Sierra Club Centennial Group Members & Friends

Our Next Centennial Group Meeting will be this Thursday April 2nd  7:00-8:30pm

Sierra Club Beyond-Coal updates on Plant McDonough and other coal ash sites with Sierra Beyond-Coal strategist Michael Hawthorne

Michael Hawthorne leads efforts to hold Southern Company accountable to a just & equitable clean energy transition.  Also: Update on Kennesaw State University sustainability student projects from KSU's Office of Sustainability

Life University Graduate & Undergraduate Studies (Bldg 9 on Campus Map) Rm 119, 1250 Life’s Way Marietta or on-line via Zoom

Recommend the large parking area M on the Barclay Circle side of the building at 1269 Barclay Circle. See the green Sierra Club signs on the Barclay Circle entrance to parking area M and follow them to the building and meeting room. 

Social & refreshments 7:00pm  ZOOM meeting begins 7:15pm Please Signup/RSVP and specify in-person or Zoom on-line attendance at Beyond Coal Meeting. We need to know in-person attendance for food planning. Come at 6:30 if you can help setup. If you need parking and access to the building for people with disabilities contact: lynnwalston22@yahoo.com

Other News, April Events and Outings
 

Georgia District 14 Special Election Runoff for U.S. House of Representations:  Early in-person Voting begins March 30^th, Election April 7^th.  Includes parts of Paulding & Cobb and NW Georgia counties formerly represented by Marjorie Taylor Greene.  See MVP. 

Georgia Legislature scheduled to adjourn on April 2^nd, 2026.  See Sierra GA Legislative page

“Cobb County proposing to fire up the incinerators at R. L. Sutton at a cost of $75 million and upgrade them to meet current standards.  Design phase is underway and construction scheduled to begin in 2027 and completed in 2029. The county says the system will pay for itself in 10 years because of reduction of landfill costs. Small comfort to residents of Vinings, that will have more source of pollutants to inhale. Vinings is adjacent to not only the Sutton plant but the R.M. Clayton Water Reclamation Plant just across the Chattahoochee River, which processes some 40% of Atlanta’s sewage sludge. Also in close proximity are an asphalt plant, a cement plant, a Waste Management site and Georgia Power’s Plant McDonough coal ash facility and also Sterigenics. “ –  paraphrased from AJC

EPA announced it intends to roll back standards on ethylene oxide which were updated in 2024 after the Sterigenics controversy. Virtual hearing April 1. Written comments close on May 1 (11:59pm). People impacted by these places should speak or submit a comment about their experience. Georgia has 8 facilities that use ethylene oxide plus 4 facilities that are sources (warehouses, etc). Remember ethylene oxide can leak/offgas from sterile items so warehouses can be a significant source too.  Facilities that use ethylene oxide include Smyrna/Atlanta, Boat Rock/Atlanta, Covington, Madison, Winder, Augusta, Cartersville, and Alpharetta. 

Warehouses or storage in Lithia Springs, South Fulton, McDonough, and Augusta.   See EPA_Hearing.

Okefenokee News: 

Okefenokee Bid for UNESCO World Heritage Center – See info at Okefenokee.

Placing Georgia’s Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge on the famed UNESCO World Heritage list is on track in the final stretch.

State of Georgia will buy Okefenokee-bordered land previously owned by mining company to be a new wildlife management area open to the public.  The purchase is a significant step to take a more active role in protecting land critical to the health of the Okefenokee!!

Dani Purvis is the new GA Sierra Club Wildlands Chair.  She is an avid outdoor recreationalist, backpacking, bouldering, swimming, and paddling and also a volunteer and board member for Wild Cumberland.  Monthly wildlands meetings! What's At Stake outings and education series, a Parks Not Prisons campaign at the Folkston ICE Detention Facility adjacent to the Okefenokee, and a rewilding campaign for people to rewild and protect their own lands and homes.  See GA Sierra Wildlands page.

Atlanta Regional Commission has certified as “Green” nine metro Atlanta communities through its Green Communities program. Douglas and Cobb counties and the cities of Atlanta, Avondale Estates, Mableton, Milton, Norcross, Roswell, and Woodstock.

Data Centers

See Georgia Sierra Club  Data Centers web page

Atlas Development, LLC, has proposed  a $17 billion data center proposed for development in Coweta County

They also filed plans for another $4.5 billion data center, in Bartow County. 

Okefenokee Bid for UNESCO World Heritage Center – See latest info at Okefenokee.

