Environmental Advisory Council Meeting Minutes - April 14, 2026

April 14, 2026 @ 7pm

This hybrid meeting was held at the Township building and on Teams.

• Call to Order: Meeting was called to order at 7:00 pm
• Attendees: Anne Kadar-Duzan, Mike Irwin, Debbie Town, Lindsay Beacher, Leslie Edwards, and Cheryl Spaulding
• Staff Present: Abbey Swan and JoEllen McBride
• Guests Present: None
• Public Comment: None
  
• March 10, 2026 Minutes: Approved 5-0 with Mr. Irwin abstaining
• Old Business:
  • Invasive Plant Removal
    • Scheduled for Saturday, April 18 at 1 PM at the Spackman-Davis farm.
    • Focus on removing invasive plants like honeysuckle and garlic mustard.
    • Tools will be provided, but participants can bring their own.
    • Participants encouraged to bring friends.
  • Cleanup Weekend Results
    • 95 volunteers participated.
    • Collected 153 bags of trash, 13 tires, 6 gas cans, 1 pair of dentures
    • Chester County Commissioner's office cleaned North Caln Road, collecting 65 bags of trash.
    • Ms. Swan noted improvement in trash levels compared to previous years.
  • Future Cleanup Events
    • Next cleanup crew scheduled for July.
    • Plan to cover streams again
  • EAC Scorecard Updates
    • Mr. Irwin reviewed the EAC scorecard and made adjustments.
    • Created a simpler format with sections for positive, negative, recommendations, and general comments.
    • Added a new tab called "EAC simple" in the master workbook.
  • Newsletter article
    • Ms. Duzan has not had time to work on newsletter items recently.
    • Discussed backlog items, including an unused article from March about native plant swaps.
      • upcoming plant swaps and Master Gardener Training in May.
      • Discussed "Second Chance Plants," a place selling healthy plants that are undersold or overstocked from regional commercial greenhouse operations.
    • Plans to create a larger newsletter for Earth Month with photos and relevant information.
    • Reviewed past newsletter content about spring cleaning and disposing of items.
    • Suggested including information on how to install a rain barrel in future newsletters.
      • Mention of potential 30% rate hike by Pennsylvania American Water.
      • Consideration of recent weather patterns affecting water usage.
    • Suggestion to explore agricultural history for a potential newsletter.
      • Discussion on what crops were planted 250 years ago
    • Council members volunteered to write about various topics for upcoming newsletters
• New Business
  • Tree Ordinances Next Steps
    • Initiation of discussions on tree ordinances that began last fall.
    • Importance of defining tree preservation and replacement standards.
      • Reference to existing ordinances from Penn State and Chester County.
    • Concerns about tree replacement after landscaping plans are approved.
      • Discussion on code enforcement related to tree planting standards.
    • SALDO Update once zoning is completed. Covers subdivision and land development comprehensively.
    • Discussion on whether ordinances specify tree requirements per street frontage or parking lots.
    • Need to review existing zoning ordinace once approved to identify enforceable standards.
    • Need to identify gaps in current zoning related to tree standards.
    • Discussion on creating a shade tree commission to monitor tree replacements.
  • Data Centers
    • Minimum required size for data centers is 5 acres.
    • Discussed whether there are any parcels of land in the township large enough for this.
    • Discussion on potential private developments and their implications.
    • Discussion about the importance of water quantity and consistency for data centers.
    • Mention of air-conditioned floors and the need for water to run through chillers and heat equipment.
    • Noted that data centers provide minimal jobs, with only a security guard mentioned.
    • Suggestion to review zoning regulations for potential data center locations.
    • Discussion on conditional use vs. by-right use for data centers.
    • Proposal to set guidelines for data centers to ensure they are good neighbors to the township.
      • Examples include aesthetic requirements (e.g., red brick on the outside) and environmental considerations (e.g., solar panels, sound deadening).
  • Mosquito Control
    • Conversation about mosquito control methods, including the use of buckets for mosquito dunks.
    • Mention of a project involving pink buckets for mosquito control.
  • Name Tags Discussion
    • No specific rules about name tags mentioned.
    • Penn State has rules regarding discussions while wearing extension shirts.
    • Suggestion to create policies for name tags.
    • Finalized Name Tag design
  • Mainline Health.
    • No confirmation of receipt from Mainline Health.
    • No requirement for them to respond.
    • Follow-up with Don suggested to check on the status.

• Adjourned