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Updated May 5, 2026

Our Next Trip to the Outdoors

Kayaking 

Dinah's Landing

Goose Creek State Park

Saturday, June 13, 9:30-11:30am
 

Join us for a two-hour paddle through the Goose Creek State Park's lowland marshes along the Pamlico Sound. We will be taking our time, so novices should be comfortable with the trip.

Kayak rentals are available through Knee Deep Adventures 252-714-5836.

As a bonus, plan on joining us for lunch at Down On Mainstreet in little Washington where everyone can talk about their adventure.  

RSVP to cypressoutings@gmail.com 
 

Cypress Group Having An Environmental Impact

Lobbying Against Environment-Damaging Legislation

April 21 and 22, 2026, the Cypress Group of the NC Sierra Club, along with eight other national environmental organizations, was part of a two-day lobbying trip to Washington DC. 

The goal was to convince House members to vote against the ESA Amendments Act, House Bill 1897 (also known as the Westerman Bill). 
Defeating the bill was very important for the environment. It was written to gut the 1973 Endangered Species Act (ESA). If you are my age, you were around in 1973 when the ESA passed with nearly unanimous support in Congress and was signed into law by Richard Nixon. 
The House vote to decimate ESA was scheduled for April 22, while we were there. Fortunately, the bill was pulled by Speaker Mike Johnson a little before voting was to start, presumably because he realized he did not have enough votes for it to pass. Needless to say, we celebrated that evening. 
I was part of the Southeastern delegation. Our team of six included two from the Sierra Club and four from the Endangered Species Coalition. If you follow this link to their website, you will get the full story and see some more pictures.  
Jeff Monico, Chair of the Cypress Group of the Sierra Club

Our recent Cypress Group Program Meeting, Tuesday, April 14  

Landscaping for Wildlife: Re-creating an environment for a thriving biome in the first world

Presented by: Fred Boyd, PhD, & Cypress Group Member

Dr. Boyd shifted from a late-career, research emphasis studying water resources on Navajo Nation lands to enjoying flowers, bushes, trees, bugs, birds and squirrels of eastern North Carolina. In this new role, he has worked to build their Greenville city lot into a functional part of the Homegrown National Park, a huge network of privately owned land parcels managed for human-wildlife co-existence. His yard is a National Wildlife Federation "Certified Wildlife Habitat". 

Road Cleanup

On January 23, 2026, Cypress Group members were outside helping the environment. This time we picked up trash from Corey Road, our NC DOT Adopted Highway. You can see from the photo, there was plenty to remove.  Thank you to those who joined in on that chilly morning.

The Cypress Group of the NC Sierra Club remains committed to educating everyone about the importance of helping maintain a clean, healthy environment by disposing of trash properly. 
 

Outing Report: Trip To Washington, NC Estuarium Museum and Nature Center

In our recent outing to Washington's Estuarium January 17, 2026, we learned the museum and nature center focuses almost entirely on the environment and history of the Tar - Pamlico river system. Those that joined us now better understand environmental and societal changes that occurred in eastern NC as it transitioned from villages of long-time indigenous people, to towns almost entirely populated by Europeans, and then to a multi-racial community.  

This photo shows the Estuarium's main sculpture. It depicts the cycle of the estuary's water as it evaporates into the air, forms clouds high above the Earth, and then falls back down as rain. Actually the photo only shows a part of it. You may visit the Estuarium on your own if you missed the outing.

Our January 2026 Program

"Backyard Birds: A Photographer's View"

By: Marian Swinker

Sierra Club Cypress Group Member, amateur photographer, 

and bird enthusiast 

Birds make humans happy when they sing. Birds are our constant companions. Through pictures and stories, Marion will help us learn more about our feathered neighbors.
 

Previous Outing   

A previous Cypress Group outing 

Monday, November 3, 2025. 

We went behind-the-scenes at the

NC State College of Veterinary Medicine Laboratory in Raleigh!

Outings Chair Kevin and NC State College of Veterinary Medicine alumnus Linda arranged a tour behind the scenes in the vet college's labs. We saw them as few others do. This included observing experts working on animals. The tour was fascinating, informative, and educational.  

Stay tuned to this site for our information about our next Outing.

Here is a list of Good Trees to plant in yards 

in northeastern North Carolina

Recently I attended a presentation where Andrea from Carolina Seasons Nursery; 549 NC-903 N, Greenville, NC; discussed good canopy trees to plant locally.  

First, canopy trees are desired. Canopy trees are the tallest ones and grow higher than typical houses. Due to their great height, they provide lots of shade, reduced air conditioning bills, improved soil conditions, reduced flooding, and habitats and food for many animals. All trees in this list are canopy trees.

