YOU Can Make a Difference; Read How in This eNewsletter
► Register for the Bay Alive Campaign's "Shape the Bay's Future Now!" webinar to learn about the upcoming Regional Shoreline Adaptation Plan.
► Write letters and tell Santa Clara County and Sunnyvale to ban artificial turf.
► Ask for two improvements to Palo Alto's Dark Sky Ordinance.
► 2024 Guardians of Nature Benefit early bird tickets available only two more weeks; buy yours today.
► Register for Basic/Wilderness First Aid training.
► Take a hike! See the comprehensive list of Chapter activities available through mid-September.
Shape the Bay's Future Now!
A Two-Part Series on the Upcoming Regional ShorelineAdaptation Plan September 11th 7:00 - 8:00 pm
If you care about our Bay, don’t miss the unprecedented opportunity to ensure a resilient future for its ecologies and communities! Join the Bay Alive Campaign on September 11 for a short educational webinar anticipating the Bay Conservation and Development Commission’s public release of their draft Regional Shoreline Adaptation Plan (RSAP), which provides guidelines that will shape the future of our region-wide response to sea level rise in the San Francisco Bay. We’ll help you get up to speed on the RSAP and its importance, so you’ll be ready and confident to submit your public comments once the guidelines are public. Learn more and register.
Letters Needed to BAN Artificial Turf
Santa Clara County is about to BAN Artificial Turf! However the Plastic Turf industry is amassing counter-pressure in the County ahead of the ordinance reading on Tuesday, August 27. Read more and take action!
Also on Tuesday, August 27th, City of Sunnyvale Councilors are considering a ban on artificial turf. Tell Sunnyvale City Councilors to BAN Artificial Turf! Read more and take action!
Did you know that artificial light at night can negatively impact our health? Exposure to light pollution at night can harden our arteries, delay or prevent recovery from stroke and skin wounds, increase inflammation, and increase our risks for breast and prostate cancers.
Palo Alto is currently in the process of drafting a Dark Sky Ordinance, which aims to reduce unnecessary light pollution. Techniques of doing this include ensuring that lighting is fully shielded, angled to avoid light trespass, not unnecessarily bright, and a responsible color temperature.
We need your help to improve the language of the ordinance! Learn more.
Join Us for the August 26 Forest Protection Forum!
Please join us for the next Forest Protection Forum from 4pm to 5:30pm on August 26!
We will watch “Crown Jewels,” a gorgeous film about old growth forests directed by forest activist and digital media creator Alex Haraus. Afterwards, Alex Craven, Sierra Club’s forest campaign manager, will discuss our opportunity to provide comments to protect old growth trees and forests on federal lands. Learn more.
Watch the Bay Alive Campaign's video "Are You Ready for Groundwater Rise?", the newest video in its sea level rise series. Learn more about this hidden threat of sea level rise, then join our Bay Alive Campaign and take action!
Marbled Murrelets at Risk
This is the sixth of an awareness through artwork series, by our 16 year-old volunteer Aiden Chen, that we introduced in January.
The Marbled Murrelet is a threatened seabird species that lives off the western coast of the US. They, like the typical seabird, feed from the ocean, but where they begin to differ is their unique behavior of nesting high up on the branches of trees in mature and old growth forests. However, extensive logging and development have destroyed vast areas of their nesting grounds. Such destruction also means fragmentation of forests, increasing their exposure to predators. In addition, their shoreline feeding behavior makes them reliant on the health of oceans. 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.
Sign Our Petition Letter to BCDC Commissioners
Time is racing towards a final decision at the end of this year for Bay Conservation and Development Commission's (BCDC's) Regional Shoreline Adaptation Plan (RSAP). We're intensifying our efforts to build public awareness and engagement.
Sea level rise poses an undeniable threat to the Bay Area. The RSAP presents a crucial opportunity for coordinated regional action to bolster the resilience of our communities and ecological assets against climate change.
San Francisco Bay’s shoreline habitats are invaluable public assets. Beyond mitigating flood and storm surges, these ecosystems sequester carbon, filter pollution, and moderate temperatures, services that are vital for our region’s health, safety, and ecological balance. As climate change worsens, they will become even more indispensable as our first, and arguably most cost-effective, defense against sea level rise.
East Palo Alto - Ravenswood Business District
East Palo Alto's redevelopment plan to allow as much as 3.3 million square feet of new office and research and development space, primarily on the Bay shoreline, is approaching the finish line. The Loma Prieta Chapter's Bay Alive team is working with Nuestra Casa, a community-based organization in East Palo Alto, and other environmental organizations to review the City's recently released (500+ page!) draft environmental impact report, share information about it with EPA residents, and prepare written comments before the September 10 deadline. Read the recent comment letter.
