Candidates for city council had a lot to say at the Moscow City Election Candidate Forum Oct. 30. The questions that struck up the most responses were the ones on environmental sustainability, water and harassment of the LGBTQA community.
Environmental sustainability gave the candidates a chance to voice new opinions on what they want to accomplish for Moscow.
Mayoral candidate William “Bill” Lambert said finding a new sustainable source for water is his goal.
City council candidate Arthur Bettge said getting water rights is important so Moscow can use the new source is a big part of the water quality and quantity debate. Bettge also said reusing water from the water treatment plant for some tasks around Moscow, and finding a new source sooner rather than later was also important.
Recharging the aquifer with water from the surface is not a viable option to mayoral candidate Linda Pall because it leads to degradation in the water quality of the aquafer. Pall said about 15 years ago the city looked at recharging the aquifers with surface water and found it would be a cheaper option, but it was not environmentally friendly. Pall called for a better and longer lasting water option, and thinks the Snake River might be an option.
City council candidate Walter Steed said Moscow is being proactive about water conservation now by using a tiered water system and having regulations on when sprinklers can be on. A tiered water system is when residents pay based of how much water the individual uses Steed explained.
“We cannot conserve our way out of (the falling levels in the aquifers),” Steed said.
Water was not the only sustainable environment choice Moscow could be making, discussed at the forum. Candidates had many different ideas on new programs for Moscow.
Bettge said getting rid of the pesticides, which are harmful to pollinators and planting more native plants are options Moscow residents could be making. He mentioned the city has already quit using pesticides which are harmful to pollinators, like bees.
City council candidate Deborah “Brandy” Sullivan said curbside composting, a bike share program and charging ports for electric cars are some ideas she had for Moscow.
Lambert brought up what Moscow has already done like installing led lights and reducing gas usage from 2011 to 2016.
Campus safety also produced a response from many of the candidates. A common theme among responses to this question was the police department just wants to keep students safe.
Steed encouraged students to follow the rules. Sullivan said the police department wants students to learn from their mistakes.
This lead into a short discussion about harassment of people in the LGBTQA community, in and around Moscow. Bettge stressed community members and students should not take harassment lightly and should report it to the police if it happens. Bettge also said the police department has an electronic crimes detective in case anybody does have a problem with a bully on social media.
Steed stressed the importance of reporting incidences to the police.
“If we don’t know, we can’t do anything,” Steed said.
Veronica Smith, a University of Idaho student voiced concern about harassment after the meeting. She wanted to know what support systems where in place for the victims and what measures was the city taking to prevent sexual assault and harassment among all Moscow residents.
When the question about what the city council would do about harassment and sexual assault came up again in the open floor questions, the candidates once again voiced a united opinion —help them help community members by reporting incidents.
Kali Nelson can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @kalinelson6