A bee enjoying life at the Long Row Lavender Farm. Photo by Tim Elwell.
Sierra Club steps up to help after STL tornado By Lisa Dahlgren
To date there have been five Sierra Club outings focused on clearing tree debris and chain saw work needed after the F3 tornado hit north St. Louis on May 16th. In those five outings there were 65 volunteers that participated, giving a cumulative total of more than 400 hours of work. On June 11th, one of those outings took place at O'Fallon Park, which had been decimated by the tornado. During that outing Sierra Club teamed up with the St. Louis Parks Department, St. Louis Forestry Division, Missouri Department of Conservation, the Ozark Trail Association, Open Space and River City Outdoors. In that event alone there were 54 volunteers in attendance. The goal of clearing and restoring all of trails so that the park can be used for children’s summer camps was achieved. In addition, poison ivy and large swaths of honeysuckle were removed, and a new section of trail was added.
Photos submitted by David Campbell.
Keeping Tabs on Proposed Development Along Meramec River By Stephanie Todd EMG is supporting a citizens group that is opposing development along the Meramec River near Lewis Road in St. Louis County. The proposed development includes 37 homes and will require significant infrastructure, such as roads, gas, electric, water, and sewer systems. The development will remove a forested ridgeline that is home to diverse wildlife. Clearing this area poses a significant threat to local ecosystems and could lead to irreparable damage to the environment. Also, the proximity of the development to the Meramec River raises serious concerns about potential pollution such as increased household chemical and pesticide runoff and construction activities that could endanger water quality and harm aquatic life.
The initial hearing by Planning and Zoning to rezone the land from unbuildable to allow for development was postponed at the developer’s request. For more information go to Lewis Road Development Opposition.
USC technology may reduce shipping emissions by half From Earth News Network The process mimics a natural chemical reaction in the ocean. As ships move through seawater, CO2 from their exhaust is absorbed into water pumped onboard. The treated water, now stripped of CO2, is then discharged back into the ocean. READ MORE
Study reveals how much energy AI uses to answer your questions From CNN AI prompts can take up to 10 times more energy to complete than a regular Google search, according to a frequently cited estimation by the Electric Power Research Institute. READ MORE
Republican plan to sell millions of acres of federal lands found to violate Senate rules From PBS A plan to sell more than 2 million acres of federal lands has been ruled out of Republicans’ big tax and spending cut bill after the Senate parliamentarian determined the proposal by Senate Energy Chairman Mike Lee would violate the chamber’s rules. FULL STORY
Eager volunteers ready to work the Sierra Club’s multi-day Spring trail maintenance event on the Blair Creek Section of the Ozark Trail located in the L-A-D Foundation’s Pioneer Forest, Shannon County, Missouri. Photo by Sophie Krautmann, L-A-D Foundation
Help Construct Window Inserts for Weatherization – No Experience Needed! - July 12 Come learn about weatherization and help construct custom-made window inserts by taping wood frames and wrapping them in plastic. The inserts create an air barrier between the window and the interior of the house, reducing energy costs. This is part of a Weatherization Service Project through Campus Compact and EnviroCorps that EMG is supporting. These inserts will be installed on homes identified by EnergyCare, a non-profit created after a 1980 heat wave killed over 150 people in St. Louis.
The event will be held on Saturday, July 12, from 9:30am – 11:30am on the second floor of the Schnuck Pavilion on Washington University’s Danforth Campus. Volunteers can park for free in the visitor spots on the first floor of the East End garage and there will be signs directing volunteers from the garage to the building. RSVP TODAY
EMG Executive Committee Meeting - July 15 Join the next monthly Executive Committee Meeting and get updates on what's happening with EMG and see how you can get involved.REGISTER HERE
MO Sierra Space | MOSS - July 30
Join the Sierra Club Missouri Chapter new & returning members, supporters, volunteers, allies, and staff to intentionally connect from across the state to: 1) build community amongst ourselves as teammates in Sierra Club’s mission, vision, values, and norms; 2) share updates on campaigns, victories, or other goings on in the state; 3) provide actionable steps to support grassroots organizing efforts for MO communities and environment. MORE INFO
Student volunteers making custom window inserts. Join the event July 12. Photo submitted by Stephanie Todd.
Interested in IT volunteering? As an organization managed by volunteers, so is our website! Are you interested in helping us update and manage our website? After completing a 1 hour online training, you can help build our group's digital presence! Reach out to Chapter Coordinator Ashton Kuehnel (ashton.kuehnel@sierraclub.org) to get involved.
Join the Energy Justice Team - July 16 Join us on the 3rd Wednesday of each month from 5:30-6:30pm as we fight for clean, affordable, renewable energy for our communities. SIGN UP TO ATTEND
Centennial Greenway Trash Pick Up - July 19 EMG has volunteered to adopt a 2-mile section of the Centennial Greenway for trash pick-up. Our section of the Greenway extends from Olive Blvd to Shaw Park and we will break into two groups. One group will walk 1-mile north to Olive Blvd and the other will walk 1-mile south to Shaw Park. You will find that you’ll have fun being social with other trash haters during this event. SIGN UP HERE
Lemonade Stand at St. Charles Festival of the Little Hills - August 15, 16, 17 The Sierra Club will be back at The Festival of the Little Hills! The Downtown St. Charles Festival is one of the largest in the area, drawing artists and crafters from across the Midwest. We are excited to sell our famous fresh-squeezed lemonade to support our Eastern Missouri Group!
This will be a great and fun opportunity to connect with EMG volunteers in person and the greater St. Louis Metro community! There will be other local businesses, organizations, art, non-profits, restaurants, entertainment, and more! We have shifts here but we will be very happy with any time you can give, less hours, more hours, overlapping shifts, multiple shifts. SIGN UP HERE
Bob Gestel Plaque Dedication Submitted by George Behrens on behalf of the Bequest Committee
On June 7th, Hawn State Park dedicated a plaque to Bob Gestel for all his work at Hawn State Park and the donation from his bequest. Bob led Sierra Club trail construction and maintenance outings at Hawn from 2006 to 2016. He left a monetary bequest to be used for trail work in Missouri. Over forty seven thousand dollars of the bequest was used to build the new Spanish Land Grant Trail at Hawn.
Pictured by the plaque, the Bob Gestel Bequest Committee of the EMG. L to R. Ed Schott, former superintendent at Hawn and Sierra Club member; Paul Stupperich, another Sierra trail work leader; John Feldmann, the present trail chair of the EMG; and George Behrens, Sierra member.
