What Trump's executive order on timber could mean for Tennessee forests. "Increased timber production could be coming to the Volunteer State, impacting the Appalachian forests in East Tennessee. A new emergency order from the U.S. Department of Agriculture allocated 59% of national forests across the country for timber production. The declaration was prompted by President Donald Trump's March 1 executive order to increase the nation's timber production." Josh Hicks, conservation campaigns director at The Wilderness Society, says the order aims to "deepen the pockets of private industry to log across our shared, public forests, while sidestepping public review.” Read more by Allison Kiehl - Knoxville News Sentinel - April 25, 2025.
Bipartisan group of lawmakers supporting new scenic trail. "Democrats and Republicans from three states are supporting a 287-mile trail that would include Georgia, Tennessee and North Carolina. The lawmakers are asking for a feasibility study on the Benton MacKaye National Scenic Trail. U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann, R-Tenn., said Wednesday the trail deserves a national scenic designation." Read more by Kim Jarrett - The Center Square - April 30, 2025.
Sheila Butt: Dam is long-term goal, but Maury County needs water now. "While I applaud any efforts to get a dam in Maury County, I will be focusing my time and energy on the Duck River Water Planning Partnership (DRWPP) which is currently working toward multiple solutions that are possible, probable and making progress with the help of a Governor who has appropriated $124 million in his current budget..." Read more by Sheila Butt, County Mayor of Maury County - Main Street Media of Tennessee - April 16, 2025.
Photos: TN Rep. Justin J. Pearson holds rally against xAI permit request for gas turbines. "State. Rep. Justin J. Pearson speaks during a rally to encourage the denial of an operations permit for 15 gas turbines at xAI’s 3231 Paul R. Lowry Road site on April 30, 2025, outside of the Shelby County Health Department in Memphis, Tenn." Photo credits: Stu Boyd II. View more photos here - Commercial Appeal - April 30, 2025.
Justin Pearson speaks at a rally on April 30th as Scott Banbury and other supporters hold signs. Photo by Stu Boyd II, Commercial Appeal (edited).
MTG Members Highlight Indigenous History at April Meeting
By Rebecca Newton
Nashville, before it was Nashville, has gone by the names “Buried City” and “Salttown,” facts seldom taught in Tennessee history, with its focus on post-pioneer settlement. Tennessee schoolchildren are taught that Middle Tennessee was a rich hunting ground—the landscape encountered by settlers in the 18th century—where Native American tribes shared game and resources. They aren’t taught much detail about what transpired along the Cumberland River (called the “River of the Shawnee” by French traders), or about its prehistoric culture and inhabitants, before Europeans arrived.
Albert Bender, Cherokee activist and president of the Indigenous People’s Coalition of Nashville, told a different story at the April 10 Middle Tennessee Group (MTG) program meeting.
Bender described an ancient city with a population of 400,000 in the 14th century, during the Mississippian Period of Indigenous history and the medieval era in Europe. “I had no idea these huge, huge cities existed 1,000 years ago,” Bender said. “At a time when ancient Nashville had a population of 400,000, it ranked as one of the largest cities in the Americas, in fact one of the largest cities in the world." Read full article on the Sierra Club blog here or view highlights of the program here.
Albert Bender stands in front of the Cumberland River, originally known as the Wasioto by the Shawnee, in downtown Nashville. He described the huge Indigenous settlement and industry that grew out of abundant local salt springs. Photo credit: Eric England (edited).
Environmental Updates
Sierra Club Board of Directors Election Results! Based on a vote count carried out by Election Services Co., the independent firm that manages our annual board election, the Inspectors of the Election report that Igor Tregub, Cheyenne Skye Branscum, Nathan Chan, Scott Elkins, and Cynthia Hoyle have been elected to serve three-year terms on the volunteer board. A total of 41,653 Sierra Club members voted in the election. Thank you to everyone who participated in the election!
ACTION NEEDED! Comments needed by May 19th to protect Endangered Species Act! "Earlier this month, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service proposed a new rule that could limit the scope of Endangered Species Act protections. Currently, the Endangered Species Act prohibits certain actions that “harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect” threatened and endangered organisms. The new proposed rule change would rescind the regulatory definition of “harm,” limiting the Act’s prohibitions to actions that directly injure or kill listed species. Here are the steps to comment: 1) Go to Federal Rulemaking Portal. 2) In the Search box, enter FWS-HQ-ES-2025-0034, which is the docket number for this rulemaking. Click on the Search button. 3) In the panel on the left side of the screen, under the Document Type heading, check the Proposed Rule box to locate this document. 4) Click on comment to submit your comment. For help drafting comments, refer to the Ecological Society of America.
