Meeting Date
June 6, 2023 Emerald Ash Borer Subcommittee of the Land Use Management Planning (LUMP) committee of the Oregon Country Fair.
Attendance
Robert Albano, Glenn Johnson, Paxton Hoag, Dennis Todd, Ann Rogers, Steve Wisnovsky, Kevin Hillery, Tom Gannon, Jon Silvermoon, Steven Diercoff
Agenda review
Robert: We should consider other social media for educating about EAB.
Paxton: reporting to the board, scheduling a board workshop in the fall.
Steve: We should conduct an inventory of ash trees and communicate with booth folks affected by tree loss.
Dennis: Consider whether this subcommittee should become a Board-appointed work group
Other agenda items: Firewood, lumber, nursery, planting plan, online forum, financial impact and fundraising, communications, social media, educational efforts
Reports
Kevin attended a conference, was impressed by awareness of social issues at the conference, thinks we should report next year on OCF efforts. Tree surgeons in Forest Grove took down seven affected trees, trucks and people were covered by beetle. Forest Grove is working hard to quarantine the area. Biochar efforts becoming active in Willamette Valley. As beetle spreads, county by county quarantines will be enacted until more than four counties are infested, then quarantine will be lifted. No new info about parasitic wasps.
Tom: Any publicly funded grants for biochar or other mitigation effects?
Kevin: Some may be coming up.
Firewood ban
Kevin: Greeters now have barrels with lids to store incoming firewood so it can be safely burned. Ann will copy binder for greeters.
Paxton: We could require the Ritz to buy firewood locally, include it in the contract next year. George is aware of the problem.
Tom: We could require the use of madrone exclusively as Ritz fuel.
Kevin: inspected firewood pile at the Ritz, saw lots of wood other than madrone, including some ash. Jon: Coordinators should get info about EAB so they can inform their crews. Our ED will take responsibility for ensuring the sauna follows OCF guidelines.
Glenn: We will have to cut some of our ash trees down. The Fair should sell firewood to the sauna. Kevin: Sauna needs 20 cords of wood a year, so we should prepare two years supply.
Robert: Planer ends and peeler cores would be safe firewood.
Paxton: Ritz uses 15 cords of firewood and 5 cords of planer ends per year for the boilers. Will be difficult to provide staff for cutting that much wood and tough to persuade OCF members that cutting is necessary.
Tom: Should we appoint someone from this subcommittee as liaison to the Ritz?
Steve: Should be a management team liaison.
Glenn: We could write a half-page message for the greeters to hand out.
Jon: The Fair could create an EAB crew for operations, including cutting firewood.
Paxton: Ritz contract negotiation starts in December.
Tom: Confer with fire crew, who inspects every fire pit—they could inform people about firewood problems. Maybe we could ban all fires except the Ritz.
Glenn: We need to be more proactive about managing our forest, including oak release.
Live edge lumber
Kevin: Live edge lumber spreads diseases almost faster than firewood. It's not banned in the guidelines, but the greeters and construction crew think it is. We should start taking down trees and providing lumber for OCF uses.
Paxton: We need to certify as usable any live edge wood milled on site as safe.
Steven: We should inspect booths for fresh live edge wood.
Tree and shrub planting
We need to establish a planting plan ASAP, areas designated for natives only, others for assisted migration, approved nurseries and other plant sources, identify maintenance needs, priority locations, industrial size nursery, apply for funds.
Paxton: When is too late? We won't be able to do anything until the end of July. LUMP could recommend to the board that we not miss another planting season, then the message would go on to staff.
Kevin: Planting season is October-November, and then in the spring. We need a plan before we can apply for funding from OCF.
Ann: NRCS can assist in writing forest management plans. We need a comprehensive plan. Will help fill in background environmental information for plan.
Glenn: We should recommend to LUMP that the board create an EAB task force incorporating more diverse members of the Fair.
Tom: Planting in the fall does not line up well with our budget process. We should try for emergency funds.
Paxton: There is a little money for emergencies in the budget. If we have a good fair we might have money. It would be best to have this come out of the board work session.
Jon: The board always has the option to make budget adjustments. Could not be considered before August. Would a work group be operational or policy oriented?
On-line forums
Steven: Would like to see the fair do as much social communication off Facebook etc. and do it all in- house. Has forum software we can use. Will need to get management's approval to use OCF resources to host. We could have one forum or multiple sub forums. Will need moderators.
Financial impact and fund raising
Tom: Donations for specific things are problematic for the budget process and management. Most donations are to the fair to use however needed.
Jon: Fundraising committee does not exist. ED has done a little fundraising on line. We have a vast pool of potential donors with our members and guests. We need a fundraising plan.
Tom: The fair should hire a fundraising staff person.
Paxton: The process to set up fundraising is difficult and time consuming.
Tom: Every FFN, every Peach Pit should have articles about EAB. The LUMP committee has the gravitas to reach the Fair family. The effects of EAB on the Fair will be immense and needs to be communicated. Ann: We need a project manager who understands matters from planting to fundraising.
Paxton: Fixed Assets committee wants to take the lead on EAB, but the ED agreed that LUMP should be the lead. A working assembly in September would be a venue for raising questions for candidates for the board.
Communications and social media
Robert: We should take into account that for lots of people social media is their only source of information. Is there anyone on staff able to do this?
Dennis: There are many Facebook groups related to the Fair.
Jon: Is a monitoring member of many groups, would be willing to contribute EAB information to them. Paxton: Vanessa is the Fair's social media coordinator. Should be kept in the loop.
Glenn: Social media should direct people to a moderated Fair forum because Facebook groups can become so toxic.
Tom: There is a heavily moderated official Fair group. This is a very serious matter that needs more coverage.
Educational efforts
Glenn: Stewardship will have a poster. Brendan and Kate are preparing visuals. There will also be a smaller poster that can be distributed throughout the Fair. Kevin will be presenting at 5:00 Friday at Stewardship.
Jon: Dog crew wants guidance for inventory of their camping area.
Paxton: A big poster would be handy at the entrance so people would read it while they wait for opening. The Fair needs an EAB website.
Dennis: Path Planning website has EAB page, Robert is willing to transpose the info onto the official LUMP committee website.
Kevin: Quartermaster will have three-ring binder on EAB, should go to StewardShip during Fair. Will be speaking at Spoken Word and Chez Ray's.
Jon: Board meeting is June 25, should have EAB tour afterwards.
Steven: We need to get info out to the general public as well—e.g., something on the .org website. Ann: It would be good to make StewardShip the central info source during the Fair.
Glenn: Between Tom and me, we will be at StewardShip almost all day long. StewardShip can help with educational efforts on this issue in the future.
Kevin: Will be at the board meeting on June 25. Forest Service has funding for handouts, has three excellent handouts. 100 copies?
Ann: 500 is not too many because they can be distributed at other OCF events.
In the future meetings, Paxton: reporting to the Board, Steve: inventory of ashes in figure 8, notifying booths, Dennis: work group or subcommittee. Tom: how do we work with LUMP in give and take.
Next meeting:
June 27. Then another July 18. Get together for Kevin's presentation on Friday at OCF at 5:00 and a party afterwards.