(A) (1) The River Advisory Board should include:
(a) Members who have demonstrated concern for and the desire to improve the status of the natural resources and living environment of the city;
(b) Members who have professional expertise, or who have demonstrated expertise, in geology, hydrology, civil engineering, land planning, ecology, arboriculture, urban forestry, or landscape architecture
(2) Not more than three members should be employed in land development or related activities.
(B) The Board may:
(1) Review and analyze the policies relating to the environmental quality of the city;
(2) Act as an advisory board to the City Council, the Municipal Administrator, and the Department in their efforts to oversee the protection and integrity of the natural environment;
(3) Promote growth management and land use planning, minimize degradation of water resources, protect downstream areas, and promote recreation opportunities and environmental awareness; and
(4) Advise and recommend on any issue which the Board determines necessary or advisable for the enhancement and stewardship of the urban forest both public and private.
(C) The Board shall:
(1) Assist the City Council, the Municipal Administrator, and the Department in studying, promoting the health, safety, welfare and quality of life of all citizens within the city’s incorporated boundaries as well as those within its extraterritorial jurisdiction where the boundaries apply; and
(2) Oversee the development and implementation of a Comprehensive Plan for the planting, maintenance, and replacement of trees in the city’s jurisdiction, and revise the Plan as necessary. When a portion of the Plan has been developed and established, it shall be submitted to the City Council for adoption before implementation.
(D) The Advisory Board will meet monthly. Special meetings may be called at any time by the Chair or on the written request of any two Advisory Board members. All meetings will be held in conformance with the Texas Open Meetings Act, Tex. Gov’t Code, Ch. 551. The Advisory Board will ensure that written minutes are maintained to record all actions taken by the Advisory Board.
(E) The Board shall advise the City Council, the Municipal Administrator, and other city departments concerning policies, projects, and programs that affect the quality of life or have the potential to affect the environment, including those that relate to or affect:
(1) Water quality:
(a) Watershed protection;
(b) Urban runoff;
(c) Innovative wastewater treatment;
(d) Regional wastewater treatment;
(e) Improvement and protection of the San Marcos River; and
(f) Wastewater irrigation;
(2) Growth management and land use planning:
(a) Municipal utility district review;
(b) Capital improvement project review; and
(c) The Comprehensive Plan;
(3) Construction controls for erosion and sedimentation;
(4) City environmental policies regarding monitoring and enforcement;
(5) Solid waste disposal plan alternatives;
(6) Watershed protection:
(a) Flood control;
(b) Erosion control;
(c) Water quality; and
(d) Utility management;
(7) Roadway planning;
(8) Beautification;
(9) Recreation resources;
(10) Public education on environmental matters;
(11) Hazardous waste materials management;
(12) Revegetation and landscaping;
(13) Air quality;
(14) Noise abatement; and
(15) All matters pertaining to the city’s urban forest, including public and private trees.
(F) The Board shall:
(1) Review all variances to requirements for water quality protection;
(2) Review the monitoring of storm water runoff in developed and undeveloped areas;
(3) Review the efficiency of existing and proposed structural and nonstructural water quality controls;
(4) Periodically review the effectiveness of Title XV (Land Usage);
(5) Review waste treatment permits within the city’s extraterritorial jurisdiction;
(6) Review programs and policies for flood control, erosion control, and water quality;
(7) Review capital improvement projects;
(8) Review municipal utility district proposals and amendments;
(9) Review roadway plan amendments;
(10) Recommend urban runoff standards; and
(11) Review the environmental elements of planned unit developments.
(G) The Board may recommend, with the advice and consent of the City Council, specific project studies concerning any of the matters described in divisions (D) and (E), or any other related environmental or urban forestry issue.
(H) The Board shall make reports and recommendations for standards and criteria concerning any of the matters described in divisions (D) and (E), or any other related environmental or urban forestry issue.
(I) The Board shall promote close cooperation between the city and all private citizens, institutions, and agencies interested in or conducting natural resource, environmental, and urban forestry activities, so that all similar activities within the city may be coordinated to secure the greatest public welfare.
(J) A project for which commission review is required must be submitted to the appropriate staff before the meeting at which it will be considered.
(Ord. 2023-01-05-04, passed 1-5-2023)