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effect that pesticides had on the water shed and residential community. Jones offered that it was important to monitor the Town's program and hopefully reduce chemical exposure to the local environment. Public Works Director/City Engineer Henry Louie reviewed the Town's weed control program with Council. Currently, the Town's contractor Clark Pest Control uses Roundup PRO mixed with the pre-emergent Simazine 4L. During the 2005-2006 season, the amount of herbicide used was reduced from the previous year with 1.6 gallons of Roundup and 1.6 gallons of Simazine used for maintenance of approximately 80 miles of roadways and pathways. The total usage for the previous season was 1.9 gallons of Roundup Pro and 1.9 gallons of Simazine 4L. Louie explained that the program was an important component in reducing hazardous fuel (vegetation) for fire prevention. Staff had invited independent resource management consultant Robert Benton to the meeting to answer any questions that Council or the public might have relating to pesticide use. Benton, a state licensed pesticide advisor, addressed Council. He provided a brief summary of his twenty three years working in the field of integrated pest control management and offered that his clients included numerous state agencies including the California Fish and Game. Benton proceeded with a PowerPoint presentation that provided and overview of herbicides used by the Town (Glyhosate and Simazine), product information and a risk assessment of the Town's program. Benton concluded that the Town's current use of herbicides for weed abatement (pest management) was a low risk, effective integrated herbicide program. He noted that the Town's use of the products was judicious and neither product was known to have a cumulative effect. Benton considered them safe for the bi-annual spraying program with no unnecessary risk to the residents or environment. He advised that alternatives to herbicides were often not feasible due to terrain or animal habitat and pesticides were often incorporated into habitat restoration and vegetation management programs. Council discussion ensued. Council concurred that they supported further investigation and testing of alternative methods to control weeds (pests) and favored a further reduction in the amount of pesticide used by the Town. They agreed that the products used by the Town were among the safest herbicides available but suggested that it would be beneficial to use less. They reviewed the costs associated with instituting a pesticide free program that relied on manual labor. Jones spoke to the effective use of goats by the Fire District to manage the fuel load in Byrne Preserve. OPENED PUBLIC COMMENT Roger Spreen, Open Space Committee Chair, thanked Councilmember Jones for moving this discussion forward to Council. He reviewed the main objectives of a successful pest 6 City Council Meeting Minutes July 27,2006