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MINUTES OF THE <br /> ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING <br /> Monday,September 13,2021 <br /> 6:00 o'clock p.m. <br /> CONSENT AGENDA—Continued <br /> Crosby moved,Printup seconded, to approve the Consent Agenda as amended. VOTE: Ayes 5, <br /> Nays 0. <br /> PUBLIC COMMENTS <br /> Pat Steiner,4461 Bayside Road,read a statement around mountain biking and permission in Lowry <br /> Woods and Bederwood Park: <br /> "I would like to ensure that the City Council performs an environmental impact study(EIS) on the impact <br /> of mountain biking to the trails and off-trail areas of these parks before making any decision. There are <br /> many EIS's that have been done but universities user permit applications cite research that suggests that <br /> mountain biking causes similar environmental impact to the soil, vegetation, invasive pests, and those <br /> sorts of things, as does hiking. Although this is an important piece of information, I believe a more <br /> important point is that most of the ecological affect is generated in the first few uses (University of <br /> Calgary and multiple sources) and off-trail use can quickly lead to the establishment of informal, visitor- <br /> created trails that unnecessarily remove vegetation-cover and spread non-native plants." <br /> Mayor Walsh asked Mr. Steiner if he has ever been to Bederwood Park. <br /> Mr. Steiner replied in the negative but stated he has been to Lowry Woods. <br /> Mayor Walsh noted there is nothing going on at Bederwood and if Mr. Steiner has not been there it is <br /> hard to make statements and questions. <br /> Mr. Steiner stated he would restrict his comments to Lowry Woods. <br /> Mayor Walsh replied they are not doing anything at Lowry Woods. <br /> Mr. Steiner said his comments would be for future reference. <br /> Mayor Walsh asked if Mr. Steiner is part of the group taking pictures and video-taping children in the <br /> woods? <br /> Mr. Steiner replied in the negative and has no knowledge of that. He said at least for Lowry Woods, it is <br /> the off-trail piece that causes significant damage, including soil erosion, damaging of native plants, and <br /> potential spread of invasive species.He has some citations to justify those remarks and he is happy to <br /> leave it with the Council. He said in the last 12 months he has personally witnessed many incidences <br /> (more than 5)of off-road trail use in Lowry Woods;this was exemplified by the number of off-road tire <br /> tracks left after snowfalls the previous year. It is his contention that signs will not prevent this off-trail <br /> behavior. In Lowry Woods bikes were prohibited yet there were many bikes and many off-road uses.He <br /> personally witnessed the soil erosion at his previous home after three years which made the trails <br /> unusable. <br /> Mayor Walsh asked where Mr. Steiner lived previously. <br /> Page 2 of 8 <br />