► Celebrate a local hero, Garnetta Annable, at our 2025 Guardians of Nature Benefit.
► Watch the story of the latest success in our 15 year work to protect Permanente Creek.
► Explore, Enjoy and Protect through our Environmental Stewardship Program 2025 - 2026.
► Learn what's at risk from sea level rise and join our Bay Alive Campaign.
► Take a hike! See the comprehensive list of Chapter activities available through mid-September.
2025 Guardians of Nature Benefit Early Bird Tickets Ending Soon!
Only 3 weeks remain to take advantage of Early Bird pricing! Don’t miss your chance to join us for the Guardians of Nature Benefit, an inspiring evening of community, connection, and celebration of environmental impact.
Recording of Lehigh Quarry/Cement Public Meeting Hosted by Supervisor Abe-Koga
Hear an update of progress on restoration of Permanente Creek, which is occurring due to a Sierra Club lawsuit filed in 2011 to stop the release of toxic selenium into the creek, and to fix damage caused by dumping mining waste into the creek. Current aggregate sales, removal of the cement plant, and the mining reclamation plan were also discussed, followed by many excellent audience questions.
Environmental Stewardship Program 2025 - 2026 Registration is Open
If you are curious about environmental issues and would like to take action to protect our environment, this is the program for you. Space is limited so register today.
At our in-person Environmental Stewardship Program you will learn about critical environmental issues, learn how to be an activist, enjoy nature through connections to optional outings, and receive a certificate of completion. These goals will be accomplished through screenings of award-winning environmental documentaries, discussion, presentations and learning to work with legislators.
Previous program participants have afterwards played integral roles in various environmental organizations, both grassroots NGOs and government agencies, including elected officials, and have ranged in age from high school students to senior citizens. They are continuing to work to build a better world.
We had a great time tabling at Foster City Summer Days this past weekend! We made 33 water cycle bracelets with youngsters and gave 12 hidden word puzzles to older kids while their parents learned about our Chapter and environmental issues that affect our Bay Area. Artificial turf, sea level rise, coyotes on the Bay trail, healthy marshes, andChapter hikes were all lively discussion topics.
Will you Help Save our Marshlands from Sea Level Rise?
Hi! I’m your friend, the marshlands.
I’m hard at work, every day, all the time, working for you. I make oxygen, and clean the air. I keep the temperature nice and mellow here in the Bay. I filter and clean the water, even water from waste treatment plants. When storms surge or high tides come, I soak up the extra. I capture more carbon than a rainforest, and I do it all naturally, for free! I can even deal with sea level rise.
Normally, the tides flow in and out of the marshes and all is well. But with sea level rise, the plants in the marshes do not get enough oxygen so they literally drown. We can survive sea level rise by migrating gradually up shore. All I need to migrate is space, wide open space, to grow into, to keep the rising sea level from drowning me. However, more and more buildings are being proposed on the shoreline, and they’ll destroy more and more marshlands, which we need to survive. Learn more about our marshlands feeling the big squeeze.
Seeking Bay Alive Campaign Remote Volunteer Librarian
The Remote Volunteer Librarian will be responsible for organizing and maintaining a searchable online database of resources, including articles, websites, videos, and photos, that focus on nature-based solutions to sea level rise and related environmental challenges. This database will be crucial in developing educational content, and making resources easily accessible for our advocacy efforts and development of comment letters. This librarian could take on searching for new materials as well, depending on their time constraints. This is a volunteer position, ideal for the right person with strong organizational abilities, attention to details, skills at helping other volunteers succeed, and a passion for environmental issues. Knowledge about assessing research is also a plus. Help support the many volunteers of the Bay Alive Team who are making a difference. Learn more.
Community Wellbeing at Risk from Sea Level Rise
Flooded areas may facilitate the spread of waterborne diseases, while rising seas contribute to erosion, property loss, and loss of vital infrastructure, disrupting travel and emergency services. Displacement, job loss, stress, and compromised sanitation in affected communities further escalate health risks.