Trees may be called by different names.  Provided below are at least one common name and the scientific name.

Native Trees

Native white and red oaks. Your plant nursery may refer to any of the following oaks as white or red.

Non-Native Trees.  The following are non-native trees that grow well and are considered environmentally safe for our area.

Some trees present special challenges.  They may be fast growing but possibly not right for you.

Red maple - Needs nearly ideal conditions to grow well. Upper branches sometimes die.  (acer rubrum)
Arborvitae - Fast growing.  May start turning brown after 25 years.  (thuja occidentalis)

Some trees should be avoided completely

Bradford pear - Once common, now considered environmentally-damaging. Please do not plant them. (pyrus calleryana)

Talk with a specialist at your plant nursery about trees that are best for your yard.  Describe your soil, amount of sun, amount of foot traffic, and the nearby impermeable surfaces such as driveways and sidewalks.  The specialist will help you pick trees with a high likelihood of growing well and providing a great "canopy."   
 

Speaking out against NC Senate Bill 266  

Sierra Club NC Chapter Director Chris Herndon speaks in front of the NC Legislative Building June 26

The Cypress Group joined the Sierra Club’s North Carolina Chapter and spoke in front of the Raleigh Legislative Building Thursday, June 26, 2025, and urged Governor Stein to veto the environmentally damaging Senate Bill 266.  The Chair of the Cypress Group was one of the people who voiced concern about the bill that in part would allow Duke Energy to pass construction costs on to customers before construction project begins delivering power and end Duke’s decarbonization requirement currently required by 2030.   Here is a link to the NC Sierra Club Chapter website with more information.  

Helping Farming Be More Environmentally Friendly

Ever wonder where the animal protein that you eat comes from?  Here is the short answer: 90 % comes from industrial farming operations, usually in the form of CAFOs (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations).  Would you like to learn more?  (Please note, the following link is designed to be informative, not shocking or upsetting.)  A good place to learn is the Sierra Club's Grassroots CAFO Team website.  The Grassroots CAFO Team is working hard to educate people about how most meat protein is produced.  The Team also works to let people know what can be done to reduce the negative environmental effects and how to make the process more humane.  

The Grassroots CAFO team asks everyone to consider decreasing the amount of meat in their diets and to buy beef, pork, and poultry from farms using sustainable practices.  Sustainable farms do not use CAFO methods.  You can find sustainably produced meat at Pitt County's Leroy James Farmer Market.  It is available elsewhere as well.  An internet search will show you where.  

Here's an update on recycling in Pitt County

Stock photo

Recycling rules may seem a bit overwhelming.  And for some of us, not being sure may result in recycling fewer things.  To help you out, here are some thoughts and information.  First, the Pitt County policy may be found at this link.  Second, the Sierra Club believes good recycling is critical to protecting our planet.  We urge you to visit your county's waste management website to learn more.  

In general, Pitt County solid-waste and recycling drop off-sites have recycling dumpsters for depositing corrugated cardboard, glass, white goods (appliances), metal, and electronics.  Plus the sites have a dumpster for recycling household plastic (types 1,2, or 5 (five) only), paperboard (think cereal boxes and the like), newspapers, and magazines.

One final note.  CLEAN ITEMS ARE REQUIRED.  Dirty or contaminated items are likely to be pulled out and tossed in a dumpster headed to a landfill during the eventual sorting operation.  

WHY SHOULD I GO THROUGH THIS TROUBLE, you may ask?  Because it is an environmental necessity that we reduce the amount of waste getting buried in the ground.  We are barely adequate at recycling now.  We have to get better, and the way to get better is to practice recycling as much as we can.  And more recycling will show our county and city that we are serious about taking steps to protect the environment.  Or, in other words, we need to recycle as much as possible!

One final thought, this is our interpretation.  Please visit the Pitt County link or your own county's website for more details, and make your decision.   
 

Recent Events

Wildwood Park Outing, May 24, 2025.

Everything was wonderful May 24, on a cool and beautiful spring day at Wildwood Park in Greenville as the Cypress Group led a paddling trip on one of our favorite local waterways.  

We launched from the park's beach and paddled for an hour and a half across the Wildwood pond, up the Tar River and into Greens Mill Run.  Serene best describes the Tar River that day, and Greens Mill Run was eerie (in a good way).  The narrow stream was filled with sunlight filtered to greens and grays by overhanging trees.  The pictures tell much more of the story than words.  

