Donations: Fund our education, communication, and conservation efforts, including our Alan Parmalee and Elaine Usherson Scholarships. All of your donation stays right here in the Loxahatchee Group area if you donate here
Consider a monthly or annual donation. ‘Set it and forget it!’
Sponsor: You can also consider being a sponsor. An anonymous donor sponsored the one free drink ticket at our Holiday Party. You can sponsor the coffee and bagels or the iced tea and cookies, depending on the time of the meeting. A great way to support our group and get an event started.
FLORIDA WILDLIFE CORRIDOR: Successes and Challenges
Allyn Childress
When: Saturday, January 17, 2026
Coffee @ 9:30 am
Program from 10:00 - 11:30 am
Where: Hutcheson Complex
Mounts Botanical Garden
531 N Military Trail
West Palm Beach 33415
This is a unique opportunity to hear directly from a leader in conservation. Allyn Childress, conservation director of the Florida Wildlife Corridor Foundation, will share insights into the ambitious efforts to connect and protect Florida’s natural landscapes through the creation of a continuous wildlife corridor.
Cost: FREE if you are a member of Sierra Club or Mounts Botanical Garden and register by January 15. Otherwise, attendees must pay the Mounts entrance fee of $20 (Seniors-$18) to enter and attend the event. This event is presented in cooperation with Mounts Botanical Garden.
Allyn Childress is a certified planner with 30 years’ experience in environmental policy, strategic planning, and interagency coordination.
How invasive is invasive? The balsam pear Momordica balsamina, seen in Earnest’s right hand in photo, is native to tropical Africa and considered invasive worldwide. Volunteers with us from the Philippines and Jamaica informed us that the leaves are used for tea and the seeds of the fruit are edible – like pomegranates - and promptly showed us how to eat them!
Loxahatchee Group members are joined by volunteers from Baptist Health and Florida Fish and Wildlife at the Galaxy Sand Pine Preserve clean up. (Photo by Zindzi Banks)
On December 6, 2025, Loxahatchee Group members Sabrina Carle, Lila Kipp, Diane and Ed Tedtmann, Linda and David Blythe, Richard Stowe, Terry Walker, Lisa Hanley and Mike Fitzpatrick welcomed enthusiastic employees of Baptist Health and Florida Fish and Wildlife volunteers in a laughter-filled morning of clearing invasive growth from the northeast section of the Galaxy Sand Pine Preserve.
They brought music and lots of energy, relished their time spent in nature and had to be pried away from the work site when our time was up. What a great group!
This past August, volunteers from the Institute for Regional Conservation (IRC) planted 200 native, gopher tortoise friendly plants in the section. An anonymous donor paid for the plants and a generous neighbor volunteered the use of their water to set up temporary irrigation. We are profoundly grateful for this bounty. Many thanks to our partners, the City of Boynton Beach and Chris Lockhart of Habitat Specialists, who were instrumental in the success of our first service outing of the season. And Baptist Health volunteers – come on back!
Happy paddlers at Riverbend Park in Jupiter in December(Photo by Ron Haines)
Saturday, January 3, 8 a.m. – 1 p.m. 8 Mile Hike in Big Cypress National Preserve - Florida Trail Big Cypress North section. Big Cypress Preserve is north of Everglades National Park on the western side of the peninsula, and is home to alligators, Florida panthers, flocks of wading birds and dozens of other creatures great and small.
Sunday, January 4, 10 a.m. Paddle at Okeeheelee Park South in West Palm Beach. This is a leisurely, two-hour paddle on the water trail at Okeeheelee Park South. The park is at 7715 Forest Hill Blvd, West Palm Beach. Go south from Forest Hill, NOT NORTH. Allow yourself time to launch at 10 please.
Thursday, January 8, 10 a.m. Paddle South Fork of St. Lucie River. Leisurely three-hour paddle on the South Fork of the St. Lucie River in Stuart. No rentals available, suitable for paddle boards. Rest stop halfway through.
Saturday, January 10, 9 a.m. – 11 a. m., Service Outing at Galaxy Sand Pine Preserve, 301 Galaxy Way, Boynton Beach, FL. We invite you lovers of the outdoors to join us in our ongoing habitat restoration project at the Galaxy Sand Pine Preserve. This is relatively easy work – and Sierra Club qualifies for Community Service hours so bring your paperwork!
