By KIRSTEN LASKEY
Los Alamos Daily Post
kirsten@ladailypost.com

The Environmental Sustainability Board (ESB) members Dina Pesenson and Erik Loechell presented during Tuesday’s regular Los Alamos County Council meeting an in-depth argument about why the use of the herbicide, glyphosate should be restricted and Los Alamos County Council unanimously agreed.

The council voted 7-0 to approve the ESB recommendation regarding the herbicide and directed staff to return in 90 days with an implementation plan and potential follow-up budget actions for its approval.

The ESB recommendation has several parts:

• Require pesticide application information, including area to be sprayed and the product that will be used, be posted in one designated county website location 72 hours in advance whenever possible or within 24 hours of application for each application and for at least 6 months after the application including the
• Department of Agriculture Pesticide Application Record for the particular application.
• Stop use of any herbicide containing glyphosate on County land.
• Prioritize and support expansion of Integrative Pest Management efforts by relevant departments to continue to actively decrease the amount and frequency of chemical use on County land.
• Council added to the motion that the Integrative Pest Management efforts are a Council policy.

The council members voiced support for the ESB recommendation and  Council Vice Chair James Robinson noted that the public showed strong support of it, too.

“The sheer amount of public input we have received … clearly shows this is now a community value,” he said.

In other business, Council:

Approved 6-1, with Councilor David Reagor opposed, to direct the County Manager and the Department of Public Utilities Manager to include the budget recommendations made by the Los Alamos Resiliency, Energy and Sustainability Task Force as options in the proposed FY23 budget.

The recommended budget items include:

• Hire a full-time sustainability coordinator (estimated budget $100,000-$140,000);
• Pay to conduct a consumption-based greenhouse gas emission study (estimated budget $25,000-$100,000);
• Fund a climate action plan (estimated budget $100,000);
• Hire one or two full-time natural gas staff (estimated budget $100,000-$250,000);
• Hire one education coordinator (estimated budget $100,000-$125,000);
• Provide community outreach and education (estimated budget $40,000); and
• Conduct two electricity studies, which include a resource study and an electricity feasibility study (estimated budget $75,000 for each study).

Councilor Reagor said he felt all the recommended budget items were for coordinators and studies and not for any specific action. He added he felt many of the items were already being addressed and discussed by the County.

Approved 6-0, Councilor Sean Williams recused himself, to reject the extension request made by TNJLA LLC for the project participation agreement it entered with the County in 2019. According to agenda documents, TNJLA LLC entered in the agreement to construct an extended stay hotel and conference center on 20th Street.

The developer requested the project completion date be moved from Nov. 16, 2023 to Aug. 31 2024. It cited the rise of construction costs and felt delaying the completion date would allow for cost to decline.

Approved 7-0 the health comprehensive plan process, which was previously adopted by the Los Alamos County Health Council.