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ITEM 7.1 Natiional Wildlife Federation's Mayor's Monarch Pledgeots11.1: 0 MINNESOTA V DEPARTMENT INFORMATION Request for City Council Action ORIGINATING DEPARTMENT: REQUESTOR: MEETING DATE: Administration Lori Johnson, City Administrator October 10, 2016 PRESENTER(s): REVIEWED BY: ITEM #: Lori Johnson, City Administrator 7.1 AGENDA ITEM DETAILS RECOMMENDATION: Recommend supporting the National Wildlife Federation's Mayors' Monarch Pledge ARE YOU SEEKING APPROVAL OF A CONTRACT? IS A PUBLIC HEARING REQUIRED? No No BACKGROUND/JUSTIFICATION: In September, Mayor Stockamp and I received an email from the National Wildlife Federation asking if Otsego would be interested in joining other mayors in signing the Mayors' Monarch Pledge. Agreeing to the pledge requires the City to take actions to improve the monarch butterfly habitat, provide habitat education, or take other steps to help bring back the monarch population. The Administrative Subcommittee discussed this item at the September meeting and recommended that it be forwarded to the Council for consideration. The program is outlined in detail in the attachments; thus, I will not detail the program in this memo. The crux of the pledge is that the City must commit to implement three of 25 possible action items within one year. The City cost to meet this commitment is nominal. Use of space at Prairie Center for educational programs, a public outreach through the City newsletter, and possible additional native plantings on City property would meet the requirements. The City of Otsego already meets some of the program recommendations with the natural plantings on City property that contain monarch butterfly friendly plants such as milkweed. In addition, Minnesota Native Landscapes, an Otsego business, has a pollinator program that promotes milkweed pod collection and planting along with other initiatives. Minnesota Native Landscapes has expressed interest in collaborating with the City to meet the Mayors' Monarch Pledge through educational programs, milkweed pod collection sites, and pollinator/butterfly plant sales. SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS: X ❑ ATTACHED ❑ NONE 0 Mayors' Monarch Pledge Information Packet POSSIBLE MOTION Please word motion as you would like it to appear in the minutes. Motion to participate in the Mayors' Monarch Pledge. BUDGET INFORMATION FUNDING BUDGETED: ❑ YES Minimal yet to be determined cost. Parks, Recreation, or Council Contingency x o No budgets depending upon nature of expenditure. Lori Johnson From: Weiskotten, Chip <cWeiskotten@wcs.org> Sent: Monday, September 12, 2016 11:29 AM To: Jessica Stockamp Cc: Lori Johnson Subject: Otsego can help save monarch butterflies! Attachments: NWF MMP Fact Sheet 2015.pdf Dear Mayor Stockamp, Would you and the citizens of Otsego be interested in joining mayors from Minnesota in signing the Mayors' Monarch Pledge? Mayors around the country are taking action to help save the monarch butterfly, an iconic species whose populations have declined by 90% in the last 20 years. Habitat loss along their migratory routes has put monarchs in danger of disappearing from our backyards and our lives. And Minnesota is a key part of the monarch's migration flyway! Will you help reverse the monarch butterfly decline by taking the Mayors' Monarch Pledge? After you take the pledge online on behalf of Otsego, the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) will follow up with you to help identify at least 3 specific actions that your community will take in the next year from the Mayor's Monarch Pledge Action Items. Once you have taken the pledge and specified which actions your community will take over the next year, it's time to start taking action! Over the next several months, NWF will be sharing best practices for cities and municipalities through our online resources page, occasional email updates, social media, and webinars. Please refer to our resources section for more details. In addition, if your city signs the pledge, my group (the Emerging Wildlife Conservation Leaders) has grant funding available to help your city purchase milkweed seeds to fulfill the pledge requirements —just ask me for details. Got Questions? I'm attaching a flyer with more information. Please be sure to read our Frequently Asked Questions. If you do not see your question answered, please let me know. We hope you will join the loin the widespread and growing networks of cities who are saving the Monarchs in their own backyard by signing the pledge! No city is too large or too small. Your leadership will inspire others, and together we can all brings the Monarchs back from decline. Thank you! Chip Weiskotten, on behalf of the Emerging Wildlife Conservation Leaders program and the National Wildlife Federation No virus found in this message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 2015.0.6201 / Virus Database: 4649/13000 - Release Date: 09/11/16 NATIONAL WILDLIFE FEDERATION® MAYO 9w- PLED Creating Monarch Butterfly Habitat in Communities Nationwide Mayors and other local government chief executives are taking action to help save the monarch butterfly, an iconic species whose populations have declined by 90% in the last 20 years. Through the National Wildlife Federation's Mayors' Monarch