Loma Prieta Chapter eNewsletter: May, Volume 2

Two Actions, One Valley:
Take the Survey and Vote Yes on Santa Clara County Measure D

The Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority (OSA) is requesting public input on the Coyote Valley Conservation Areas Master Plan (areas shaded yellow on the map above).  This plan will guide restoration, access, and management of Coyote Valley. This is our opportunity to move from protection to restoration, and shape the future of Coyote Valley.

How Can you help?
👉 Take the survey: https://www.openspaceauthority.org/cvcamp-survey
This survey closes on Sunday, May 31, 2026

Guidance for responding
When completing the survey, consider the Valley from the perspective of a native animal, e.g., bird, fox, newt.

Learn more about these actions for the Valley.

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.

for Our City SF, shared a perspective that challenges the mainstream "build-at-all-costs" narrative. With more than a decade of advocacy experience, Brooks argues that the housing crisis is being mischaracterized by powerful economic interests, specifically those associated with the most vocal housing groups that advocate mainly for luxury and market rate housing. Read more about this Environmental Stewardship Program Spotlight.

Add your name to the petition NOW to urge the City to get this right! Keep Redwood Shores livable and save the Bay and local nature that we love.

Sign the Petition to Save San Bruno Mountain

Previously Unrecognized Global Warming Likely Caused By Atmospheric Microplastics

By now nearly everyone is realizing that global warming is happening faster than anyone predicted as recently as only a few years ago. New sources of warming are discovered regularly, but the warming effect of tiny plastic particles may be particularly unexpected, coming from tiny bits of colored plastic objects rather than from greenhouse gases. Above what’s come to be known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, a study published in the journal Nature Climate Change  found that airborne plastic, particularly colored plastic, is likely to produce “a measure of trapped heat” having “nearly five times the local effect of black carbon.” Join the SCLP 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.

Finnish Led University Studies Demonstrate that Playing in Mud & Sand Boosts Children’s Immune System

If you’re old enough, you probably remember your parents admonishing you as a child to not track dirt or mud into the house. This was because outdoor play meant playing outside in any weather, rain or sun, and because playgrounds came with sand pits, water play areas, and plenty of dirt as well as grass, weeds and other plants. It turns out that multi-year studies (1, 2), led by researchers in Finland, found that the skin of the children who played in forest soil, known to be biodiverse, had fewer disease producing bacteria, and that children who played in sandboxes enriched with biodiverse microbiota (known to be safe) developed improved immune systems in as little as two (2) weeks. Synthetic surfaces, such as pour-in-place (PIP) rubber or plastic grass, are not only unnecessary in playgrounds, they may keep children from developing their best resistance to disease.

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.

Too much Sierra Club email? You have control! See this simple tutorial.

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.