City Council Agenda and Packet 2020 02 25 SP

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SUBJECT: INTEGRATED WEED MANAGEMENT PLAN/HERBICIDE USE DATE: FEBRUARY 25, 2020 PAGE2OF6 • 2008, Herbicide use was discontinued for a period of time. Community reaction about the condition of public spaces resulted in a reversal of this practice. • 2016, PPLAB recommended the discontinuation of spraying herbicide in playgrounds within the City. This was incorporated into operations in 2017 and continues to this day. • 2019, PPLAB supported a pilot project to eliminate herbicide use at Elephant Park. • 2020, PPLAB and OSAB discussed herbicide use and operations in January and provided additional feedback to staff related to the IWMP and operations. OSAB approved of the proposed IWMP updates and staffs current approach to weed control. PPLAB supported continued reduction of herbicide use in turf parks. Integrated Weed Management Plan (IWMP) The IWMP was originally drafted in 2008 in response to citizen concerns regarding the use of herbicides on City owned properties. The IWMP was peer reviewed, revised, and supported by the State Weed Coordinator with the Colorado Department of Agriculture, Boulder County Open Space, Colorado State University, Jefferson County Open Space and Lafayette Open Space. Minor revisions were made in 2016 to the Plan and since that time the Parks, Recreation and Open Space (PROS) Department has continued to use the IWMP as a guiding document related to the use of herbicides on City owned properties. The IWMP considers the environmental, economic, and social impacts of different methods and helps staff identify appropriate control options. The IWMP currently does not specify the use of or prohibition on any particular control method, but rather speaks to a process for evaluating different control options. City Council may make changes to the IWMP to specifically prohibit or limit the use of certain control methods or herbicides on City property, by herbicide type, property type or location type or in any other desired manner. Current Operational Practices Parks Primarily, herbicides are used in parks, streetscapes, and the Cemetery in two different types of applications, spot spraying and broadleaf control. • Spot spraying is conducted on an as -needed basis for weeds in areas such as shrub beds, cracks in concrete, baseball infields, etc. The type of herbicide used in this application is non -selective (kills all vegetation). • Broadleaf control is conducted on turf to eliminate weeds in grass. The type of herbicide used in this application is selective. It selectively targets broadleaf weeds and leaves grass undamaged. This type of application is conducted at CITY COUNCIL COMMUNICATION