TVA board still meeting in May, but will take 'no formal action' after Trump fired members. "The Tennessee Valley Authority Board of Directors will hold its quarterly meeting in May, but won't take any consequential votes after President Donald Trump ordered the termination of two members, according to a public notice from the federal utility. The board will meet at 9 am May 8 in the auditorium of the Putnam County Convention Center in Cookeville, Tennessee...Members of the public can sign up through the TVA board webpage beginning May 1 to speak to the board during a listening session 2-4 pm on May 7 at the same location as the board meeting." Read more by Daniel Dassow - Knoxville News Sentinel - April 28, 2025.
Trump’s Interior Chief rewrites history of National Monuments as he prepares cuts. "Doug Burgum says modern presidents have abused the Antiquities Act, using sweeping national monuments as 'precursors' to national parks." Read more by Chris D'Angelo and Roque Planas - Public Domain - April 28, 2025.
The Hands Off! rally in Chattanooga, Tenn. drew a large crowd on April 5th, 2025. Dana Feldman smiles and holds a sign describing the future she wants to see for her grandchildren. Photo credit: Dana Feldman.
Health & Justice
Boisterous crowd makes xAI concerns heard during public hearing: 'We deserve clean air'. "More than 200 persons gathered inside Fairley High School as the Shelby County Health Department hosted a public hearing regarding an operations permit for 15 natural gas turbines at xAI's South Memphis facility at 3231 Paul R. Lowry Road...Inside the high school auditorium, the boisterous crowd booed Brent Mayo of xAI, who shared talking points about the project and its benefits to the community including plans for the $80 million Colossus Water Recycle Plant . Those plans are under review with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation. Mayo left after speaking at the beginning of the event." Read more by Neil Strebig - Memphis Commercial Appeal - April 26, 2025.
100 ways Trump has hurt workers in his first 100 days. "In this report, we identify 100 ways Trump hurt working people and our economy in the first 100 days of his administration. While not exhaustive—actions have been taken nearly every day that impact working people—this list represents most of the actions we have documented in EPI’s Federal Policy Watch, which tracks how the Trump administration, Congress, and the courts are affecting workers’ quality of life." Read more by Celine McNicholas, Samantha Sanders, Josh Bivens, Margaret Poydock, and Daniel Costa - Economic Policy Institute - April 25, 2025.
TVA may maintain some coal powered plants past 2035. "Prompting pushback from environmental groups, CEO Don Moul said it's possible TVA could maintain at least part of its coal fleet past 2035, which is the year the agency had initially set to shut down the aging facilities." Read more by David Floyd - Times Free Press - May 1, 2025.
Elon Musk’s xAI in Memphis: 35 gas turbines, no air pollution permits. "The company’s turbines — enough to power 280,000 homes — run without emission controls in an area that leads Tennessee in asthma hospitalizations." Read more by Ariel Wittenberg - E&E News - May 1, 2025.
With the help of the organization SouthWings, a coalition of community organizations recently obtained aerial images of the xAI datacenter showing that Elon Musk's facility is illegally operating gas turbines in violation of the Clean Air Act. Photo Credit: Steve Jones, flight by SouthWings.
Fundraising Corner
By Mac Post, Chapter Fundraising Chair
It’s not too late to participate in our annual Tennessee Chapter’s March Appeal. We are building the Tennessee Chapter’s impact and need your help so that we can:
Continue to pressure the Tennessee Valley Authority into increasing the amount of electricity produced by renewable energy;
Advance our Waste to Jobs legislation that moves Tennessee toward a truly circular economy;
And stop the xAI company – founded by Elon Musk – from building polluting methane gas turbine power plants with no permits or community input.
Whether or not you got a letter in the mail inviting you to contribute you can donate now using the secure online Chapter web form! Your help makes a difference locally!
On April 23-26 at the Wilson County Fairgrounds in Lebanon, Tennessee, Sierra Club staff and volunteers met for the largest nationwide Sierra Club Gathering since 2004. Here participants in the first two days' Managers Meeting pose for HBG's Todd Waterman. The Council of Club Leaders, chosen by each of the seventy Chapters, met for the second two days. All were grateful for the rare opportunity to connect and share, the culmination of over two years of planning and arranging by nearby resident and former Tennessee Chapter Chair Cris Corley.
