► Attend an Earth Day event, catch up on our work, and help protect the planet.
► Comment on the need to improve air quality at Bay Area Air District's board meeting on May 6th.
► Learn how a healthy Bay yields a more resilient future in the face of sea level rise.
► Attend our next Forest Protection Forum and learn how to celebrate severe forest fires."
► Take a hike! See the comprehensive list of Chapter activities available through April.
Happy Earth Month!
We'll be participating in local celebrations sharing updates on our conservation work and Bay Alive Campaign. Stop by and learn about everything we're doing!
Earth Day Festival Saturday, April 18th 11:00 am - 3:00 pm Mountain View Civic Center Plaza
San Jose State University Earth Day 2026 Thursday, April 23rd 10:00 am - 2:00 pm One Washington Square, San José, Tower Lawn
Earth Day EcoFest 2026 Saturday, April 18th 10:30 am - 1:30 pm Pacifica State Beach, Linda Mar
Love Our Earth Festival 2026 Saturday, April 25th Noon - 3:00 pm Cesar Chavez Ravenswood Middle School, East Palo Alto, CA
Your Voice is Needed to Improve Air Quality on May 6th, 2026
The Bay Area Air District is considering zero-emission appliance rules that will reduce air pollution and improve public health by phasing out the sale and installation of new gas-powered appliances according to the following timeline.
2027 – only zero NOx water heaters can be sold or installed in the Bay Area. 2029 – only zero NOx furnaces can be sold or installed in the Bay Area. 2031 – only zero NOx large commercial water heaters can be sold or installed in the Bay Area.
Bay Area residents are encouraged to attend or zoom into the May 6th Bay Area Air District Board of Directors meeting and give a public comment in support of these appliance rules.
Sea level rise is no longer a distant threat. It is an active planning challenge confronting every Bay shoreline community. This is the first of a series of articles highlighting the Bay Alive Campaign’s commitment to preserving and restoring our natural Bay ecosystems, promoting the implementation of nature-based solutions, evening the playing field by advancing environmental justice, and addressing shoreline contamination by cleaning up toxic sites on the Bay.
Why Do We Need Healthy Bay Ecosystems?
The Bay is a nationally recognized hotspot for biodiversity, providing critical habitat for countless birds, microorganisms, and endangered species, such as the Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse and Ridgway’s rail.
In addition to its benefits to wildlife, healthy and connected Bay ecosystems also provide essential ecosystem services that keep our communities safe and healthy while protecting us from the impacts of sea level rise, and climate change more broadly.
Bayland ecosystems safeguard our resilience by
Regulating temperatures by acting as a buffer,
Absorbing floodwaters in its porous soil,
Sequestering carbon, tidal wetlands can sequester up to ten times as much carbon as tropical forests, and
Filtering out pollutants, ensuring we have clean air and water.
Council Approves Levee Project to Protect $8B in Redwood Shores Assets
"Gita Dev, a spokesperson for the Sierra Club, said at Monday’s meeting that she’s frustrated that city staff failed to publish the results of the community survey before recommending a major design update." Read the full Redwood City Pulse 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.
Urge Local Leaders to Support Cleaner Heating and Cooling
Cities and counties across California have a clear opportunity to improve air quality, fight climate change, and save residents money by adopting building code provisions that encourage or require new air conditioner replacements to be capable of both cooling and heating. These policies, often called AC-to-Heat Pump reach codes, ensure that when an air conditioner is replaced, or installed for the first time, in a single-family home, duplex, townhome, or commercial buildings with rooftop packaged units, it is a two-way air conditioner, also known as a heat pump. Right now, you can urge your city
"The proposed standards are reasonable, feasible, and consistent with both regional practice and emerging national building standards. They provide clear, objective design criteria that can be readily implemented. Bird-friendly design standards similar to those proposed by staff are already widely adopted across the Bay Area. San Francisco, Mountain View, Berkeley, Alameda, San José, Palo Alto, and Cupertino have all adopted or incorporated bird-safe design requirements in their codes or policies. Together, these jurisdictions demonstrate a clear regional trend toward practical, implementable standards that reduce bird collisions without impeding development."
Support for GreenSpacesMV’s Recommendations on the Parks and Recreation Strategic Plan
"The Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter, Mothers Out Front Silicon Valley, and the Community for Natural Play Surfaces are writing to express our strong support for the recommendations submitted by GreenSpacesMV regarding the Mountain View Parks and Recreation Strategic Plan. Our organizations share the goal of ensuring that Mountain View’s parks prioritize ecological health, biodiversity, and the well-being of all residents."
Include Board Policy Manual Language Prohibiting Future Investment in Fossil Fuels
"We hope this Committee considers the following language when making its recommendation to the Board of Supervisors. "The County shall update its investment policy to reflect this guidance by amending 4.8 Treasury Investment Policy, section 4.8.7 Eligible, Authorized and Suitable Investments, subsection on "Socially and Environmentally Responsible Investments" to include the following language.” “No new investments shall be made in fossil fuel companies defined as any publicly-traded company that owns reserves of coal, oil, or gas, or that owns coal-fired power plants.""
Support Bird-Friendly Design Ordinance Please Do Not Weaken Standards
"The Santa Clara Valley Bird Alliance, the Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter and the American Bird Conservancy support adoption of the Draft Bird-Friendly Design Ordinance adding Section 18.40.280 to the Palo Alto Municipal Code as proposed in Attachment A. Palo Alto residents consistently express strong support for protecting nature, biodiversity, and wildlife habitat, as reflected in City policies such as the Comprehensive Plan and the Sustainability and Climate Action Plan."
Forest Protection Forum
"Beautifully Burned Forests: Learning to Celebrate Severe Forest Fires" April 20th, 4:00 pm Presented by Dr. Richard Hutto
Dr. Hutto will challenge the common belief that today’s Western forest fires are unprecedented in their severity. Drawing on ecological evidence—especially from a fire‑dependent bird species—he will argue that severe fires have long been a natural and essential part of mixed‑conifer forest ecosystems. Register for the Forum.
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 products.
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.
In the Community
Cleanups (April 12th), Restoration (April 19th), and BioBlitz (April 26th) 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.
Microplastics are Falling from the Sky and Polluting Forests
New research shows forests are not solely affected by local pollution. Microplastics arriving from the air build up in forest soils. Research author Dr. Weber explains “Forests are already threatened by climate change, and our findings suggest that microplastics could now pose an additional threat to forest ecosystems.”
Yes! Microplastics are a huge problem. We need to stop producing unnecessary plastic products. (Unnecessary plastic products are those which either no one needs, such as plastic rocks, or that can be readily replaced by sustainable natural materials, for example by using paper or metal foodware rather than plastic foodware, or using wood or crushed rock tiles instead of vinyl flooring.) Our primary focus should be on reducing plastics manufacturing, not on filtering it after it is made and shed into our water or bodies.
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 products.
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.
Historic April
April 21, 1838, birth of John Muir April 3, 1934, birth of Dr. Jane Goodall
Your Loma Prieta Chapter was founded in 1933; what else happened that year in April? The Civilian Conservation Corps established April 15, birth of Elizabeth Montgomery, "Bewitched" television actress April 15, birth of Roy Clark, country musician April 19, birth of Jayne Mansfield, film actress and mother of actress Mariska Hargitay April 25, birth of Jerry Leiber, popular music composer April 26, birth of Carol Burnett, actress, singer and comedian April 30, birth of Willie Nelson, country singer-songwriter
“What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” – Dr. Jane Goodall
2026.04.04, Chapter Director joined Day Hikers to climb stairs in San Francisco: 18 miles, 2400 ft gain.