Pledge, cities and municipalities are committing to create habitat and educate citizens about how they can make a difference at home. There are four steps to taking and implementing the pledge. Take the Pledge By taking the Mayors' Monarch Pledge, you are committing to both restore hab- itat in your community and encourage your citizens to do the same. Read the Mayors' Monarch Pledge and then take the pledge online! Specify Your Actions We will follow up with the point person specified in the online pledge form and work to identify at least 3 specific actions that your community will take in the next year. Mayors who decide to take 8 or more actions will receive special recognition and become a member of the Mayors' Monarch Pledge Leadership Circle. Once these specific actions have been identified, communities will report their progress through a simple online survey form. Read the Mayors' Monarch Pledge Action Items and then specify which actions you will take. Take Action Once you have taken the pledge and specified which actions your community will take over the next year, it's time to start taking action! Over the next sev- eral months, NWF will be sharing best practices for cities and municipalities through our online resources page, occasional email updates, social media, and webinars. Please refer to our resources page for more details. Report Progress Once you have specified your actions and begun to take action we will ask com- munities to fill out a simple reporting form on a quarterly basis. The reporting process will only take about 5 minutes and the data we collect will allow us to track the collective outcomes and impact of our work. WILDLIFE Mayors' Monarch Pledge www.nwf.org/MayorsMonarchPledge MayorsMonarchPledge@nwf.org 2N1 4 NATIONAL � FEDERATION Mayors' Monarch Pledge The monarch butterfly is an iconic North American species whose multigenerational migration and metamorphosis from caterpillar to butterfly has captured the imagination of millions of Americans. We, the undersigned mayors and local government chief executives, are deeply concerned about the decline of the monarch butterfly population. Twenty years ago, more than one billion Eastern monarch butterflies migrated to Mexico. In the winter of 2014, only 60 million made the trip. The North American monarch population has declined by more than 90 percent in the past two decades. Monarch scientists attribute the decline to degradation and loss of summer breeding habitat in the U.S., and loss of winter habitat in Mexico. Western populations of monarch butterflies that overwinter in California are also in decline. Cities, towns and counties have a critical role to play to help save the monarch butterfly. Municipalities in particular can provide habitat at public parks, median strips, community gardens and municipal buildings that serve as community hubs such as recreation centers and libraries. Schools, homes and businesses can all provide essential habitat for monarchs too. Simple changes in landscaping ordinances or school policies can make a big difference for the monarch. Educating citizens about how and where to grow milkweed is also a key piece of the puzzle. Creating habitat and educating citizens will benefit other pollinators that need healthy habitat as well. When mayors speak up and take a stand, citizens notice. Therefore, we hereby commit to help restore habitat for the monarch and encourage our citizens to do the same, so that these magnificent butterflies will once again flourish across the continent. Sign the pledge at www.nwf.org/mayorsmonarchpledge NATIONAL � FEDERATION Mayors' Monarch Pledge Action Items Mayors and local government chief executives who have taken the Mayors' Monarch Pledge must commit to implement at least three of the 25 following action items within a year of taking the pledge. At least one action must be taken from the "Program & Demonstration Gardens" section. Mayors and local government chief executives taking more than eight actions will receive special recognition as part of the National Wildlife Federation's Mayors' Monarch Leadership Circle. NWF will follow up with all mayoral points of contact with a quarterly survey (1/1, 4/1, 7/1, 10/1) to monitor progress. Please visit www,nwf.org/mayorsmonarchpledge to take the pledge and access resources. Communications & Convening: 1) Issue a Proclamation to raise awareness about the decline of the monarch butterfly and the species' need for habitat. 2) Launch a public communication effort to encourage citizens to plant monarch gardens at their homes or in their neighborhoods. 3) Communicate with community garden groups and urge them to plant native milkweeds and nectar -producing plants. 4) Convene city park and public works department staff and identify opportunities for revised mowing programs and milkweed / native nectar plant planting programs. 5) Convene a meeting with gardening leaders in the community to discuss partnerships to support monarch butterfly conservation. Program & Demonstration Gardens: 6) Host or support a native plant sale or milkweed seed giveaway event. 7) Facilitate or support a milkweed seed collection and propagation effort. 8) Plant a monarch -friendly demonstration garden at City Hall or another prominent location. 9) Convert abandoned lots to monarch habitat. 