► Join a Bay Alive local team to help shape local sea level rise solutions.
► Save the date! Our 2026 Guardians of Nature Benefit is Friday, September 25th.
► Learn about the less visible sea level rise threats: rising groundwater, mobilization of contaminants, and environmental justice.
Join a Bay Alive Local Team to Shape Solutions in Your City
Sea level rise planning is starting in several Loma Prieta Chapter communities and the Bay needs your help ensuring its natural ecosystems and community members are uplifted and protected. The Bay Alive Campaign is launching local advocacy teams to monitor and improve local sea level rise plans, and we will need all hands on deck! Strong community oversight and advocacy is essential to ensure natural and nature-based solutions, equity, and climate resilience are fully realized.
Bay Alive teams are forming now in the following areas:
San Mateo County (Belmont, San Carlos, Redwood City, Menlo Park, East Palo Alto),
Santa Clara County (all shoreline cities),
San Mateo,
Brisbane, and
Millbrae and Burlingame.
Get involved today! If you are interested in anything from educating community members, to scanning local plans and policies, to meeting with elected officials, there is a role for you. Join a local Bay Alive Campaign team today, and help us rise to the challenge of adapting to a rising tide. Then,RSVP for our Teams kick-off meeting on June 23rd at 7:00 pm to meet your team members, the other teams, and Bay Alive volunteer leaders and staff, and officially kickoff our teams.
Save the Date: 2026 Guardians of Nature Benefit
Friday, September 25, 2026 6:00 - 9:00 pm Palo Alto
Mark your calendar for the 2026 Guardians of Nature Benefit. Join fellow environmental advocates, community leaders, and Sierra Club supporters for an inspiring evening celebrating the people who make local conservation achievements possible. This year, we are proud to honor the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District Board of Directors for their extraordinary leadership in protecting the open spaces just
minutes from our doors. All funds raised will support the Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter's work to protect our environment, advance climate solutions, and build a more sustainable future.
Forest Protection
Forest Protection Forum
“Introducing the New Direction for Public Lands” June 22nd, 4:00 pm
Presented by Adam Bronstein and Jennifer Mamola
Public lands, watersheds, and wildlife are currently under attack—and have been for decades—due to ineffectual laws, legal loopholes, and agency mismanagement. Industry controls the levers of power and has an iron grip on Congress. It’s time to reimagine a future where public lands are managed for their ecological integrity and public benefit, not private industry exploitation. The New Direction for Public Lands is a shared vision for protecting, rewilding, and reimagining our nation’s public lands through federal legislative solutions. Our collection of impactful policies points the way towards the future we envision for public lands and wildlife. Our movement of advocates, scientists, recreationists, and concerned citizens is united to end the exploitation of these lands and ensure they serve the public good. Inspired by the generations before us who rose to safeguard America’s natural heritage, we call for a new era of responsible stewardship and conservation that reflects the values of everyday Americans nationwide. Learn more and register for the forum today.
Growing Community: Celebrating Arbor Day and Urban Forests in Mountain View
On April 25th, the Loma Prieta Chapter’s Forest Protection Committee participated in a special Arbor Day tree-planting event and vendor fair organized by the City of Mountain View in honor of Earth Month. The event took place at beautiful Cuesta Park in the heart of town and ran from 9 a.m. to noon. It featured a large-scale community tree planting led by the City’s Urban Forestry team and Canopy, a local nonprofit focused on urban forestry.
Local sustainability organizations set up booths and tables, offering educational materials and resources in a family-friendly atmosphere that highlighted the benefits of a healthy urban forest. The Loma Prieta Forest Protection Committee contributed by hosting an informational table, sharing resources on urban forest protection, climate resilience, and local advocacy. Learn more about this Mountain View event.
Executive Committee Candidates
Are you a potential candidate for the Loma Prieta Chapter Executive Committee?
Executive Committee members develop and facilitate execution of an overall strategy to grow and engage our membership and strengthen the chapter and provide support to our chapter’s local entities to carry out the Club's mission of exploring, enjoying, and protecting the planet. Members should be willing to assist our chapter in various leadership areas, spend a minimum of 5 - 10 hours a month on chapter business, and typically take on additional duties such as
serving on other chapter level committees covering membership, communications, fundraising, finance, conservation, politics and as liaisons to chapter internal entities, other Club chapters, and to the state and national Club organizations. Learn more about applying to serve on our Executive Committee.
In last month’s article we discussed how sea level rise will impact each shoreline differently. This month we focus on related but less visible threats: rising groundwater, the mobilization of contaminants, and the environmental justice implications for shoreline communities.
As we’ve explained in prior blogs, as sea levels rise, it doesn’t only cause surface flooding. Below ground, it also raises our shallow groundwater aquifers. One of the most serious hazards of groundwater rise is that it can mobilize contaminants already present in the soil.
Many of the contaminated sites were cleaned and closed decades ago, before regulators were paying attention to some hazardous materials that are now recognized as contaminants of concern, and were established before the threat of sea level rise was recognized so they didn’t consider the possibility of submergence and contaminants being carried far from the source by groundwater rise.
Environmental justice is also central to this work. Socially vulnerable communities often bear the largest environmental burdens while having the fewest resources to respond. These communities suffer from both social vulnerability and contamination vulnerability. This correlation is no coincidence but rather the result of historical discrimination often placing contaminated sites in socially vulnerable communities. Now, sea level rise only exacerbates this disproportionate burden. Learn more about these less visible threats.