This particular service outing will focus on the sand pine shaded nature trail. Activities to include freeing trees and shrubs from the throes of love - love vine, that is. Be prepared to pull and bundle love vine that is smothering their host plants. There is also the opportunity for those who like to dig to continue clearing away those dense stands of snake plant that make life difficult for our resident gopher tortoises.
Long sleeved shirts, hats, gloves and long pants are recommended. Closed-toe shoes are a must – thorns in the scrub!
Please bring water; hand tools, such as clippers, loppers, hand trowels; or a shovel, if you have them. A few shovels, gloves and trash grabbers will be provided.
Sunday, January 11, 9 a.m. - 10:30 a. m. Seacrest Scrub Natural Area Hike. Join us for an easy, guided hike through Seacrest Scrub Natural Area, a protected preserve dedicated to conserving one of the last remaining tracts of Florida scrub in southern Palm Beach County — a rare and increasingly threatened ecosystem. We’ll cover approximately 1.5 miles over about 1.5 hours, moving at a relaxed pace with frequent pauses to observe, learn, and listen. This is not a fitness hike; it’s an opportunity to slow down and experience the landscape more deeply. The route includes a mix of paved trail and sandy trail. Some sandy sections are loose, others more compacted, and there are exposed roots in places. Portions of the hike are shaded, while others are in full sun.
As we walk, we’ll look for evidence of gopher tortoises, a keystone species in Florida scrub ecosystems. With a bit of luck, we may even see a tortoise, but sightings are never guaranteed — part of the joy is learning how to read the land for signs of their presence. This hike is well-suited for anyone interested in Florida’s native habitats, conservation, and experiencing a quiet preserve with a strong ecological purpose. There are no restroom facilities or drinking water on site. For information and registration.
Saturday, January 17, 9 a.m. Family friendly leisurely walk among blooming wildflowers on the Long Pine Key Nature Trail. We will meet at 9 a.m. in the Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center parking lot, located on the right as you enter Everglades National Park; restrooms are available at the visitor center. We will then proceed to the Anhinga Trail where we see birds, butterflies, turtles and alligators, passing through pine rock land, Everglades prairie, and tropical hardwood hammock plant communities. Then we walk the Gumbo Limbo Trail and continue to Long Pine Key for lunch at the lake, and then finish with the Pinelands Loop Trail which also has bathroom facilities.
Friday, January 23, 8 a.m. – 10 a.m. Green Cay Wetlands Nature Walk (Outer Loop). Join us for an easy, leisurely nature walk at Green Cay Wetlands, one of Palm Beach County’s most impressive wetland restoration sites. We’ll walk the outer loop (~1.3 miles) along an elevated boardwalk at a relaxed pace, with frequent stops to observe wildlife. Our primary focus will be bird identification, but we’ll also watch for other residents such as alligators, turtles, and marsh rabbits. Green Cay was once agricultural farmland and has been restored into a functioning wetland system that naturally filters wastewater, supports diverse wildlife, and serves as an important educational and conservation resource for the community. Along the boardwalk, we’ll pass through a variety of habitats, including emergent marsh, pond marsh, wet prairie, cabbage palm hammock, tropical hardwood hammock, cypress swamp, open water areas, and alligator holes. Restrooms and drinking water are available on site. After the walk, participants are welcome to explore the on-site nature center and gift shop at their leisure.
Sunday Jan. 25 10 a.m., Paddle at West Lake Park, Hollywood. A four-hour paddle through the mangroves with a stop at Anne Kolb Nature Center and Observation Tower. Entrance to West Lake Park is $1.50/person. Rentals are available.
Saturday Jan. 31, 10 a.m. Paddle Fisheating Creek, Palmdale, FL Several hours of paddling on a pristine, cypress-lined creek west of Lake Okeechobee. Rentals are available.
PROUD TO INTRODUCE YOUR NEW EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE FOR 2026
In the last quarter of every year, the Loxahatchee Group conducts an election to fill expiring terms on the nine-member executive committee.
In November, seven candidates ran to fill four seats. A big thanks to everyone who voted.
Here is our 2026 executive committee:
· Maria Pizano Balatovis: halfway through a two-year term
· Michelle Dunaway: just elected to a two-year term
· Gail Ladd: halfway through a two-year term
· Glenn Laufer: just elected to a two-year term
· Drew Martin: just elected to a two-year term
· Andre Rajoo: halfway through a two-year term
· Linda Smithe: halfway through a two-year term
· Carol Stender: just elected to a two-year term
· Richard Stowe: halfway through a two-year term
At its first meeting in January, the committee will elect a chair, vice chair and other officers. We still have some empty committee chair positions including membership, equity inclusion and justice, and junior team leader. If you have your own idea for a committee or if you would like to discuss any of these opportunities, notify Linda Smithe.
