YOU Can Make a Difference; Read How in This eNewsletter
► Rally on September 10th to Protect Juristac from a proposed open pit sand mine.
► Join your community at the Guardians of Nature Benefit, returning this fall with an in person option, and celebrating Peninsula Open Space Trust's President Walter T. Moore.
► See what your support of Loma Prieta Chapter made possible in 2021 (and previously)!
► See a map of hazardous sites and communities at risk from rising seas.
► Support strengthening important oversight of a major contamination threat in our shoreline communities. See below.
► Take a hike! Here's what's available with your chapter. |
Rally For Juristac
September 10th 1-4pm
70 West Hedding St San Jose
Juristac is under threat from a proposed open pit sand and gravel mine. Help protect this sacred site of the Amah Mutsun people and a critical wildlife corridor between the Santa Cruz Mountains and the Diablo Range.
Click here to learn more.
In the News: Sierra Club and Amah Mutsun Tribal Band Join Growing Coalition Challenging Valley Water’s Proposed Pacheco Dam Project. |
Your Loma Prieta Chapter's Guardians of Nature Benefit returns this fall
and will celebrate Peninsula Open Space Trust's President Walter T. Moore.
During his tenure, President Moore has led POST to permanently protect and restore thousands of acres of local open space, including Coyote Valley, one of our Sierran community's most beloved hiking spots. You can read more about our honoree and our upcoming Guardians of Nature Benefit for your Loma Prieta Chapter. We hope that you will join us!
Find more about the 2022 Guardians of Nature Benefit on the event's website.
Purchase tickets here. See sponsorship opportunities here.
|
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) Passed, But What's In It?
Click here for the detailed analysis of the IRA prepared by Sierra Club National
“Our communities that are being ravaged by floods, wildfires, droughts, and other climate-fueled disasters have waited too long for real action to address the interlocking crises of climate change, systemic racism, and public health. The $369 billion of climate and clean energy investments in the reconciliation bill will go far toward meeting our climate goals, helping families deal with rising prices, and advancing environmental justice."
“At the same time, we must call out that the Inflation Reduction Act contains damaging oil and gas leasing provisions that will continue to disproportionately impact frontline communities in places like the Gulf South and Alaska. It is utterly unacceptable to treat any communities as sacrifice zones, and the Sierra Club commits to continuing to fight hard for the health and safety of these communities."
- Leslie Fields, Sierra Club’s National Director of Policy Advocacy and Legal
Click here for Leslie's full statement |
Cupertino Adopts Climate Action Plan 2.0 Update
On August 16th, Cupertino City Council adopted an updated Climate Action Plan (Climate Action Plan 2.0). The plan establishes a carbon neutral by 2040 goal and contains ambitious measures to decarbonize buildings and transportation. The plan also seeks to increase tree canopy and biodiversity.
This has been a lengthy process! We have been actively engaged in Cupertino's CAP Update since 2020, and collaborated with The Cupertino Youth Climate Action Team, the Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society and other community members. Together we pressured the City to accelerate the carbon neutrality target by 5 years (from an original goal of carbon neutral by 2045) and supported strong measures for equitable existing building decarbonization and ecological restoration.
Thanks to all who lent their voice in Cupertino! Now on to implementation!
- Dashiell Leeds
Conservation Organizer
Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter
Click here to read the CAP
|
Loma Prieta Chapter Supports Affordable Housing for Farmworkers
The Chapter has long advocated for affordable housing, especially for farmworkers, in and near Half Moon Bay. Over recent decades the City and the County have achieved notable successes with the prize-winning Moonridge farmworker project near the southern edge of town and several excellent senior housing projects along Main Street.
A recent success-in-the-making is the projected utilization of City properties on Kelly Avenue to build 40 farmworker units plus a meeting room that will have very short walks to transit, medical services, schools and shopping. The City Council, Mercy Housing and the amazing Ayudando Latinos A Sonar (ALAS) organization can take a much deserved bow for pulling this together.
But stay tuned. The Chapter is supporting other affordable housing locations in Half Moon Bay that could yield multiples of the above project and we look forward to the day when we can announce those to you.