After returning to the launch and stowing our gear, we descended on The Scullery in Greenville for a delicious late lunch that was as enjoyable as our earlier water adventure.  We would love to have you join our next outings adventure.   

Our Environmental Program May 13, 2025:

"Biodiversity Globally and Regionally: 

What We Can Do, and Are Doing, in Greenville." 

at Tapped in Winterville

Presented by Dr Jeffrey McKinnon, Professor, ECU's Department of Biology, 

Slide from J McKinnon PhD presentation 5/13/2025

Professor McKinnon presented a captivating talk and slide show that among many things included how tens of thousands of years ago the migration of humans affected native species and even caused extinctions.  He also talked about the huge number of plant and animal species residing in Eastern North Carolina.  Our area is equal in biodiversity to other top biodiversity spots on Earth.  Protecting it is incredibly important.  

Thank you Professor McKinnon.  

Opinion

Quote from Ben Jealous, Executive Director of the Sierra Club

Mr Jealous in the Spring 2025 Edition of "Sierra" magazine gave us words of encouragement.  He said:

"We are strong enough to keep making progress no matter who is president.  The people of this democracy do not elect politicians to make change for us.  We try to elect the best politicians who will make it easier for us to make change.  And when our movement suffers setbacks, when the hill we climb gets steeper, we do not stop climbing. 
 

This organization (the Sierra Club) has been around since 1892, and Donald Trump will be out of office in just a few years.  Yes, he is doing a lot of (environmental) damage.  Yes the people, places, and planet we love are threatened in serious ways by this man' corrupt, extremest agenda.  But we are not going back.  And, no, we will never stop fighting."

Well said Mr Jealous.  

Recent Events   

EARTH DAY 2025 EVENT, April 26
A wonderful time on a beautiful spring day was had by those attending the Sierra Club Earth Day Celebration, April 26, at the Eastern Carolina Village and Farm Museum (ECVAFM).  People shopped for plants at the ECVAFM native plant sale and then walked over to talk with Sierra Club leaders and other environmental exhibitors. Visitors were especially interested in information on how to recycle difficult-to-recycle items and what they could do at home to be friendlier to the environment.  

In addition to the Sierra Club, exhibitors were ReLeaf, Friends of Greenville's Greenways (FROGGS), Vegetarians of Pitt County, Pitt County Master Gardeners, NC Conservation Network, and Greenville Utilities Commission.    

Thank you to the ECVAFM staff for letting us join their native-plant-sale event and for allowing us to use their excellent facility.  And thank you to all the great people who stopped by to talk about the environment.  It gave us confidence we will win this fight to protect our Earth's environment.  

Red Wolf Program - report

On February 11, 2025, at Tapped in Winterville, we saw and heard a beautiful and emotionally-compelling story about red wolves in North Carolina, presented by Eve Turek, a professional photographer and gallery owner in Duck, NC. Seeing her photos and hearing her descriptions of red wolves in their homeland, I found myself developing an emotional connection with these wonderful and resilient animals.

Ms. Turek provided a couple of additional, stunning photos, appearing in this post. Thank you Eve.

Please join us each month, on the second Tuesday, for more presentations.

Follow us here for more information.

This was something interesting and fun in November!

Solar energy at home!

During our Program Meeting November 12, at Tapped in Winterville, an enthusiastic audience heard Paul Gemperline, ECU Professor Emeritus, talk about at-home solar-generation of electricity.   Dr Gemperline described steps he took to get solar on his home, including several challenges that arose.  To summarize: he is happy with his system and really enjoys charging his electric car almost entirely with solar-generated electricity.  

Slides from the presentation, available here, show important information for anyone considering adding a solar system, including key steps.  Some steps are obvious and some may not be intuitive to first timers.  Importantly, a discussions of GUC's solar rate programs with payback calculations are included.  And yes, payback over time is positive.

You may have missed the fun in the creek October 16, when the Cypress Group partnered with Sound Rivers to clean the trash trap on Green's Mill Run in Greenville.  

You also missed the chance to rock trendy and stylish hip waders, as these volunteers did. Our goal of removing all non-organic material (trash) and releasing down stream all organic material (the natural debris of waterways) was met.

The team removed 84 lbs of trash in two hours.  More projects with Sound Rivers are planned, and you can work from the shore if you wish.  Stay tuned to Facebook for details.  For more pictures of this river clean up and one in New Bern see Sound Rivers' webpage 

(photo J Monico)

The Cypress Group participated in Greenville Museum of Natural Science's STEM Expo, Oct 5, 2025, at their beautiful facility on 8th St in Greenville.

