Greetings, and Happy Thanksgiving!

News from the Chair
by Nick Cheranich

I hope that you and your loved ones have been thoroughly enjoying the holiday festivities.

Congratulations to both Anne Cottrell and Joelle Gallagher who won their elections to the Napa County Board of Supervisors. Both of them received the Sierra Club’s endorsement; thank you to those who supported them. We are hopeful that these two highly competent and intelligent women will lead Napa County with a committed approach to the protection of its agricultural lands and natural resources.

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We want (need) YOU! We are currently looking for three dedicated people who would like to be on our Executive Committee. If interested, please see the blurb below and/or email me for more info. Thanks!

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Want to know what’s happening with our wonderful student interns, past and present? I reached out and asked them what they’ve been up to. They responded with some very interesting articles (see below). Briefly, Katie Stillwell graduated from the University of Redlands and is working for the Forestry Dept. Both interns from last year, Emily Bit and Alisa Karesh, are finishing up their first semester at Cal Berkeley. And Lainey Laband (left), one of our first interns, is currently working at The Hub Bicycle Shop in Napa.

Our two current student volunteers, Eva Pelayo and Alejandra Valladares (right), both from American Canyon High School, will be finishing their internship with us soon. We are very proud of them for their work on several environmental justice and advocacy projects they developed and completed. Thanks in part to your donations, each volunteer will receive a $500 stipend.

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As you know, we opposed Measure J in American Canyon, which sought to annex agricultural land for industrial development. It appears that a majority of voters in AmCan opposed it as well. As our Excom member Scott Thomason wrote to the AmCan City Council, “We hold that the highest and best use of all land in Napa County is that it be maintained as it is currently; farmlands should remain farmland, wildlands should remain wild.” This is basically our mission statement regarding most county land-use issues.

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The National Sierra Club named Ben Jealous (right) as its new Executive Director. He is a native Californian and an experienced activist who I think will help lead the Sierra Club in the right direction. Please learn more about him here.

And finally, ‘tis the season—to donate! If you would like to donate to the Napa Sierra Club, please click the link below. If you would like to donate to other local causes, Napa CanDo has dozens of Non-profits that need your help. See below to use their guide. Thank you!

Our next Conservation Committee meeting will be March 21st, 2023 at 6:30PM. Just click on the RSVP button below and I'll send you a Zoom invite in the near future. Thank you.

- Nick Cheranich, ExCom Chair
napavalleysierraclub@gmail.com
 

The Napa Group of the Sierra Club has a mission to conserve natural ecosystems and work for sustainability in land and water usage and to reduce the carbon release into the air.
We take on projects that we think are significant to Napa that may be helped by local action.

We are looking for people to join our Executive Committee team who have knowledge and experience relevant to our mission and skills in research, presenting, and educating our neighbors. Is that you? Do you know someone? We have openings on our team. Looking for motivated volunteers.

Email us, in care of Nick Cheranich, at napavalleysierraclub@gmail.com. Thank you.

Katie Stilwell:
Since my recent graduation from the University of Redlands in Environmental Science, Public Policy, and GIS, I’ve really delved into natural resources. I graduated in April, and then went on a camping trip to Big Pine Lake. There, I hiked the John Muir Wilderness Trail to a Glacial Lake alongside Grape Soda Lupines, Bristlecone Pines, and Arroyo Willows. I then started at a new job with the Forest Service where I removed invasive weeds, as well as mapped invasive, threatened, endangered, and sensitive plants in montane terrain. Click here to read more.

Lainey Laband:
I completed my internship with the Napa Sierra Club Group back in December 2020. After the internship, I attended Napa Valley College for a semester. I took four classes but ended up dropping two of them because I was having trouble learning everything on my own at home. Once I finished my classes, I applied for a job at Bothe-Napa Valley State Park as a Park Aide / Lifeguard. As a Park Aide, I mainly worked in the entrance kiosk greeting visitors and informing them about the park. Click here to read more.

Emily Bit:
Hi everyone! I sincerely hope everyone has been doing well and is enjoying the holiday season. This month marks a whole year since my internship with the Napa Sierra Club concluded, truly one of the most impactful and memorable programs I’ve participated in.

A little bit of an update about what’s been going on in my life since then: in June I graduated from high school (so bittersweet) and in August, I moved to Berkeley to start my first year at the University of California Berkeley. I am currently working towards a major in Political Economy with a concentration in Environmental Policy, and a minor in both Public Policy and Health and Wellness. Click here to read more.

Do you own and use an electric or battery-powered leaf blower? Do you wonder why local landscaping companies don’t switch from the noisy, smelly gasoline-powered versions?

The main barrier has been price, while the main inducement for commercial operations to switch has been the “stick” of the “carrot-and-stick” approach: a ban on the use of gas blowers. Yountville, Calistoga, and St. Helena are three jurisdictions in Napa County that have banned gasoline-powered blowers.

Coming January 1, 2024, there will be a statewide ban on the sale of new small off-road engines (SOREs) used in gasoline-powered lawn equipment including mowers, leaf blowers, edgers, trimmers, etc. Click here to read more.

Promises, Promises: Evaluating CalPERS' Climate Engagements
by Clair Brown PhD, Professor of Economics, UC Berkeley; Photo by Fabian Jones on Unslpash

The California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS) is the largest public pension fund in the US, with more than $470 billion in assets. It seems to have an unshakeable faith in the ability of shareholder engagement to transform fossil fuel companies into clean energy providers. This report reviews CalPERS’ engagement history with 10 selected Big Oil companies from its portfolio, to test whether engagement is producing real-world results.

We conclude that engagement alone is unlikely to convince fossil fuel companies to transform at the speed and scale required. When companies fail to change after years of engagement, divestment should be the consequence. Click here to read more.

Gopal Shanker (right) has always been willing to use himself as a guinea pig. He’ll test out something himself before he tells other people it’s worthwhile.

The latest project of this Napa-based renewable energy consultant has been to get a free home energy upgrade offered by MCE, Napa County’s renewable electricity provider.

Home energy upgrades are programs offered for free or as rebates by agencies (PG&E, MCE, and BayREN) to help homeowners and renters reduce energy use and utility bills. They include an energy audit detailing what actions would be most feasible and effective. Upgrades range from installing LED light bulbs and insulation to installing new water heaters and heating systems. Click here to read more.