HOLIDAY PARTY REPORT
In the happy photo above are some of our 2025 leaders who met and celebrated face-to-face at our Holiday Party in December. From left they are: Linda Smithe, Ricardo Zambrano, Meryl Davids, Maria Pizano Balatovis, Gary Landau, Gail Ladd and Richard Stowe.
It was great to get together and celebrate our accomplishments in 2025. Many of our meetings are on zoom to save time and resources, so getting together in person for food and conversation was special.
There was a fun raffle for an original Pet Pastel donated by Deborah La Fogg Docherty, a local artist and member of the Sierra Club. Maria Pizano Balatovis, our Fun-Fundraising Chair, won.
FALL FLORAL FUNDRAISER
Fall Florists, Audry Siegle and Meryl Davids
By Maria Pizano-Balatovis, Fundraising Chair
It was a beautiful day. Members and supporters of Sierra Club Loxahatchee Group gathered at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in West Palm Beach for a successful fun-fundraising event. With aid from members of the church’s Flower Guild and Oleander Garden Club, participants assembled unique flower arrangements for our Thanksgiving tables. Our intent was to raise funds in a friendly and fun atmosphere.
The event went beyond fundraising, evolving into a significant learning experience for participants and organizers. We all learned that the typical foam used in arrangements by the floral industry is a major contributor to microplastic pollution. The US and Europe dispose of an estimated 500 million blocks of floral foam annually. The typical foam block is made from non-biodegradable, petroleum-based plastic that breaks down into toxic microplastics that harm our health and the environment. It may be hard to picture 500 million blocks but think of this: one block of foam contains as much plastic as 10 shopping bags.
To address this worldwide problem, a few companies have been working on developing alternatives. We researched and tested Agra Wool. The Agra Wool block is more expensive than the typical foam, but we decided to invest in it to increase awareness of this sustainable option. This is in line with Sierra Club’s goal of protecting public health and the environment and offered us an opportunity to advocate for change. Although we have been conditioned to use the typical foam, more sustainable alternatives are available, including chicken wire, moss, flower frogs, wood wool, pebbles, Oshun Pouch and Agra Wool. Go here for more information. www.newagefloral.com.
Participants enjoyed creating arrangements from buckets of various flowers and greenery, some of which came from members’ back yards! The smiles and positive feedback were encouraging. If you did not have the opportunity to participate in this year’s event, you missed out on a fun and creative time. So, make plans to attend our event next fall in 2026.
Sierra Club Loxahatchee Group is thankful to Holy Trinity Episcopal Church for letting us use their wonderful space and for providing a delicious breakfast spread. We also thank members of the Oleander Garden Club of West Palm Beach for their expertise and guidance.
If you are interested in helping with our fun, fundraising events, please contact Maria Pizano-Balatovis. marianewemail1009@gmail.com
MEMBER HIGHLIGHTS
Sierra Club Loxahatchee Group members and supporters were at it again last month.
Please contact Linda Smithe if you or a Sierra Club member you know does something to further our Mission: To explore and enjoy and protect the wild places of the earth. To practice and promote the responsible use of the earth's ecosystems and resources. To educate and enlist humanity to protect and to restore the quality of the natural and human environment. And to use all lawful means to carry out those objectives.
We want to highlight your efforts!
Cleanup at Pond Apple Slough on December 11
Linda Smithe and Brian Ducharme, at left in photo, helped remove an estimated 1,040 pounds of trash during a Palm Beach County Department of Environmental Resource Management cleanup event at Pond Apple Slough in Lake Osborne. During the three-hour event, the group filled 23 large trash bags with bottles, cans, plastic bags, styrofoam containers and food wrappers. Volunteers and Mosquito Control staff worked from the shoreline, crashing and bashing through pond apple trees and other wetland vegetation to get to the debris. Others attacked the trash from the water on an airboat.