The Cypress Group had a table full of branches and leaves from native tree species.  Everyone got a chance to see, touch, and smell these woody perennials.  Did you know that native wax myrtle are quite pungent and some people say they repel insects?  
 Noteworthy were the numerous interactive science exhibits and the many wide-eyed kids.  Stay tuned for more events. 

Other Exciting Recent Events  

Our First Outing This Fall: A biology walk in Wildwood Park with ECU Professor Scott Cory.

Scott talks about a red maple tree during the Wildwood Park outing.

Cypress Group had a wonderful and enlightening hike on a beautiful fall day Sept 28, 2025, at Wildwood Park in Greenville.  The event, organized by new Outings Chair Kevin McGoldrick and featuring ECU Biology Professor Scott Cory, followed the trails of Wildwood while Dr Cory explained the growth and biological nature of different tree species we saw.  Everyone came away with a better understanding of how trees compete for water and sun, how they grow and reproduce, and how they ultimately fill a very important niche in our environment.  Thank you Scott and Kevin for a fabulous excursion.  
 

Sound Rivers' Katey Zimmerman discussed trash traps in Cypress Group's September 10, 2024, Program Meeting. 

Here is a picture from Sound Rivers website.   And here's a link with more information.    

Information and Musings

10/27/2024  The possibility of something bad for Blounts Creek in Eastern NC is back in the news.  Sound Rivers describes it this way on their website.  "Mining company Martin Marietta Materials recently applied to renew its wastewater permit for a 649-acre limestone mine in Vanceboro, a permit that would potentially discharge up to 12 million gallons of fresh water per day into the brackish tributary of the Pamlico River in Beaufort County."  Brackish water is defined as water that is somewhat salty though not as salty as ocean water.

Pumping a lot of non-salty ground water into its brackish-water eco system will likely change Blounts Creek's environment, making it difficult or impossible for some aquatic species to survive while allowing non-native species to migrate in.  We humans need to be very cautious about disrupting ecosystems!  In this case, the consequences are likely only partially understood and may in the long term be quite bad.  

Do we want to disrupt and change Blounts Creek ecosystem in order to obtain cheap limestone?  

Sound Rivers is pushing action to prevent renewing the permit.  Here is how you can be involved.  Attend, and maybe speak at, the public hearing on the permit, Nov 19 at 6 PM at Beaufort County Community College in "Little" Washington (more information).  Also, Sound Rivers is having a workshop Nov 6 on making effective public comments.  Use this Sound Rivers link to get the information.  

A brackish water ecosystem in Eastern NC, not too far from Blounts Creek.

Photo J Monico

9/19/2024: The City of Greenville (NC) recently approved a new environmental job: Sustainability Coordinator, and is recruiting to fill the position.  Here is a link with information.  If you know anyone who may be good in the role, please forward them the link.  Some key responsibilities, according to the website, are implementing sustainability plans across city departments, researching and applying for sustainability grants, working on environmental education, and staying up to date on trends and technologies; and more.  

7/21/2024:  Here is a great quote: “We built our world for a climate that no longer exists.”  This is from an opinion piece by Jeff Goodell writing in CNN online.  Here’s the link.  Mr. Goodell theorizes that the world’s infrastructure; things like highways, buildings, dams, electrical grids, buildings, and air conditioning systems; built up over the last two hundred years are designed for cooler and less stormy environments.

   
In the past few years, we have seen increasing numbers of news stories about events like flooding, dam failures, never-before-recorded droughts and rainfall, bridge failures, heat waves that create temperatures and humidity high enough to cause death, ocean level changes, and die-off of species.  This is a big deal.  During the centuries we were building all the things that advanced us, we spent many trillions of dollars and used trillions of hours of labor.  Now, rapidly changing climates are making inadequate many of these creations.   In response, people of the world must promptly dedicate their money and time to redesign and rebuild our expensive artifacts.  Please support those who understand climate change is happening and those that create plans to respond to this unprecedented threat.

6/26/2024:  Last year, North Carolina's legislature changed state laws in a way that eliminated protection for wetlands not having a surface-water connection to a river or lake. The new law allows removing the vegetation and wildlife and backfilling with gravel and dirt.  In other words, filling in the wetland so that it becomes dry ground.   Hundreds of thousands of acres of NC wetlands are under threat from this new law.  

Here is some scientific information.  A wetland is defined by the US EPA as: "... areas where water covers the soil, or is present either at or near the surface of the soil all year or for varying periods of time during the year, including during the growing season."  The EPA goes on to explain their importance.   "Wetlands may support both aquatic and terrestrial species. The prolonged presence of water creates conditions that favor the growth of specially adapted plants (hydrophytes) and promote the development of characteristic wetland (hydric) soils."  Wetlands also cleanse water moving from the surface to aquifers.  