10) Plant milkweed and native nectar plants in medians and public rights -of -way. 11) Launch a program to plant native milkweeds and nectar plants in school gardens by engaging students, teachers and the community. 12) Earn recognition for being a wildlife -friendly city by expanding your action plan to include other wildlife and habitat conservation efforts through a program like the NWF Community Wildlife Habitat program 13) Create a monarch neighborhood challenge to engage neighborhoods and homeowners' associations within the city to create habitat for the monarch butterfly. 14) Initiate or support citizen -science efforts that help monitor monarch migration and health. 15) Add milkweed and nectar producing plants in community gardens. 16) Expand invasive species removal programs to make it possible to re-establish native milkweed and nectar plants to the landscape. 17) Host or support a city monarch butterfly festival. Systems Change• 18) Remove milkweed from the list of noxious plants in city weed / landscaping ordinances (if applicable). 19) Change weed or mowing ordinances to allow for native prairie and plant habitats. 20) Increase the percentage of native plants, shrubs and trees that must be used in city landscaping ordinances and encourage use of milkweed where appropriate. 21) Direct city property managers to consider the use of native milkweed and nectar plants at city properties where appropriate. 22) Integrate monarch butterfly conservation into the city's Park Master Plan, Sustainability Plan, Climate Resiliency Plan or other city plans. 23) Change landscape ordinances to support integrated pest management and reduced use of pesticides and insecticides. 24) Adopt pesticides practices that are not harmful to pollinators. 25) California Specific: Pass a resolution to protect over -wintering monarch butterfly habitat on public and private lands. * NATIONAL 6 ♦I FEDERATION Mayor's Monarch Pledge FAQ: 1) I'm not a Mayor, can I take this pledge? Any individual who is a local government chief executive of a city, county, town, township, village or any other form of municipal government may take the pledge. While this pledge is not specifically designed for neighborhood or home owners' associations, presidents of these associations may also take the pledge. 2) What if I'm already taking three specific actions for monarch from the list? If you are already taking three or more of the specific actions from the pledge, we ask you to make one additional commitment for the next year. 3) What is the Mayors' Monarch Pledge Leadership Circle? The Leadership Circle is reserved for mayors who take eight or more specific actions from the list. You may join the leadership circle when you first pledge or you may decide to upgrade to the leadership circle at a later date after taking the standard pledge. 4) What kind of support can I expect from NWF? NWF will share best practices through the "Resources for Mayors" page at www.nwf.org/mayorsmonarchpledge and foster sharing through our public Facebook group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/403210479865994/­. NWF will also make connections with the local entities of our national coalition partners from Monarch Joint Venture and the National Pollinator Garden Network — these partners could become a resource locally. NWF will consult with any city that is interested in taking the pledge —just send us an email at mayorsmonarchpledge@nwf.org. Additional support is available to cities, towns, counties and neighborhoods that take part in NWF's Community Wildlife Habitat program — www. nwf. o rg/community. 5) Does our Mayor or Town Council have to issues a proclamation? A proclamation is not mandatory, but a city proclamation or resolution may be a pre -requisite for some municipalities to implement certain actions. Other actions like convening garden groups or planting a demonstration garden or changing when you mow certain areas within the city would likely not require a proclamation or other legislation. 6) Do I have to start on these actions before I take the pledge? No. We ask that you make a commitment up front and take the actions you included in your pledge within one year. 7) Will I report back to NWF on our actions? Yes. We will ask all communities to fill out a simple survey each quarter so we can communicate the collective impact of our work to help save the monarch butterfly. 8) When does the pledge end? The pledge is a one-time action and we ask that you take the actions that you checked off on your pledge form within the next year. Different mayors will take the pledge at different times, so the end will be different for everyone. We do encourage all mayors and municipalities to continue your pledge actions for as long as possible. 9) UPDATED: What is the deadline for taking the pledge? Our previous deadline of 1/31/16 has been EXTENDED to the end of 2016 — NEW DEADLINE: 12/31/16. 10) Can we get credit for items not included in the pledge? Please email us at mayorsmonarchpledge@nwf.org if you have a specific action that is not listed on the pledge form. 11) What about the other pollinators? What's good for the monarch butterfly is also good for other pollinators! By planting native milkweed and other native nectar plants cities will also be creating habitat for pollinators.