October Newsletter

October 23, 2024

The October, 2024 newsletter from the Iowa Chapter of the Sierra Club is now available.  In this issue, you will find:

Protecting the Environment

  • Call to Action - Iowa’s environment is facing significant challenges and a significant drop in state revenue makes things even more challenging.

  • Book discussion on "Crossings - How Road Ecology is Shaping the Future of Our Planet" by Ben Goldfarb, December 3, 7pm.  Our road infrastructure has been the source of significant loss of wildlife across the country, resulting in deaths and disruption of their lives.  Roads have interrupted migration patterns.  They interfere with animals that want to move back and forth to nesting grounds.  Furthermore, people and their vehicles are at risk from collisions with wildlife attempting to cross roads.  The book also explores ways that the fragments of habitat can be reconnected.  Throughout the book Ben Goldfarb addresses the issue with humor and great insight.  We hope you can join in on the discussion.

CO2 Pipeline Update

  • Summit Fined $10,000 for Acquiring Easements Before the Informational Meetings.  In August, Summit Carbon Solutions announced that it had acquired the easements that Navigator Heartland Greenway had obtained from landowners before Navigator abandoned its carbon dioxide pipeline project.  Iowa law states that a pipeline company cannot purchase an easement or other interest in land before an informational meeting is held.  But Summit’s acquisition of the Navigator easements occurred before the informational meetings.  This transaction violated the Iowa law, resulting in a $10,000 fine. 

  • ADM CO2 Sequestration Site Has 2 Leaks - The nation's first permitted commercial carbon dioxide (CO2) sequestration site, owned by ADM in Decatur, Illinois, two, leaks.  ADM knew something was wrong for months, but the Environmental Protection Agency and the public just found out recently. 

Climate Change

  • The Dirty Truth About Utility Climate Pledges - the Sierra Club recently released its fourth Dirty Truth Report.  The 50 utility companies in the U.S. most invested in fossil fuels are planning to replace just half of their existing fossil fuel generation with clean energy by 2035.

Plus

Ledges State Park

Photo of Ledges State Park by Jessica Mazour.