Due to historical land-use decisions, discrimination, and greed, residents in under-recognized, socially vulnerable communities are disproportionately vulnerable to sea level rise threats. Residents of these communities are more likely to live near contaminated sites where groundwater rise can move hazardous materials in the soil. These communities have high housing vulnerability and often live in flood-prone zones exposing them to property damage and displacement. Aging or poorly maintained infrastructure in these areas may offer less protection against sea level and groundwater rise, increasing the risk of damage to health, homes, and public facilities. These communities often lack the resources to invest in infrastructure improvements, protective measures, or relocation efforts.
We all Depend on a Living Bay
San Francisco Bay!
You’ve walked its shores. You’ve breathed in its beauty. Beyond its beauty, did you know we depend on our Bay?
Our Bay ecology is actively working in ways that help and protect us, from shoreline plants and tidal marshes, to wetlands, mud flats, and eelgrass meadows!
However, they're all at risk from sea level rise. It’s easy to take for granted how much we all depend upon our Bay ecology, which will become more essential as climate change worsens and our communities grow. Can our Bay depend on you? Learn more about what's at risk from sea level rise.
It's Coming and Will Effect You!
Learn more about sea level rise planning in the San Francisco Bay, through the Sea Level Rise Planning Webinar Series. This summer, the Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC) is holding a four-part webinar series showcasing their plan for our region to address sea level rise, the Regional Shoreline Adaptation Plan (RSAP). Our Bay Alive Campaign has been heavily engaged in the RSAP process since its inception and continues to advocate for proper implementation of the plan, highlighting its emphasis on natural and nature-based solutions (NNBS), environmental justice and shoreline contamination concerns. Register for BCDC's next webinar on September 17th to get up to speed on the RSAP, and then contact us to become involved, and advocate for strong RSAP implementation in your community!
Knee Deep Times: "Bayfront Redevelopment on a Landfill Sparks Pollution and Flood Concerns"
"A contentious plan to redevelop an office park at the edge of Belmont Slough is spotlighting the challenges that closed landfills can create for planners and cities trying to protect their shores from rising waters. The property is one of approximately 50 such sites ringing the Bay. [...]
Gita Dev, of the Sierra Club’s Loma Prieta chapter, says her group is concerned that not enough is known about the condition of the landfill and the impact of development on the surrounding ecosystem, including the Redwood Shores Ecological Reserve.
“What might drilling hundreds of piles do in terms of releases of toxins into the Bay, into the wildlife refuge? We think they should not proceed until they have a better idea of the potential damage,” she says." Read the full article.
Sea Level Rise Webinar Series
Learn how nature can help fight sea level rise with cost-effective and sustainable solutions. Watch recordings of our webinar series with SF Bay experts and please share with your local elected officials.
FOREST PROTECTION
Community Wildfire Preparedness
The risk of severe and destructive wildfires is increasingly real for many, if not most, Californians. Although preparing for these emergencies can be challenging, effective community preparedness is essential. This preparation requires collaboration among local government officials, residents, and emergency agencies. Additionally, state officials and legislators must ensure that resources are available to enable successful coordination and implementation. Learn more about the importance of community wildfire preparedness.
Defensible Space Zones 1 and 2
Recently in our newsletter, the treatment of Zone 0, the “zero combustible” (immediate) zone to achieve maximal defensible space around a home or structure, was discussed. To reduce wildfire risk, defensible space also requires a well-tended (intermediate) Zone 1, which encompasses the area 5 - 30 feet from a home or structure, and an (extended) Zone 2, which stretches an additional 70 feet for a total defensible perimeter of 100 feet around a home or structure. Do these zones also need to be devoid of living greenery, and must the aesthetics and beauty of plants and trees be sacrificed?
While having little to no vegetation is necessary for an ideal Zone 0 (and, in California, may soon become mandatory), this is not the case for Zones 1 and 2. It is, however, important to consider removing highly flammable vegetation, especially non-native species, in Zone 1. Learn more about Zones 1 and 2.
