, 304-1177
David Stancil, 245-2522
Lori Taft, 245-2660
PURPOSE: To acknowledge the designation of the County's Eurosport Soccer Center
complex as a Groundwater Guardian Green Site by The Groundwater Foundation.
BACKGROUND: The Groundwater Foundation is anon-profit organization whose mission is to
educate and motivate the public to appreciate and care for groundwater. The Groundwater
Guardian Green Site program was begun by The Groundwater Foundation to recognize good
stewardship of groundwater by encouraging managers of highly-managed green spaces to
implement and document their groundwater-friendly practices. The program documents "green"
site practices including pesticide and fertilizer use, water use and water. quality, pollution
prevention and environmental stewardship.
The purpose of the program is to educate site managers and staff as well as the public about
groundwater and the importance of routine site practices and the potential impact of these
practices on groundwater. The Groundwater Guardian Green Site program encourages the use
of groundwater-friendly practices at highly-managed sites. DEAPR staff completed an
extensive application form to evaluate and document site practices and procedures at the
Eurosport Soccer Center, including tracking irrigation use, soil testing, fertilizer application
procedures, materials handling and disposal practices, and the use of plant materials that are
suitable for the climate in this area. This process confirmed that the Eurosport Soccer Center is
being managed and operated by Orange County in agroundwater-friendly manner. It is hoped
that the designation of the site as a Groundwater Guardian Green Site will help educate the
public on the importance and practicality of adopting "green" practices which will in turn
encourage the sustainability of the groundwater resource.
It should be noted that this is the first site in North Carolina to achieve Groundwater Guardian
Green Site status from The Groundwater Foundation.
FINANCIAL IMPACT: There is no financial impact associated with this award.
RECOMMENDATION(S): The Manager recommends that the Board receive the Groundwater
Guardian Green Site designation for the Eurosport Soccer Center.
1
- v
t:a{'f3l i't7b'~Jt`1j.:''' IS •fTit?G!'(.dtl: 11' SC
"I': r~.'cli; .•r'i1v S. 4,)er i'i' r:.~)°u CYI '.~i.' t).:~.
(.??. p: :,V(<lt.i;)n U?-ii1jC.5 !TrG`i.I4it~VVcli~°Y
1.~ a <otlrE:!~ ~(dri{Y4.irl;j vaa~tEN
.. l4~tl`~t i;r r ,j 1%~!j ~!"C', i'.Ti tY
Y~'CV ~'.<..I()(i it c7 ~':?(';' 4).'I tji'E3~i',tjvJcl{:!'('
i {
.fit. iteit) 4.11.,1} t.)1?~;{l lt~~:.'.:t
its { ~4 n ~ a+ ,rc, 4ircxt tj•.nJ<zi4.r
1. ,..j.:.'tt :Y11.;1lil{.(rr4t.^iiifj F!i~'iC.j
t~l~a; 1 I ~ .: ~4tt E{ ~ r rl ?ii tl ci:~-~r{s
,~~Cj ~~(;~ (,.. C€$ G; t.;l'iil:ili.l•r„clif'Y
.....:I': fE; i:El ii'ii P'vC~~OYI@ Clay' Ej ii ,(i
t .i
~`,
Yt
~.
~,.. -; -
,~ .! t
t"-. ~ .~ ~ ~. F
a
s u~*'~' _> ..~
_ ~ ,, • »*
~~' --
. s ''~ " _ .
-~
~~~~ w+. a .... ~ ~ Y a` _
.ar:
_, .r"".".3~.t -_ ~ ..u~_.., - .:rte.
y,w~~ ~ .: y+'_
~ - .
. .
~ ~ ~-~~.
c '~ _ ~ : s+
~r ~ ~_:
Z ~.
The GG Green Site program is supported
by the Nebraska Environmental Trust, U.S. C
Environmental Protection Agency Region 7 '
Pollution Prevention Program, and the W.K.
Kellogg Foundation. ,;,
GG Green Sites is a program of The
Groundwater Foundation. The Groundwater
Foundation is a non-profit organization -
2 with a mission to educate and motivate the
public to care about and for groundwater.
Since its inception in 1985, the Foundation
has developed and delivered high quality
groundwater educational programs, projects,
and opportunities for youth, adults, and
communities. For more information about
the Foundation, visit www.groundwater.org.
IIII ~ ~i
~ ~
~~~~
U
l~:S
ir~~ 1~
~
~
,
v J C`^~
~ .~
~®
LJ i U,~
~~~ ~~
,. w
T F
z ~,
S a
~T ~
.. 6R CUAR~~~~ ~
o, ..
