Following a modified lollipop loop this hike will go out to the Slate Creek Camp for lunch, and then back to the trailhead.
Along the hike there will be discussions on biodiversity, and in particular, the group may be lucky enough to see the endangered Marbled Murrelets who nest in old-growth redwood trees, in breeding season. This redwood forest habitat has a wide variety of plants that are special to this biome. Typical plants of this forest include Sugar-scoop, Two-eyed Violet, Thimbleberry, Elk Clover, Western bleeding heart, Honeysuckle and many others. Learn more and register.
Save the Date: 2024 Guardians of Nature Benefit
We are excited to announce that the 2024 Guardians of Nature Honoree is Congresswoman Anna Eshoo.
This year the Guardians of Nature Benefit will be Friday, October 4th, from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m.
Make sure to reserve this evening to acknowledge Congresswoman Eshoo's decades of dedication to environmental protection and stewardship, while enjoying the company of fellow Sierrans and friends dedicated to preserving our precious environment.
Stay tuned for more event updates. The sponsorship opportunities will be available soon; pledge yours here.
Save the date, mark your calendars, and join us as we celebrate Congresswoman Anna Eshoo, a true Guardian of Nature!
Loma Prieta Chapter's Military Outdoors
For veterans and their families:
Lake Merritt Veterans' Picnic & Garden Exploration
Wednesday, May 29th
10:30 am - 1:30 pm Learn more and register
POLE Hiking Training, Mori Point, Pacifica
Monday, June 3th
10:00 am - 1:00 pm Learn more and register
Snowy Plovers at Risk
This is the fourth of an awareness through artwork series, by our 16 year-old volunteer Aiden Chen, that we introduced in January.
The Western Snowy Plover is a threatened shorebird species with populations that nest on the beaches of California’s Pacific Coast. Because they rely on safe beaches, increased disturbances by humans and human-introduced predators have done increasing damage to their populations. With sea level rise encroaching on beaches as well, Snowy Plovers come into even further contact with disruptions to their nesting. As a result, Snowy Plovers have also taken up salt flats as alternative nesting sites. To conserve and save these birds, Sierra Club's Bay Alive and 30x30 campaigns promote the use of nature based solutions to protect the San Francisco Bay wetlands, associated habitats, and human communities from sea level rise. The 30x30 campaign works to conserve 30% of California’s lands and waters by 2030. Learn more.
Redwood City Sea Level Rise Vulnerability Assessment
"The Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter’s Bay Alive Campaign welcomes this opportunity to provide comments on the Redwood City Sea Level Rise Vulnerability Assessment (Report). We do so on behalf of tens of thousands of local Sierra Club supporters who share our commitment to protect the health of our communities, our wildlife and our Earth by promoting living shorelines, healthy waters, and just, equitable solutions to sea level rise in the San Francisco Bay Area."
"We hope you consider the following comments for inclusion in the Draft CAP. 1) Include measures to increase tree canopy and expand biodiversity; 2) Add to C-L.4.2 language prioritizing nature-based adaptation solutions; 3) Estimate resources needed for timely completion of measures; 4) Identify a specific VMT % reduction goal for measure T-L.1; 5) Add to E-W.2 a measure including permit and rebate clarification; 6) Consider including these recommended resources."
Sea Level Rise Webinar Series
How can local cities and residents use nature-basedadaptations to sea level rise? Watch recordings of our webinar series with SF Bay experts and please share with your local elected officials.
Loma Prieta Pride Sierrans at Santa Cruz Pride
Beacon of Pride
Sunday, June 2nd
11:00 am - 4:00 pm
Mark your calendars to celebrate Santa Cruz Pride at the 2024 Parade and Festival. Loma Prieta Pride Sierrans will be staffing our own table at the Festival. Come and say hello! Join us at the Festival on Cooper St, Abbott Square, and in the MAH (free admission, art project for youth and the young at heart.)
This is a FREE event with many different resources, and plenty of entertainment. Learn more.
Hiker's Hut Volunteers Needed
Do you love the Hiker's Hut?
Would you like a free stay every month?
We're looking for two or three volunteer caretakers with good DIY attitude and skills to share the maintenance role at the Ollie Mayer Hiker’s Hut in Sam McDonald Park. The commitment is about one day visit or overnight stay (free of charge) per month. Parking fees or other "out-of-pocket expenses” are reimbursed. Learn more.
