March 2011 update

Welcome
If you have any input for these updates, please let me know at
jeanette.evans@sbcglobal.net.
Most images from this update are from our photo contest.

Save the first Tuesday of every month
Our regular meetings start at 6:30PM at the South Euclid Community Center, 1370 Victory Drive (north off Mayfield, next to Giant Eagle). Meetings are free and open to the public.

Thank you to Tom Evans of URS for speaking at our March meeting. The URS Cleveland Office, formerly Dalton, Dalton, Newport Inc., has been providing architectural and eco-engineering services to both public and private sector clients in and around the city of Cleveland and surrounding areas for over 50 years. Mr. Evans presented architectural information on the plans for the lower Euclid Creek (E 185th spillway to Lake Erie).

Highland Heights green task force
Please contact Judy Dearden at hhgreentaskforce@yahoo.com or see http://www.highlandhtsgreen.com/ for more information.

Oakwood Park update

For information about Oakwood Park, please see: http://www.heightssno.org/announcements/oakwoodparkcanstillbearealityarkcanstillbeareality

Black-eyed susan is a good native choice for semi-shade
For sunny or partially sunny locations, these are naturally found in dry fields, roadsides, open woods, and waste places.

March, St. Patrick's Day, seeds, and gardens
Just a reminder that many gardener's start plants from seeds on or near St. Patrick's Day in March. Some garderners also apply the first treatment of lawn fertilizer around St . Patrick's Day.

Start a compost pile
The image comes from http://ourohio.org/ which states that ...leaves and yard trimmings and food waste make up 23 percent of the material Americans send to the landfill, which is a waste of landfill space and natural resources.


http://www.cuyahogaswd.org/pdf_cuyahogaswd/en-US/Brochures/backyard_composting.pdf

gives the following instructions for starting a compost pile.

• 1. Place 4” – 6” of base material such as chopped brush, twigs or wood chips on the ground. This will allow air circulation around base of pile. (Skip this step if using a compost mixing container).
• 2. Alternate 2”- 4” layer of green organic material containing nitrogen and 4”- 6” brown organic material containing carbon. Keep a ratio of 1-part green and 2-to-3- parts brown. Do not compact layers to allow for air circulation.
• 3. After each green and brown layer add 1” to 2” of an activator to introduce microorganisms into the pile. Activators such as manure, garden soil, bone meal or urea fertilizer will provide nitrogen to encourage the reproduction of microorganisms. A pile must have microorganisms to decompose the organic waste.
• 4. Water the pile, so it’s moist, but not wet.

Upcoming Events in Euclid Creek
Euclid Creek Public Involvement Committee Meeting
Friday, February 11 9:00am-10:30am Euclid Community Center

Cleveland Geological Society Lecture: The Euclid Creek Watershed: Its History, Future, Why It Matters, and Who's Doing What,
Speaker: Claire Posius
Wednesday, March 16 7:30pm Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Classroom A, C Floor

Rain Barrel Workshop—South Euclid
Tuesday, March 22 6:30pm-8:00pm South Euclid Community Center Registration required by March 14th, 2011 Click here for flier
Contact Claire Posius to register and for details - 216-524-6580x16

Euclid Creek East Branch Dam Removal Celebration
Thursday, April 21 5:00pm-7:00pm Euclid Creek Reservation - Upper Highland Picnic Area
Join us for a presentation and tour of the former dam site and to meet the Euclid Creek East Branch Dam project partners.
Contact Claire Posius for more details - 216-524-6580x16 Click here for flier

Rain Barrel Workshop & Sale— Euclid
Saturday, April 30 10:00am-11:30am Euclid Historical Society Registration required by April 21st, 2011 Click here for flier
Contact Claire Posius to register and for details - 216-524-6580x16

Euclid Creek Invasive Plant Pull Event & FOEC Bioswale Service Day
Saturday, May 14 10:00am—noon Wildwood State Park , Cleveland
Volunteers are needed to help remove invasive garlic mustard. Contact Claire Posius , cposius@cuyahogaswcd.org or 216-524-6580 x16 for more info. * Join us at 9:00am in main parking lot by Marina to learn about the Bioswale and help with weeding and trash removal in the landscaped median.

Euclid Creek Stream Cleanup Event & FOEC Bioswale Service Day
Saturday, September 10 10:00am–noon Wildwood State Park , Cleveland
Volunteers needed!! Contact Claire Posius , cposius@cuyahogaswcd.org or 216-524-6580 x16 for more info. * Join us at 9:00am in main parking lot by Marina to learn about the Bioswale and help with weeding and trash removal in the landscaped median.