~ ~
~'~ Sd` ~
~ ... w~-
y a
_ z w y~. ~~ ` ~'
'Y~w-
._
~- '
~'~ .-
n ~ ~5 y ~ rY'
~
i.
ri ~ .~ .,
Groundwater Guardian Green Site
What
The Groundwater Guardian Green Site (GG Green Site)
program was developed to recognize good stewards of
groundwater by encouraging managers of highly-managed
green spaces to implement, measure, and document their
groundwater-friendly practices.The program also serves
to expand and enhance the existing community-based
Groundwater Guardian program by presenting aland-use/
best practices component to Groundwater Guardian teams
and other interested partners.
The GG Green Site program
will calculate, document, and
recognize the environmental ~~ `~~~'
and water quality benefit - Y
of groundwater-friendly
practices on highly-managed
green spaces. Designation is ~s`'~
based on the completion of
an application and earning
at least 70% of total
applicable points based on
current practices related to
pesticide and fertilizer use,
water use, managing sources '
of pollution, protecting water
quality, and environmental stewardship.
groundwater stewardship efforts to site visitors and the
community.
Managers applying for GG Green Site status complete and
~ submit the application by December 31 to be designated in
• that program year. To maintain GG Green Site designation,
'~` ' ~ sites simply review their application for accuracy on an
,;~ annual basis. GG Green Sites designated prior to The
Groundwater Foundation's National Conference, held each
~ November, are nationally recognized in conjunction with the
t Groundwater Guardian Nati I
-- _,. ~, ono Designation Celebration.
w,
f
~s
`~ -`J program and no affiliation with
~'k ~ar,~uv~i;' a Groundwater Guardian team
~_~j ''~~ is necessary.
Managers of highly-managed green spaces can apply for GG
Green Site designation. Highly managed green spaces can
include, but not be limited to:
• Golf courses
• Sall fields
• Educational campuses
• Residential, recreation, and office parks
• Wellhead protection areas
• Nature centers
The GG Green Site program grew out of a project seeking
to revitalize and grow The Groundwater Foundation's
Groundwater Guardian, a program that works to
support, recognize, and connect communities of all types
implementing groundwater education and protection
activities on the local level. GG Green Sites is open to
all sites implementing groundwater-friendly practices. No
team is required for participation in the GG Green Site
Being guardians and good
stewards of groundwater is
something managers and
superintendents of highly-
managed green spaces strive
to do every day, whether
it's through protecting a well, using water efficiently,
managing fertilizer and pesticide use, or controlling runoff.
The GG Green Site program was designed to celebrate
and recognize highly-managed green spaces for their
groundwater stewardship by:
• Publicly recognizing highly-managed green spaces for
their groundwater stewardship.
• Generating positive PR for each site.
• Providing an opportunity for managers and
superintendents of highly-managed green spaces to
educate themselves, site staff, and site visitors about
groundwater.
• Documenting the environmental benefit of each site's
groundwater-friendly practices.
• Encouraging the sustained use of groundwater-friendly
practices on highly-managed green spaces.
There's no time like the present! Sites can take advantage
of the exclusive GG Green Site logo and name as soon
as they are designated, helping to show off the site's
Each GG Green Site uses a simple application to collect
data and document the environmental impact of their
groundwater-friendly practices, such as pounds
of fertilizer saved annually by using lower input
plants, gallons of water saved annually by using low
water/ maintenance plant materials, and amounts
of toxic substances disposed of properly. GG Green
Sites also document their efforts, both for site staff
and externally for site visitors. The application itself
serves dual purposes -first, as a way to objectively
and uniformly evaluate each site's practices, and
second, as an educational tool for site managers
and staff to learn about the positive impact of
the work they do. Ali information submitted to
The Groundwater Foundation in GG Green Site program
applications is confidential, and will not be shared without
the permission of the GG Green Site.
To learn more about or participate in the GG Green Site
program, visit :,~~~,,;r;,l?'(iuliC.''tid'i{,i:~'":;E:`yl'~c~;•~,r~;~:i i'i:(.,S.I?CI'Yl! OY
contact The Groundwater Foundation at 1-800-858-4844
OY <In,;,'rii<)fi((`~~rCitYitl`A;i'arr.ti r'/. To learn more about the
Groundwater Guardian Community program, visit :;-;~ ;~~.
`I<•pL~tiCi•a`: a'.E%r,Cf'gjlr/c'~ff,i-; ~.i~,-~ i.
Groundwater is important in so many ways. Over 50%
of the U.S. population utilizes groundwater as a source
of drinking water. Industry, agriculture, and recreation
also rely on groundwater to Help their businesses thrive.
However, because of its hidden nature, groundwater is often
misunderstood and underappreciated. Being guardians and
good stewards of groundwater is something everyone can
do in their daily lives, whether it's protecting a well, using
water efficiently, managing fertilizer and pesticide use, or
controlling runoff.
wwev.grou~~d~.va~erorg/gg/greensites.htmi 1,800.858.4B44 ~Cc~The Groundwater Foundation 5/08 ~y
4
Attachment 2