Chattahoochee National Park Conservancy March Events (Ranger-hikes, Bird Walks, River Cleanups and more) – See CNPC_Events
 

Chattahoochee Nature Center March outings, hikes, exhibits, films, canoe-trips and events.  Info at: CNC March Activities

Chattahoochee River Keeper cleanups, and other March events in and around the river.  See their calendar at ChattRiverkeeper

Sierra Club Centennial Group is looking for a volunteer Group Treasurer –

If you can assist, e-mail Lynn Walston at:  lynnwalston22@yahoo.com

The Upper Etowah River Alliance (UERA). The Upper Etowah River Watershed encompasses 610 square miles or 390,400 acres.  It includes parts of five counties — Lumpkin, Pickens, Dawson, Forsyth, and Cherokee — and over 100 tributaries, including Shoal, Amicalola, Yellow, Setting Down, Long Swamp, & Sharp Mountain creeks. The Etowah River begins near Dahlonega and runs 98 miles until it reaches Lake Allatoona. 

Plant Bowen (near Cartersville) AP-1 Coal Ash Permit Draft has been Released! Details at:  PlantBowenCoalAshInfo  Also more info at Why It Matters

Georgia Power wants to close the largest coal ash site in Georgia by installing a liner and capping an ash pit that sits on top of unstable karst, which is prone to sinkholes.  In 2002, a four acre wide, 30 foot deep sinkhole opened up underneath Plant Bowen’s coal ash pit.

2.25 million gallons of toxic coal ash leaked into Euharlee Creek which flows into the Etowah River.  The Etowah River passes Cartersville and the Etowah Indian Mounds then flows to Rome where it meets the Oostanaula River  and forms the Coosa River.

After the spill, arsenic levels rose to 1250 parts per billion, exceeding federal drinking water standards by 120 times. Downstream drinking water intakes were forced to suspend operation. Leaving the coal ash in place on unstable ground at Plant Bowen puts our water and health at risk.

Urgent Issue – Okefenokee Twin Pines Mining proposal:  U.S. Army Corps of Engineers decided the area where Twin Pines wants to set up its mine is no longer under its jurisdiction. Essentially, new federal rules issued by the Trump administration mean the proposed project area is no longer a federally protected wetland.

This means Twin Pines no longer needs federal approval to get started, so it’s up Georgia officials (and us to voice our concerns). There are still several state permits the company needs from the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD). Chemical company Chemours (a Dupont spinoff) is a potential buyer of the Twin Pines mine project and its products. Help us pressure them to publicly oppose the project.  Sierra Club Georgia keeps an update on efforts to prevent the mine at: Sierra Club Georgia Okefenokee

The Georgia Water Coalition has a way for folks to send a message to Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp asking him to take action to protect the Okefenokee. The Georgia EPD director is appointed to the job by the governor, so we’re asking Gov. Kemp to get involved.  Click here to send a message to Gov. Kemp urging him to protect the Okefenokee.

Transit Planning in Cobb County:  Please provide feedback to the Cobb County Comprehensive Transportation Plan (CTP). The CTP is a series of county transportation projects that will be considered for future implementation, up to 30 years.  Make sure to get involved by having your opinion heard!   Take the on-line Cobb Transit Survey at:   Cobb Transit Survey

Georgia Legislative resources:

Georgia Water Coalition Dirty Dozen publishes the list as a call to action, highlighting the worst offenses to Georgia's water - offenses that are the consequences of an under-funded state environmental agency and a lack of political will to enforce laws that protect our water, land, air, and people. Check out water-protecting action items from Protect Georgia

Drawdown Georgia– Drawdown is that point in the future when levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere stop climbing and start to steadily decline.  Drawdown is working on Climate Change solutions sponsored by Ray Anderson Foundation.  Join them and be an early mover in bringing climate solutions home.  Drawdown Georgia is the first, state-centered effort to crowdsolve for climate change, with 20, high-impact solutions that are tailored to Georgia’s unique natural, economic, and social resources. See: Draw down Georgia 

See our Centennial Facebook page and Georgia Sierra Club Meetup page.  

Cobb 4 Transit revamped & launched: The Centennial Group Sierra Club is supporting the launch of Cobb 4 Transit, a new citizen-led initiative to bring transit to Cobb County, and continue to highlight the county's plans for future transit initiatives. Learn more here: www.cobb4transit.org. 

Click here to join the Sierra Club today!

We meet on the first Thursday of each month to host a variety of programs related to our environmental goals of resource conservation and wilderness preservation. We also conduct free outdoor trips. Members and nonmembers are welcome!  The Sierra Club Centennial Group is part of the Sierra Club Georgia Chapter and serves Northwest Metro Atlanta. For more information about the Sierra Club Georgia Chapter.

The Centennial Group of the Georgia Chapter of the Sierra Club was organized in 1992, the one hundredth anniversary year of the national Sierra Club. Our members from Cobb, Cherokee, and North Fulton counties volunteer to educate, enable, and encourage our fellow citizens to protect Georgia's environment "for our families and our future".  We meet on the first Thursday of most months at Life University. We host a variety of programs relating to our goals and our appreciation of Georgia's natural beauty and resources. We also host free outings for members and nonmembers.