Rain Garden Presentation to Lakeshore Garden Club
Monday, September 19 1:00pm–3:00pm Henn Mansion , Euclid

Compost Seminars and Bin Sales for Backyard Composting - Cuyahoga Solid Waste District
The Solid Waste District has partnered with city service departments and local organizations to educate and promote backyard composting. In an effort to provide Cuyahoga County residents with how-to-compost instructions and affordable compost bins, the Solid Waste District is proud to introduce the Compost Seminar & Compost Bin Sale program. If you've always wanted to start composting coffee grinds, banana peels and leaves, but just didn't know how, this is your chance!

After you attend a 60 minute seminar about backyard composting, you will have the opportunity to purchase a bin for your home.
Wishing Well Composter - $50.00 · Ultimate Dirt Machine Digester - $50.00 · Sure-Close Compost Pail - $5.00

2011 Upcoming Compost Seminars & Bin Sales:
Tuesday, March 15, River's Edge on Rocky River Drive , 7:00 p.m.
Wednesday, March 16, Orange Village , 7:30 p.mWednesday, March 30, Downtown Cleveland at the Galleria, 11:45-12:45 p.m.Thursday, March 31, North Royalton, 7:00 p.m. Wednesday, April 13, Bay Village , 7:00 p.m.
Tuesday, April 19, Parma , 7:00 p.m.Tuesday, April 20, Garfield Heights , 7:00 p.m.Saturday, May 21, Euclid , 9:30 a.m.
Tuesday, May 24, South Euclid , 7:00 p.m.Thursday, June 1, Garfield Heights , 7:00 p.m.

Registration for each seminar is required [call (216) 443-3731 (216) 443-3731 or http://us.mc1803.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=krocco@cuyahogacounty.us] or for more details view: http://www.cuyahogaswd.org/en-US/Composting.aspx

March 2011 steering committee meeting minutes

Ken, Barb Holtz, Rick, Gary, Fran, Lou, Brian, Kathy, Larry, and Jeanette attended on March 16 at the South Euclid library.

Larry called the meeting to order around 7PM.

Wild Plant identification for smart phones proposal
Brian Gilbert explained a possible plant id program for wild plant identification using a smart phone and noted his interest in a show of support. Four hundred plants are included. We discussed an endorsement. Gary will put together this letter. Schools at the junior high and high school level could be the audience for the application.

Membership letters
Fran noted that 122 membership letters were mailed. Printing cost $24, and stamps cost $70. Fran will email the file to Meiring to put on the website.

Bylaw on time limits
The final text was provided for the bylaw voted on unanimously at the last meeting.

Bylaw on who can sign checks
A draft for consideration was circulated by Ken. We discussed related auditing issues.

Euclid Creek pins
White background with a green heart and Friend and Euclid Creek is the design voted on at the last meeting. Claire asked for these as a token of appreciation for volunteers. 500 pins estimate is $300 or about 60 cents each. $425 for 1000 or about 39 cents each is another estimate. 500 should last a few years, and we agreed to this. We discussed a smaller pin and possible bumper sticker which Barb will look at.

Corporate rain garden
We discussed running a small ad. Our interest is in a business that will install this. Fran suggested a letter to the editor.

Feb. meeting survey results
Barb Holtz summarized the results. Combined sewer overflows and dumping appeared as top environmental pressures. No one knows where the watershed is and what is a watershed - these are top educational needs identified. City governments should have laws that allow for practices good for the watershed - this is another top goal identified. We discussed a tie in to our mission statement and goal. When will Claire reach 1000 rain barrels? A year of the rain barrel campaign was discussed.

Hydrofracking
Ken can get someone to talk about this if we give them a date. Kathy will look at the date.

Office 2010
We can get the software at a discount.

The image of the Eastern Cottontail Rabbit comes from http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/ which states the species has been spotted in every county in Ohio.

Euclid Creek Dam Removal Celebration
Euclid, OH – Please join the Euclid Creek Watershed Program Project Partners as we celebrate the removal of the Euclid Creek East Branch Dam. The event will be held on Thursday, April 21, from 5:00-7:00pm at the Cleveland Metroparks Euclid Creek Reservation at the Upper Highland Reserved Picnic Area.

This public meeting and tour celebrates the removal of the Euclid Creek East Branch Dam, the
culmination of six years of work. Several speakers will briefly discuss the fish passage and stream restoration project, followed by a short hike to the overlook of the former dam site. Meet the project partners and funders pivotal in making this project happen and learn why a dam removal project is important to Euclid Creek.

For more information, call or email Euclid Creek Watershed Coordinator Claire Posius at 216-524-6580 x16 or cposius@cuyahogaswcd.org.