"Following our meeting on June 23rd, below are the principle verbal comments we made at the meeting on the preliminary application (of February 14, 2025). [The Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter's Sustainable Land Use Committee (SLU)] would like to see these comments factored into the final approved project. SLU would also be interested in meeting with you again to further discuss the final submitted project and our comments. In general, the concepts presented in your application are a much-simplified project compared to those in the original project that was approved in 2020. SLU performed a detailed evaluation of your original project and concluded that the project scored well within our SLU guidelines for station-area plans at that time. The simplified new project does not have some of the positive features of the original project, but the new project has some improvements in important areas."
Upgrading Single-family Home Air Conditioning to High Efficiency Heat Pumps
"The undersigned organizations are writing to voice our strong support for the City of Palo Alto to adopt the 2025 CALGreen standards to encourage that all air conditioning (AC) replacements in single-familyhomes be upgraded to high efficiency heat pumps in order to reduce climate pollution and lower energy costs. Our communities are already directly experiencing the impacts of the climate crisis, so the time for bold action is now."
A massive threat looms over one of our most cherished natural treasures. San Bruno Mountain is not just any mountain, it is a sanctuary for endangered butterflies, a haven for rare plants, and a refuge of unparalleled ecological significance. The proposed project threatens to unravel the delicate balance of this natural treasure, and we urge you to take action to protect it.
The City of Brisbane is considering a plan to build a massive 1.3 million-square-foot warehouse, 100 feet tall, right in the heart of San Bruno Mountain, at the historic Guadalupe Quarry.
This industrial facility would bring hundreds of workers (1,500!) and an incredible amount of traffic through our city and into the heart of sensitive habitat. Sign the petition today.
Healthy, Responsible, Resilient, and Feasible: Sustainable Sports Fields
As climate change intensifies, marked by record-breaking heat domes, deadly floods, and destructive wildfires, it’s increasingly clear that local decisions are connected to global results. Reducing plastic use, for example in municipal infrastructure, is such a decision. Plastic turf, which is made from fossil fuels and contributes to pollution and climate change, is a prime candidate discontinuing.
What can be its replacement? Sustainable, pesticide-free, drought-tolerant natural grass fields. McKegney Green in Tiburon, CA, offers a successful example.
A recent event we hosted highlighted practical methods for sustainable grass field installation and care, drawing officials from multiple Bay Area cities and counties.
In the News
27 Million Tons of Missing Plastic Found
A recent groundbreaking study reveals that the North Atlantic Ocean contains approximately 27 million tons of nanoplastics, which are particles smaller than one micrometer in size. This tonnage exceeds the total amount of larger plastic pieces in the entirety of the world’s oceans, and resolves the “mystery” of where the bulk of worn out plastics resides. Due to their size, nanoplastics can more easily enter living tissue than larger pieces, raising concerns about their effect on environment and people.
Your connection: Join our Plastic Pollution Prevention Committee as we educate ourselves and others on how to identify and address the growing list of harms inflicted on the environment and public health by prolific and unnecessary plastic production.
In the Community
Naturalist Training (August 27th), BioBlitz (September 7th), Cleanup (September 9th and 20th), and Bike Ride (September 13th) from our friends at Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful.
One of the best ways to safeguard a thriving and just future is by ensuring that your Loma Prieta Chapter remains a champion for the environment of Santa Clara, San Mateo, and San Benito Counties. Naming us as a beneficiary in your bequest will provide meaningful and enduring resources that will allow continued local and powerful environmental activism.
Please contact our Chapter Development Coordinator Justyna Guterman for the specific language for your estate planning and/or read more here. For additional information about planning a bequest please contact Julia Curtis, (800) 932-4270.
Photographers, see the great images in our Chapter Annual Summaries and help protect local nature with your images! Share with us your high-resolution photos of local nature, with or without people, to inspire local residents to support Loma Prieta Chapter work. Please contact Chapter Development Coordinator Justyna Guterman.
“By letting our children lead us to their own special places, we can rediscover the joy and wonder of nature.” – Richard Louv, author of “Last Child in the Woods”
2025.08.15: Chapter Director's family hike to Eagle Rock, Alum Rock Park Park.