Letter to the Editor Writing Group
Are you looking for ways to get involved with the Bay Alive campaign, but not a fan of public speaking? Join our new Letter to the Editor writing group where you will be trained and equipped with all the resources you need to use your words to influence the future of sea level rise planning around the Bay.
Just Two More Weeks to Purchase Your Early Bird Ticket!
Early Bird tickets special expires in just two weeks, on September 8th! Become a part of our inspiring annual celebration, our community of changemakers and exceptional individuals who have dedicated themselves to protecting our local environment. Raise a glass in recognition of the remarkable achievements of Congresswoman Anna Eshoo, our 2024 Guardians of Nature honoree, for her decades of exemplary environmental protection and advocacy leadership. Enjoy the company of fellow Loma Prietans, savor delicious hors d’oeuvres and wine, and help us secure the necessary funds to continue protecting and preserving our local environment.
Meet the Santa Clara County Habitat Agency
September 11th, 7:00 - 9:00 pm
West Valley Library Branch, Community Room
Co-sponsored with San Jose Public Library Learn more and register.
The Habitat Plan is a 50-year regional plan to protect endangered species and natural resources while allowing for future development in Santa Clara County. In 2013, all local participating agencies adopted the Habitat Plan, and the Fish and Wildlife Service and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife issued permits. It is a habitat and natural community conservation plan. The Habitat Plan helps private and public entities plan and conduct projects and activities that lessen impacts on natural resources, including specific threatened and endangered species.
"The Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter’s Sustainable Land Use Committee (SLU) advocates on sustainability and land use issues in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties. In that role, we respectfully submit the following comments for the DEIR for the Parkline project at the old SRI site. The Parkline project is a wonderful opportunity to transform the heart of the City. While we share the general concerns about traffic and housing, we wish to focus here on the mix of uses proposed for this infill site, in particular the mix of housing with research labs."
Ravenswood Business District/4 Corners Specific Plan Update Land Use and Development Standards
Saturday, September 14th
Sunday, September 15th
8:00 am - 5:00 pm
Peninsula Conservation Center
Certification provided by the National Association for Search and Rescue, is valid for two years, and is included in the course fee. Textbook NOT included. There are two training options. 1) Wilderness First Aid: both days; $80 for Sierra Club members; $100 for non-members. 2) Basic Wilderness First Aid: Saturday only; $50 for Sierra Club members; $60 for non-members. Register today!
Proposed Palo Alto Airport Expansion Could Encroach on Vulnerable Wetlands
The City of Palo Alto is currently exploring options to expand the airport runway to accommodate larger and more demanding aircraft. This expansion, however, could encroach on nearby wetlands, take dedicated parkland, threaten Bay ecosystems and pollute neighboring communities with noise and lead deposition.
On Sunday, August 11th, the Loma Prieta Chapter Forest Protection Committee teamed up with the San Mateo County Resource Conservation district to lead a hike to view forest management techniques to foster forest resilience against wildfire, and to promote biodiversity. Lisa Barboza, Outings Chair, and Susan Lessin FPC member, along with David Cowman, District Forester, and Tim Federal, Program Manager for Forest Health & Resilience led the hike. Read more.
Military Outdoors is Now on Meetup
Our Military Outdoors is pleased to announce a new Meetup group for veterans, active military and family members of veterans. If you serve/d or have someone in your family who serves/d, please join us for some free and fun outdoor activities including:
Pole Hiking Training
Pole Walking Training for Exercise
Pole Walking Training for Balance & Maintaining Mobilit
Day Hikes
Special Adventures
As a member of the Military Outdoors Sierra Club Meetup, you’ll be notified when new events and activities are announced, and you can suggest activities, comment, add photos, and more.
As the World Heats Up, So Does the Debate Around Artificial Turf
"Susan Hinton, a plastics pollution prevention advocate with the Loma Prieta Chapter of the Sierra Club, has taken up a habit of holding an infrared thermometer to artificial turf fields and residential lawns on hot days to test its temperature. Her community, in Santa Clara County, is one of many across California that are considering or currently implementing bans on the product following a 2023 bill allowing the move. Hinton has measured the turf at temperatures between 150 and 180 degrees on warm summer days, she said." - The New Lede Read the full article.
In the Community
BioBlitz (Aug. 25th and Sept. 7th), Naturalist Training (Aug. 28th), Trashy Tuesday (Sept. 10th), and Cleanup (Sept. 21st) from our friends at Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful.
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.
"The door of a bigoted mind opens outwards so that the only result of the pressure of facts upon it is to close it more snugly." Ogden Nash, poet (19 Aug 1902-1971)