COMMENT LETTERS
Ordinance to Prohibit New Installation of Artificial Turf and Synthetic Grass on Santa Clara County Property
"The Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter, representing more than ten thousand supporters in Santa Clara County, is in strong support of the County establishing such prohibitions. Furthermore, we ask that the County consider not grandfathering projects which are not currently under contract with the County. Given the public health risks and environmental threats posed by artificial turf, projects such as the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds Athletic Fields should be required by the County to avoid the use of artificial turf or synthetic grass."
Groundwater Protection from Surface Mining Operations
"The undersigned organizations write in strong support of the proposed ordinance regulating surface mining operations with respect to impacts on groundwater. [...] The proposed ordinance is necessary to protect our groundwater from potential contamination. The example of the Lehigh Permanente Quarry, and the discharges of selenium into Permanente Creek as a result of their actions in mining below the groundwater table, should be sufficient to demonstrate how important it is to require that mining operations maintain a protective buffer zone from the groundwater table."
"The Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society and the Loma Prieta Chapter of the Sierra Club write this letter to thank the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District (Midpen) for taking up the topic of parking lot placement and design. The desire to experience and enjoy the beauty of nature is at the root of our organizations’ missions, but as the numbers of visitors in parks and open space grows, it is more essential that we take care to protect the natural environment that draws these visitors."
Do You Love Our Local Forests? Help Protect Them!
Forests are often called the lungs of the earth. They breathe in carbon dioxide and breathe out oxygen. In doing so, they sequester carbon keeping it safely out of the atmosphere, help regulate worldwide climate and enable the existence of other life forms, including ourselves. Forests also filter water, create precipitation, support soil health and stability, provide habitat and promote biodiversity.
If you love forests and are an activist or want to be, join us! The Loma Prieta Forest Protection Committee hosts educational events and takes action to help protect forests in the Santa Cruz Mountains and throughout California. The committee also promotes home hardening and community planning to help communities be safer from fire. Learn more here and/or attend our monthly meeting.
Nash Road Quarry (Sandman) Reclamation Plan Questions and Concerns
In late April, the Loma Prieta Chapter Guadalupe Group provided comments to the San Benito County Planning Department about the Proposed Nash Road Quarry Reclamation Plan submitted to the County by the project applicant Sandman, Inc. Sand and gravel mining previously occurred at this location from about 1950 to 1990 but no reclamation activities have taken place, despite significant land disturbance throughout the site.
The Plan proposes re-initiation of mining in three phases: Phase One would mine to the thalweg (natural streambed level); Phase Two would mine two and half feet below the thalweg; and Phase Three would mine five feet below the thalweg. Read more.
Here's How Federal Agencies like the EPA Protect our Air, Water, and Climate
In the last two years, we've seen dozens of administrative "rules'' (otherwise known as regulations, or standards). These rules are issued by governmental agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency. Recent rules to protect our air, water, ecosystems, and climate include:
Habitat Day (June 1st), BioBlitz (June 2nd), Cleanup (June 9th), Trashy Tuesday (June 11th), Naturalist Training (June 12th), and Planting (June 16th) from our friends at Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful.
Our friends at Santa Clara Valley Audubon are offering the public an opportunity to view the Egret Rookery of Shorebird Way in Mountain View, on the Google campus. Binoculars, scopes and docents will be at Shorebird Way (next to 1201 Charleston Road, Mountain View) 11:00 am to 1:00 pm on Wednesday, May 29th. Visitors will have the opportunity to see a vibrant rookery where dozens of Great egrets, Snowy egrets, Black-crowned night herons and Great blue herons nest together.
San Jose Residents, are you interested in learning more about home electrification and the upgrades you can make to live more sustainable while saving money?
Attend San Jose's 2024 Home Electrification Webinar series to learn the ins and outs of home electrification, including useful information on getting started and the available incentives that can help you save money.
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.
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.
2024.05.22: >1900 yr old "Methuselah Tree", Santa Clara County.
“People are hungry for stories. It's part of our very being.
Storytelling is a form of history, of immortality too.
It goes from one generation to another.”
Studs Terkel, born May 16, 1912