Consider and Approve a Resolution Certifying the FEIR of the SAFER Bay Project and Related Actions
"We wish to extend our sincere thanks to SFCJPA staff for the substantial attention given to our lengthy and detailed DEIR comment letter and for the significant responsive revisions incorporated into the FEIR that is now before the Board.
We want to specifically voice our support for the Board's approval of "the Modified Footprint Alternative (Figure RTC-1) of the FEIR Response to Comments Document", as outlined in letter L of the Board's Resolution Certifying the Final EIR. The approval of the Modified Footprint Alternative, as specified in the Final EIR, will reduce permanent impacts to the marsh and slough east of the Meta Headquarters. It will also provide a beautiful new addition to the Bay Trail with a 600-foot bridge for pedestrians and bicyclists.
Before taking action on certification of the FEIR, we ask the Board to consider the following remaining concerns:
The program-level trail width standard,
Predator Management Funding, and
Implementation requirements related to contamination, groundwater, and construction-phase hazards."
Public Comment Process Shortfall for the Draft Safety Element Update
"The City established an April 24 public comment deadline for submission of comments on the draft Safety Element. However, the Planning Commission hearing and vote were held on April 27, the following Monday. As a result, the Planning Commission agenda packet did not include all timely submitted public comment letters, and the accompanying staff report did not address many of the comments received. This undermined transparency and limited the ability of Commissioners and the public to fully consider the range and substance of community input prior to the Commission’s deliberations and recommendation."
Letter to the Editor: The Potential Damage from ‘Redwood Life’ Megaproject
The San Mateo Daily Journal: "Regarding your article “Life sciences treading water,” the proposed life sciences megaproject, “Redwood Life” is still aggressively moving forward along the shoreline of Redwood Shores. This huge project is fundamentally mismatched to its location. The site is subsiding on former landfill, already vulnerable to sea-level rise and rising groundwater within the dump itself — hardly a stable foundation for such an ambitious development.[...]" - Gita Dev, Conservation Committee Chair Read the full letter to the editor.
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.
South Bay Cities Need to Fix Water Pollution Problems
Loma Prieta Chapter members love our local open spaces and want to know about environmental threats to assets such as the Bay, which we are actively working to protect.
Kayakers, paddleboarders, birdwatchers, and hikers enjoy the South San Francisco Bay marshes and sloughs and want to know that the water is safe for people, for the wildlife that depends on it, and for the vital ecology of the Bay itself. Unfortunately, in Sunnyvale and Mountain View, usually environmentally conscious cities, polluted discharges are sending dangerous levels of bacteria into
creeks and into the Bay. This is the subject of a lawsuit filed by San Francisco Baykeeper in 2020 and recently decided in their favor on March 31, 2026. Learn more about this bacterial pollution.
COMMENT LETTER
Valley Water’s Draft 2025 Urban Water Management Plan and Water Shortage Contingency Plan
"The Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter has reviewed Valley Water’s Draft 2025 Urban Water Management Plan (UWMP). Please consider the following comments regarding the Draft UWMP which focus on water demand projections, and specifically the evidence that water use will continue the current downward trend and how that could impact water supply planning."
"The draft Plan includes one of the strongest recognitions yet that biodiversity should be integrated into all parks large and small. In particular, we strongly support the concept of “Biodiversity Anchors” throughout the park system. The recognition that even mini parks can contribute meaningfully to habitat, ecological function, urban cooling, environmental education, and climate resilience through pollinator gardens, small groves of trees, bioswales, and native and habitat-supportive plantings is a major step forward."
"We wish to re-emphasize, as stated in our letter, that the Environmental Standard Permit Conditions constitute a “floor,” not a “ceiling,” in terms of potential mitigation measures for projects with significant environmental impacts. As stated by David Keyon at the Planning Commission meeting, any project that has the potential to result in significant environmental impacts that are not adequately mitigated through the Standard Permit Conditions will still be required to comply with project-specific mitigations to address those impacts."
Scoping Comments in Response to Notice of Preparation for Petal Fields Project
"The project proposes to develop 838 residences, including 523 single family detached units, 145 single family attached units, and 170 multi-family rental units. The proposed project includes construction of a 3.5-mile-long water line extension and onsite wastewater facility. The Petal Fields project is proposed on land zoned for agriculture and resource preservation that is surrounded on at least two sides by land being used for agriculture and resource preservation; therefore, the project is not entitled to the protections of the builder’s remedy."
"We sent scoping comments on the project on June 29, 2023. We are writing to provide comments on the Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) for the proposed development at 1005 O’Brien Drive and 1320 Willow Road. While the DEIR provides a useful overview of the project, several significant concerns remain insufficiently addressed."
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.
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.
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.
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.
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 June
National Trails Day is first Saturday in June June 10, 1929, E. O. Wilson was born June 11, 1933, Gene Wilder was born June 12th, 1944, Big Bend National Park was established June 14th, 2024, Flag Day June 15th, 1934, Great Smoky Mountains National Park was established June 18th, 1933, Founding of the Loma Prieta Chapter June 29th, 1906, Mesa Verde National Park was established
“You are capable of more than you know. Choose a goal that seems right for you and strive to be the best, however hard the path. Aim high. Behave honorably. Prepare to be alone at times and to endure failure. Persist! The world needs all you can give.” – Edward O. Wilson
2026.05.31, your Chapter Director's hike, not in our chapter.