6/26/2024:  A recent AP online article (Iowa floodwaters breach levees as even more rain dumps onto parts of the Midwest) had a great quote by Minnesota Governor Tim Walz.  The AP quotes Gov. Walz as saying "Nature doesn't care whether you believe in climate change or not.  The insurance companies sure believe in it.  The actuarials believe in it, and we do."

6/15/2024:  On the evening of Thursday, June 13, Greenville's (NC) City Council passed a budget for the next fiscal year.  It included a new position: Sustainability Coordinator.  This is wonderful news.  It indicates more people are understanding that humans now have life and death influence over Earth's environment.  

The domination started at the beginning of the industrial revolution, and ever since humans have had steadily increasing abilities to change our Earth's environment.  And we have.  

Progressive cities are acting on this environmental dominance by hiring Sustainability Officers.  Sustainability Officers are responsible for understanding the effects of local environmental dominance and then communicating their knowledge.  They also define actions for mitigation.  Sustainability officers bring together environmental study and environmental solutions in one person thereby overcoming weaker responses that occur when responsibility is spread across many departments.

Thank you Greenville City Council for taking this environmental step.  Recognition and loud support of your foresight and political courage are deserved.  Funding a Sustainability Coordinator position shows Greenville Leaders understand quick and organized actions are needed.  We support your work.

12/11/2023:  Here are two N.C. environment wins to celebrate.  The Coastal Federation reports in the fall Our Coast newsletter that their work with N.C.’s Legislature generated two new pieces of legislation.  The first prohibits unencapsulated polystyrene for being used in floating docks.  Unencapsulated polystyrene is fragile and easily breaks apart into tiny foam beads.  The second adds residential docks to our state’s building code.  This means docks must now be built to withstand severe storms.  If you have kayaked in our salt marshes or the Intercoastal Waterway after a big storm, you will have seen floating debris from docks.  This will now be reduced.   Small wins eventually add up to large-scale environmental victories!
 

11/26/2023:  "This year, investments in renewable energy projects will surpass investments in new oil and gas extraction." (Sierra Magazine, Fall 2023).  Environmentalists can't rest though.  In a recent Pitt County Board of Commissioners meeting, a solar project was voted down despite the county  zoning board unanimously recommending it go forward.  Supporters of the environment and those that believe accelerated climate change is occurring, please get involved with your local governments and speak out about your views.    1

10/28/2023:  You may have heard about the increasing global awareness of the existence of PFAS chemicals in the environment, including, sometimes, in containers we use every day.  Ongoing research is seeking to define health risks associated with levels of PFAS chemicals ordinary people are exposed to and may have in their bodies.   If you want to be cautious, here is a tip from Business Week magazine.  Flip the container over.  If printed on the bottom is "PET" or "PETE," the container is not suitable for treatment with PFAS chemicals.  If it says "HDPE," the plastic is suitable for treatment with PFAS chemicals.  Treatment makes the plastic tougher and more resistant to what is stored in the container.  Business Week goes on to say, keep in mind, seeing "HDPE" does not mean it was treated with PFAS.  In fact, many product manufacturers say they take steps to prevent PFAS in what they sell.  Still, these are good things to be aware of.

10/12/2023:  Recycling is a very green, very environment-benefiting thing, and is easy to do.  Recycling reduces material going to landfills and reduces energy used to mine and process ore.  Counties in North Carolina have multiple drop off locations at their trash transfer stations.  One note, many things are recyclable, and many are not.  Here is a link to what Pitt County accepts for recycling.  

10/10/2023:  Wind and solar power work!  This from the Fall 2023 edition of Sierra Magazine: "Wind and solar power provided a record amount of renewable power during a Texas summer heat wave," 35% percent.  This renewable power helped protect Texas's gird from becoming overstressed.

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Recent News, March 1, 2023

Help the Cypress Group of the Sierra Club. Donate Your Time and Skills to Improve the Environment.  

Would you like to help others increase their appreciation of the natural world?  Or would you like to assist in the growing fight to protect our environment?  The Cypress Group is Eastern North Carolina's face of the national Sierra Club.  
The Cypress Group needs you.  Whether you are a hands-on type or a planner and organizer; we can use your skills.  Here are the specific ones.

1. Treasurer

2. Social media programmer

3. Earth Day 2023 workers. 

To sign up or get more information, please contact Jeff Monico at the next meeting.
 

Explore, Enjoy, and Protect the Planet ... Join the Sierra Club TODAY!