Mike Ferreira
Loma Prieta Chapter Executive Committee
Coastal Issues Committee
Learn more about affordable housing |
Tour of Green and Electrified Homes
September 24th 10am - 4pm
Want to see how to run a house without fossil fuels?
Visit several homes near you that have made the switch to clean, green electricity. You’ll get to taste food made on an induction cooktop, learn about heat pump water heaters, and possibly ride in an electric vehicle!
For more details about homes you can see in cities throughout Silicon Valley, click here to register for FREE.
Questions? Contact Debbie Mytels at debbie.mytels@gmail.com |
Looking to Electrify but Don't Know Where to Start? Begin Here!
The Switch is On provides the resources you'll need to electrify your home, click here!. Explore the benefits of an all-electric home and learn about how you can swap from gas to electric!
Incentives are available! Click here to learn more. This tool allows you to find the right incentives that apply to you. |
More from our friends at San Jose Clean Energy
1. Net Metering Customers eNewsletter sign-up here
2. Solar Customers, it is Time to True-Up! What's "True-Up"? |
Keep an Eye Out for Greenwashing by Fossil Fuel Companies
Companies that indirectly rely on fossil fuels to produce energy, like Bloom Energy, use phrases like “clean energy” as a marketing ploy to make their technology seem more environmentally friendly than it is. Bloom’s technology, called Bloom Boxes, are essentially on-site power gas power plants. Not only do the fuel cells produce carbon dioxide from burning methane, but methane itself is an incredibly leaky and harmful greenhouse gas, with more than 80 times the impact on the climate as carbon dioxide. The fuel cells run continuously, meaning they produce CO2 emissions from burning methane 24/7.
Written by volunteer Daniel Contreras |
Rebuilding Coastal Prairies
Saturday, September 24, 2022 10:00 am PDT
The Coastside Land Trust welcomes Grey Hayes to talk about the many facets of the coastal prairie - including an in depth talk about what lives within it, and why we should care. He will also explore the history and current restoration and conservation efforts, and the concept of re-indigenation from the perspective of a restoration ecologist.
Register here to Learn More about Coastal Prairies |
Bat Fest!
October 22d
Join our friends at Saved By Nature for an evening festival celebrating local animals of the night, with live bats, owls, and other creatures. It's a fun time under the stars! With a special guest speaker, food trucks, live music, festival games, arts and crafts, mini-pumpkin patch, REI lounge and community partner organization booths. Be sure to bring your own blankets and lawn chairs to enjoy popcorn, cotton candy and your favorite drink while watching the movie The Addams Family (1991) under the night sky.
Learn more about Saved By Nature's Bat Fest. |
YOU Can Make a Difference for Local Environmental Protection!
Our Environmental Legislative Action Team and Climate Action Leadership Team will show you how.
Your Loma Prieta Chapter is organizing a network of advocacy teams at the city level.
These are city-focused teams with the twin goals of spearheading actions to combat climate change and to conserve and restore natural habitats.
You will be working with city council members, key city staff, county officials, and other environmental activists. We welcome and educate those who are new to climate policy.
For more information contact Loma Prieta Chapter's Conservation Organizer dashiell.leeds@sierraclub.org. |
What Are the SEC Climate Rules?
Financial regulators are hoping to force big companies and investment managers to disclose climate information. If you'd like to join local grassroots effective work to make these changes happen, please contact Sue Chow, sue2042@gmail.com
Loma Prieta Chapter, Chair of Environmental Legislative Action Committee |
Sea level rise poses a dual contamination threat ...
from both surface flooding and groundwater rise below the surface that could reach as far as three miles inland from the edge of the Bay, pushing up and spreading toxins along the way. More than 900 hazardous sites across the state could be impacted by the end of the century. In California, communities of color are five times more likely than the general population to live within a half mile of a toxic site that could flood by 2050.
See a map of hazardous sites and communities at risk from rising seas.
|
| Join our friends at Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful for Creek Cleanup, Coastal Cleanup, Bioblitz, and Plant Galls for the Curious Naturalist.. |
Water Board takes aim at shoreline landfills at risk from sea level rise
California's Regional Water Quality Control Board issued a tentative order imposing heightened sea level rise planning requirements on 16 additional shoreline landfills, ten of which are in our Chapter region! (17 sites are already subject to that heightened scrutiny.) Under the new order, the identified landfills would have to do a vulnerability assessment and submit a Long-term Flood Protection plan addressing severe storm events, SLR, shallow groundwater rise and land subsidence. Bay Alive is supporting our friends in the SF Shoreline Contamination Cleanup Coalition as they lead the charge to support, clarify and strengthen this important oversight of a major contamination threat in our shoreline communities. |
Take a hike! Here's what's available with your Loma Prieta chapter.
