The Land and Water team had their monthly meeting on Friday, November 22nd, on Teams at 9 am. The meeting minutes and notes are attached. 

The following response was received from John Marquardt on October 16, 2023:

Good Afternoon,

 

Thank you for the recommendation to install permeable surfaces in the State Farm Center parking lots.  I am pleased to report that State Farm Center has recently resurfaced two of its lots with permeable pavements, the SE Lot following the renovation of State Farm Center in 2016, and most recently the NE lot in 2021.

 

Project specifications from the most recent lot renovation list the following description and statistics about how this project (and the SE project in 2016) addressed permeability concerns of the lots:

 

“A total of approximately 12,500 square feet of permeable pavement was installed in the NE lot.  As detailed on the plans, the pavement section will include a consistent 5” of porous asphalt on top of variable thickness permeable aggregate (varying from 8” to 24”). A single 12” underdrain will run the entire length of permeable pavement patch, and a controlled 6” outlet pipe will be connected to the existing and adjacent 36” storm sewer via a new manhole. While soil types in this area will only allow for very minimal infiltration, the drainage rock will provide enough inherent storage to detain the 1-year, 1-hour storm event. The available storage is approximately 7,000 CU FT and the storm runoff volume for this event is 6,775 CU FT. “

 

State Farm Center will be resurfacing the NW and SW parking lots in 2025 as part of planned and budgeted R&R operations. We fully anticipate that these projects will be completed with similar specifications to ensure that they are environmentally conscious with regard to permeability and other factors.

 

Thank you for your time and concern.

 

Read the iWG transmittal for LW005 SFC Permeable Pavers.

The Land and Water iCAP Team submitted the attached LW006 Paver Maintenance recommendation to the iWG on 4/10/2023. The recommendation states:

The Land & Water iCAP team recommends that the permeable asphalt in parking lot C9 be vacuumed. An industrial vacuum truck will be required to power wash and vacuum the clogged particulate matter that has accumulated over time.

Suggested unit/department to address implementation: Parking.

Morgan White, the Associate Director of F&S of Sustainability and Interim Director of Capital Programs at UIUC, responded to the LW004 Monarchs Need Milkweed with the following message:

Dear Land and Water iCAP Team and iWG,

Thank you for your continued support and advocacy for the Illinois Climate Action Plan.  Last semester, we received the recommendation below for adding more milkweed around campus to support the monarch butterfly population, and we are happy to take action. 

F&S has the personnel and expertise to coordinate this effort successfully. The Grounds team will plant milkweed at the low mow zone and prairie areas, prioritizing the locations shown on your map.  Additionally, once our Grounds Workers do the seeding, they will be more likely to know where it is growing in the future and be able to avoid accidental mowings. 

To assist campus sustainability, F&S is amenable to doing the work without additional compensation.  We will also request $2,500 from the Illinois Green Fund for the purchase of enough seeds for roughly 64,000 SF of space, which can then be divided up into the multiple locations.  Some of the smaller locations suggested may not be planted, depending on future campus building plans.  For the low mow zones, plantings will be prioritized along road corridors where passers-by will be able to see the plants growing and ascertain the success rate. 

Please let Brent Lewis (copied) know if you have any questions.  We look forward to assisting our pollinator population with this project.

Thanks,

Morgan

For future updates related to the Monarchs Need Milkweed, see the Increase Pollinator-Friendly Areas project here. 

See the iWG assessment LW004 Monarchs Need Milkweed and transmittal update here.

See the original LW004 Monarchs Need Milkweed recommendation here. 

Following approval by the iCAP Working Group, Jennifer Fraterrigo, iSEE Associate Director for Campus Sustainability, transmitted the LW004 Monarchs Need Milkweed to F&S Associate Vice Chancellor and Executive Director, Ehab Kamarah, on 12/15/2022. 

See the original LW004 Monarchs Need Milkweed recommendation here.