Palm Beach Post Letter to the editor, December 7, 2025
Bears, like dogs, need Florida’s Grace
I support Gov. Ron DeSantis’ proposal to regulate dog breeding and sales. No one should stand by when there is cruelty to animals. Let’s follow best practices, have accurate reporting and accountability. But how does this translate to the current proposed bear hunt? Where are the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s reports and accountability? The data on bear populations indicates declining populations. Bear encounters are rare and usually created by unsecured trash cans and habitat encroachment, both [of which are] caused by humans, not bears. Let’s put the blame where it belongs. What to know about the future bear hunts: Dog-assisted hunting for black bears will be permitted in 2027. Training season: A non-kill training season will be allowed in 2026 — allowed, but not required? But dogs will be dogs and bears will be bears. Both will experience a high rate of animal cruelty.
Linda Smithe, Jupiter
BUSTING RECYCLING MYTHS
Anagha Iyer
Sierra Club Broward Group Junior Team
Anagha Iyer, a rising senior at American Heritage, is setting the record straight on recycling, one myth at a time.
Watch her quick video to learn what goes on in your recycling bin.
The Loxahatchee Group is trying to start our own Junior Team. If interested, let me know Linda Smithe
SIERRA CLUB BROWARD GROUP NEWS
January General Meeting
Topic: Toxic Landfills, Government Failures, and the Human Cost We Don’t Talk About
When: Thursday, January 8, 2026; 6:30 PM
Where: Veterans Park, 7600 NW 50th St, Lauderhill, FL 33351
Featured speaker April Young confronts the systems that allow toxic landfills, illegal dumping, and government negligence to destroy communities. Known for her direct, truth-driven voice, she exposes the political deals, corporate shortcuts, and agency failures that poison neighborhoods and erase families without warning. She exposes how political bargains and regulatory failures don’t just impact “certain communities”—they impact everyone, including the families of the officials who sign off on them.
The Broward Group is hosting a fun, family-friendly early Earth Day 2026 with the theme Water is at the Center of Everything. Sunday, March 8th, 8:30 am-5:00 pm at Anne Kolb Nature Center, 751 Sheridan Street, Hollywood. It will be worth the drive for a full day of programs, food trucks, and a Repurposed Plastic Art Contest for students.
Roots of Resilience: Cultivating a Sustainable Future
by Carol Stender
Palm Beach County hosted the 17th Annual Southeast Florida Climate Leadership Summit this past December 16 and 17. I am happy to report that our cities remain forward-thinking and our local governments are working harder than ever to provide resilient infrastructure, adaptive landscapes, and community planning. They are focused on "transforming the vulnerabilities of our coastal urban neighborhoods into opportunities for a healthier, more civil urban future".
Despite federal rollbacks on clean energy standards, deregulation of environmental protections, and attacks on our natural lands, wildlife and health, our local leaders are actively moving forward with creative, scientifically-sound climate solutions.
The Southeast Florida Regional Climate Change Compact , which includes Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade and Monroe counties, works to discover solutions and best practices to common problems, such as extreme weather conditions, exploding population growth, affordable housing, and sustainability. County administrators and resilience officers collaborate with science and business leaders, researchers and non-profits to come up with resilience initiatives and adaptation strategies for issues as diverse as sea-level rise, over-crowded highways, and emergency evacuations. They are making significant strides despite the handicap of the current climate-hostile federal government.
A few encouraging trends:
• County administrators and resilience officers collaborate with local universities for cutting edge solutions.
• A push for expanding public transportation is gaining traction since there is no room for more roads and the recognition that wider roads are not a solution anyway.
• Sea level rise adaptation plans with a green-grey infrastructure that blends nature and engineered solutions for coastal resiliency.
• Sustainable beach management practices and installation of living shorelines, combined with new technology using 3D printing of living seawalls that give 23 times more surface area for habitat for living plants and creatures, but with a small footprint and reasonable cost.
• Programs to create cooler neighborhoods, including expansion of urban tree canopies throughout the region and grants to weatherize homes and enhance air conditioning capacity.
• County administrators’ commitment to the fact that resilience is NOT an add-on to affordability. Every housing strategy must include resilience to make affordability truly permanent.
• The Florida Housing Coalition https://flhousing.org/ works collaboratively to build climate resilient housing throughout the state.
• Finding solutions is not just a government problem. Industries are popping up that have better structural components and homes are surviving hurricanes and rain bombs.
A few impressive specific projects:
• Miami-Dade is working on a Zero Waste masterplan and a 20-mile public transportation corridor.
• Palm Beach County is planting 1500 trees for shade, water mitigation and carbon sequestration.
• Ft. Lauderdale is a LEED city, where everyone lives within a 10-minute walk of a park!!