May Events
Statewide environmental events listed chronologically. Do you have an event you'd like publicized? Send it to Enews.sierratn@gmail.com.
May 8th at 6:30 pm - xAI Community Town Hall for the Memphis Suburbs. Come learn about xAI's move into Memphis, environmental concerns, and community impact, featuring our own Conservation Director, Scott Banbury. Email questions in advance to IndivisibleMemphis@gmail.com. Event held at Neshoba Church, Cordova, Tenn.
May 13th - Battle Above the Clouds: A Memorial Day Outing. Join the Tennessee Chapter and Sierra Club Military Outdoors team at the site of “the Battle Above the Clouds,” also known as the Lookout Mountain engagement, as part of the Battle of Chattanooga. We’ve intentionally chosen the site of America's First National Battlefield Park to celebrate the preservation of these lands for the public for purposes of education, reckoning with the past, and serving as places of reverence for people and communities impacted by war. As we approach Memorial Day, stewards of our national battlefields, the National Park Service, serve on the front lines of interpreting our collective stories while facing threats to operations by the current administration.
May 14-16th - Tennessee Environmental Network Show of the South. This conference calls itself "the largest, most comprehensive, and diverse professional environmental educational opportunity in Tennessee." Event held at the Chattanooga Convention Center. Sierra Club will have a booth. Learn more here.
May 17th, 10 am - 3 pm - Spring Bee Fest at Pinson Mounds State Archaeological Park. The 5th annual event will celebrate honeybees and will include a 5k to raise money for the Honeybee Project, craft fair, and local artisans and educators. Learn more here.
May 22nd at 10 am - East Tennessee Anti-Racism Leadership Roundtable. "This roundtable is a space for deep connection and meaningful conversation. Together, we will share updates from the field, name our challenges, celebrate progress, and consider how we might build power through shared vision and collaboration. Whether you lead an organization, a community group, or a one-person movement—you are part of the landscape of change." Event held at Beck Cultural Exchange Center in Knoxville. RSVP to Davidryoder45@gmail.com.
May 28th, 1892 - Sierra Club's Birthday! On this day 133 years ago, John Muir founded the Sierra Club which quickly mobilized to defeat a proposal to reduce the boundaries of Yosemite National Park. The Sierra Club urged strengthening of public forest policy and supported the creation of new national parks, including Grand Canyon.
Species Spotlight
This month's featured species is: Elk (Cervus canadensis)
Group of elk captured on the Elk Cam at 9:39 am on March 7, 2018. Elk often travel in groups of about 25 and are most active in the morning and evening. Image from TWRA (edited).
Elk used to roam freely in Tennessee until about 150 years ago. They eventually went extinct in this area due to the "over-exploitation by man, private ownership of land, and habitat destruction," according to the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA).
In efforts to reintroduce the species, 201 elk were released into Tennessee between 2000-2008. Today the elk population is over 400. For more about the repopulation process, read Elk in the East: A View to a Dramatic Conservation Success by Michael Miller, March 2025.
Females breed at 2 1/2 years of age, and babies are born in May-June. They can walk just minutes after being born. The average lifespan is 14 years in the wild and 25 in captivity.
The TWRA has a Live Elk Cam at the North Cumberland Wildlife Management Area. Check in to see if there's any elk action!
Going Digital!
Did you know the Tennes-Sierran is available online? The digital version is in color and has clickable links! Do you wish to opt out of the paper copy and go digital instead? View current and past issues or request paperless delivery here!
Contact Us
Do you have a program or speaker idea for your Group? An issue you're particularly passionate about? Do you have a story idea for the Tennes-Sierran or the e-newsletter? Let us know! Look through our past programs for inspiration. Submit your suggestion here!
Questions or comments for Sierra Club in Tennessee? We want to hear from you! Chapter E-news Editor: Allie Stafford Photo Editor: Todd Waterman
The views expressed by contributors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Sierra Club.
We are the Tennessee Chapter of the Sierra Club, the world’s oldest, largest, and most influential grassroots environmental organization. With over 3.8 million members and supporters, the Sierra Club has the resources to empower people and to influence public policy through community activism, public education, lobbying, and litigation.
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