GREENWAY ECOLOGICAL STANDING COMMITTEE

MEETING NOTES AND ACTION ITEMS

DATE/TIME: October 18, 2011 –10 am – 12:00 pm

LOCATION:  NYSDEC Buffalo, NY

1. Project Update: “Regional Economic Growth Through Ecological Restoration of the Niagara Gorge Rim”; Bonnie Harper-Lore, Wild Ones and Jane Rice, EDR.

A project status report was provided and a concept version of the “Fly Over” was presented.  A determination on consensus regarding the final funding installment for this project will be made after future discussion among the Committee members.

Action Items

· EDR agreed to revise map legends to more clearly identify the types of trails shown (e.g., trolley routes, foot trails, etc,).

· EDR agreed to “fold in” some of the Regional project aspects (e.g., the project should not just focus on Niagara Falls)

2. Project Update:  “Ecological Enhancement, Wetland Restoration, and Aquatic Habitat Restoration Project on Tuscarora Nation Land within the Niagara River Greenway Corridor”, Neil Patterson, Jr., Tuscarora Nation.

Neil Patterson Jr. provided an update on the project status and results. The three tasks that comprise the project (Pre-Design Field Investigations; Definition of Specific Goals and Objectives, and; Development of Site Restoration Concepts ) have been completed.  Consensus was reached by GESC members to fund the final installment for this Tuscarora Nation project.

Neil also asked about the status of review of the Tuscarora Nation’s two pre-proposals that were submitted to the Ecological Standing Committee (not to the Greenway ESC) for funding through the Habitat Enhancement and Restoration Fund (HERF).  NYPA responded that HERF funding requests will be covered in the next ESC meeting (proposed for early November).

Action items

· NYPA will draft an approval letter for the final project funding installment and issue the associated check.

3. Status of the Greenway Ecological Fund and the HERF fund management and investment strategies.

Margaret Wooster of NREC indicated that NREC had requested the financial information identified in the agenda from NYPA.  Steve Schoenwiesner of NYPA informed GESC members that the information was not ready to be presented at this meeting, but would be provided during the next GESC/ESC meeting in November.  A need was also identified to update the relicensing website regarding fund status and to post notes from various meetings.

Action items

· NYPA to provide information about the Greenway Ecological Fund investment portfolio and update the relicensing website.