Note: regardless of the name/origin of the outing section, all are welcome!
Sun 8/28/22 11:00 AM Sierra Azul Woods Trail (Front Country)
Wed 8/31/22 10:00 AM Hike Castle Rock State Park
Wed 8/31/22 1:00 PM POLE Walking for Exercise (Nordic Walking) At Lands End
Wed 9/7/22 10:00 AM Hike El Corte de Madera Open Space Preserve
Wed 9/7/22 12:30 PM POLE Walking for Exercise (Nordic Walking) At Lands End
Thu 9/8/22 10:00 AM Hike El Corte de Madera Open Space Preserve
Register and see more information on our chapter calendar.
|
Do You Need Space to Spread Your Wings?
Donate a Vehicle to Support the Critical Local Environmental Work of Your Chapter.
It’s easy to give and the pick-up is free; just call 844-6-SIERRA or 844-674-3772 or give online at https://careasy.org/nonprofit/Sierra-Club-Foundation-Loma-Prieta-Chapter.
If you would like to donate a Mazda Miata, please contact your Chapter Director personally.
|
Top Posts recently on Loma Prieta facebook page
Follow us on facebook and you'll see most stories before the eNewsletter, and other stories and action alerts that don't make it into the eNewsletter.
#3. Stop the Delta Tunnel
#2. Free Sierra Club Military Outdoors Pole Hiking & Pole Walking Trainings
#1. Postal Service Plans EV Surge |
Social Media Channels for the Loma Prieta Chapter
Facebook: Chapter, 20s – 30s, GLS, Sierra Singles
Loma Prieta Chapter's YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, Spotify |
|
In Case You Missed It
Previous volumes of our Chapter eNewsletter can be found here.
HISTORIC DATES
Aug 30, 1944: birth of Molly Ivins, American newspaper columnist, author, political commentator, and humorist
IN THE NEWS
Be More Like Goldilocks? The Swedish philosophy of "Lagom": how "justy enough" is all you need
Nuclear, a Solution to Nothing
Sierra Club's new Statement of Values
Sierra Club California 2022 Endorsements
Bunches of Bats
Ancient Redwoods Threatened By Drought and Fire
How Best to Protect the Night Sky
How to Fall Out of Love with Your Lawn
A systematic review of the literature highlights the potential positive impact of nature-based learning for primary school-aged children Access Study
Positive associations between nature contact and children’s health supports advocacy for equitable nature access Access Study
Empirical research over the last 40 years identifies positive associations between nature activities and wellbeing in children and youth Access Study
Improving the quantity and quality of public open space in disadvantaged neighborhoods may help reduce mental health inequities Access Study
How can local cities and residents use nature-based adaptations to sea level rise? Watch recordings of our recent webinar series with SF Bay experts and share with your local elected officials!
Photographers, if you’d like to share with us your high-resolution photos of local nature, with or without people, please contact our Development Coordinator Justyna Guterman, justyna.guterman@sierraclub.org
Too much Sierra Club email? You have control! See this simple tutorial.
|
| Thanks to David Fogel for planning and inviting your Chapter Director for two nights camping at >10k ft elevation and to climb Mt Dana, 13,061 ft elevation. |
|
A man is like a fraction whose numerator is what he is and whose denominator is what he thinks of himself. The larger the denominator, the smaller the fraction.
- Leo Tolstoy
|
Liberty and Justice for All,
James Eggers, Director
Sierra Club, Loma Prieta Chapter |
|
|
|
| The COVID-19 crisis has not passed and continues to disproportionately harm Black, Indigenous, and Latinx people and other communities of color. The pandemic has revealed how the communities hardest hit are often the same communities that suffer from high levels of pollution and poor access to healthcare. The fight for environmental justice cannot be separated from the fight for racial justice. |
|
|
