The Nederland Sustainability Advisory Board (SAB) met on Thursday, February 22, 2024, to speak with the Fire Marshal and discuss ways to encourage town residents to take advantage of the sustainable tools available.

The Town of Nederland is beginning the process of updating its Comprehensive Plan and is seeking input and ideas from the community through an online survey. Two members from the SE Group spoke with SAB during their meeting to ask about successful projects in the past years, along with barriers the team has faced.

The advisory board highlighted that the Rights of Nature and Guardians ordinance is creating a positive outlet for communication among town residents. SAB expressed the delay of two important sustainability projects. The installation of a new EV charger is delayed because Excel did not order the correct parts. The community compost vessel is also taking longer than expected due to inconsistent guidelines from Boulder County.

Nederland’s Fire Marshal, Andrew Joslin, attended this month’s meeting to discuss if there are any ways to update the fire code to allow for easier installation of solar panels. Some residents are not getting approved to install panels and systems because the slopes of their roofs limit the size of panels and systems that fit within the code.

Marshal Joslin clearly stated that he is willing to work with any customer to help create a compromise when installing solar panels within the fire code. While solar is developing and some codes are adjusting, safety remains the top priority for the fire department. Marshal Joslin encouraged anyone to stop by his office who has questions, wants his opinion, or wants to chat.

Colorado Carshare is now operating in Nederland. The soft launch of the program was on February 14. While a few residents have driven the car, the number is not as high as SAB expected. The advisory board is aware of complaints about the car taking up one of the two EV chargers. Unfortunately, the arrival of the new charger from Excel is delayed. However, it is supposed to arrive in the coming months.

The board brainstormed ideas to promote Colorado Carshare to the town so that more people sign up for the program. When the farmers market resumes, SAB will bring the car on-site to allow residents to check it out and learn more about the program. They will also be utilizing different forms of social media to promote Carshare.

There has been a surge in trash can overflow across town. Both residents and tourists are not recycling their waste correctly. Restaurants like Crosscut Pizza and Salto Coffee Works have implemented recyclable to-go packaging, but it doesn’t help if the package ends up in the trash. Unfortunately, too many of those who take their goods to-go are using the nearest trash can to get rid of their recyclable items. SAB is looking for solutions and tactics to restrict illegal dumping and combat this problem.

Nederland’s sustainable tourism program was not selected by CU students for their Masters of the Environment (MENV) capstone. Despite Ned not being selected, a few CU professors reached out to SAB and offered to help with the project. There is no specific plan yet, but SAB will continue communicating with those who are willing to help.

The Nederland Sustainability Advisory Board meets on the fourth Thursday of every month. March’s meeting will be on Thursday, March 28, 2024. For more information go to: townofnederland.colorado.gov/ sustainability-advisory-board.