• Completely biodegradable tableware and containers are being manufactured nearby in Belle Glade by Tellus.
• Green Cay Phase 2, a county project in partnership with local municipalities, is almost finished. It will provide clean water and 63 acres of quality wetlands with hiking trails.
• Walkable corridors (think roads not just for cars) and smart growth plans to enhance quality of life.
Most encouraging is the collaboration of the county administrators and resilience officers of the four counties that make up the Southeast Florida Regional Climate Change Compact. They are looking to the future and succeeding with a wide variety of projects that have been designed with input from experts from businesses, universities and research centers. Plans to increase regional resilience and sustainability are based on actual climate science. As promising as the projects are, currently they are more difficult than ever to make a reality with the termination of support at the federal level, especially the elimination of federal financial support. But the staffs at the county level are undeterred and they are making impressive progress despite the changing regulations and challenging legislation at the federal and state level. Send them gratitude for their efforts whenever you get an opportunity. They deserve our thanks.
Update on the Continuing Fight against Palm Beach County’s Proposed $1.5 Billion Incinerator
By Linda Smithe, Executive Committee Chair and Conservation Committee Member
We are still battling the prospect of a new trash incinerator in Palm Beach County and we need your help. Specifically, we need more voices at all the meetings of the Solid Waste Authority (SWA).
Upcoming meetings: SWA Citizen Advisory Board on Wed. Feb 4, 1:30 and SWA Governing Board on Wed. Feb 11, 9:30. Both are to take place at 7501 N. Jog Rd. Auditorium, West Palm Beach, FL. Check a week before: SWA Agendas and Updates.
Sat. Oct 25, the Loxahatchee Group co-hosted a panel discussion with the Broward and Miami Sierra Club groups, “What do we do with our Trash?” It was an insightful look at what our three groups are facing. The solution to the question is an effective rethinking, reduction, reuse, and recycling plan. In order to succeed, four things are needed: consistency across municipalities and counties, a clear, comprehensive plan with regulations and ordinances, a robust education plan, and enforcement with consequences.
Tues. Oct 28, the Loxahatchee Group facilitated a very well attended North County Neighborhood Coalition presentation by Mike Ewall from the Energy Justice Network. The program went into depth about incinerators in general and the proposed incinerator in Palm Beach County specifically. Palm Beach County Commissioner Maria Marano was in attendance. She admitted that she depends on the Solid Waste Authority for her information, but she will not entertain a meeting with Sierra Club and Mike Ewall to get another perspective.
Wed. Oct 29, Loxahatchee Group was represented at Florida Rep. Debrah Tendrich’s Coffee Talk by Maria Pizano Balatovis, Linda Smithe, and Mike Ewall. Also in attendance was Palm Beach County Commissioner Joel Flores, who committed to meeting with us in the future, but to date nothing has been set.
Wed. Oct 29, the Palm Beach Post published a very good article by Michael Diamond, “Sierra Club Critical of Plant Plan,” which clearly explained the problems.
Wed. Oct 29, Loxahatchee Group and Elders Climate Action Group facilitated a well-attended Ibis Community meeting where Mike Ewall presented an in-depth discussion about incinerators in general and the proposed incinerator in Palm Beach County specifically.
The ‘Fight’ continued in November and December with active members of Sierra Club speaking at a special meeting of SWA on Nov 18, SWA’s Citizens Advisory Board on Dec 3, and SWA Governing Board on Dec 10, when the board agreed to pay $90,000 to lobbyist Ron Brooke, an extra $27,000 over Lobbyist Becker who has worked for the SWA for almost 20 years.
Governor DeSantis Press Conference Sierra Club Loxahatchee Group was there!
DeSantis Press Conference at Big Dog Ranch Sierra Club car with Stop the Bear Hunt
Sierra Club Loxahatchee Group was present at Governor DeSantis’ Press Conference at Big Dog Ranch on November 25, 2025. This was primarily a press conference for securing protections for our pets, but what about our bears?
We tried, but our Stop the Bear Hunt sign was not allowed into the press conference.
So, we propped it up in the trunk of a car—strategically located along the path of the Governor’s motorcade. Whether the governor saw it or not is unknown.
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About Turtle Tracks
Turtle Tracks is the monthly newsletter of the Sierra Club Florida Loxahatchee Group. It contains environmental news and activities of interest to Sierra Club members and supporters in Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie and Okeechobee counties. Contributions from readers are welcomed. Please review our submission guidelines.
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