Loma Prieta Chapter eNewsletter: September, Volume 2
September 30, 2024
YOU Can Make a Difference; Read How in This eNewsletter
► Register for the Bay Alive Campaign's "It's Time to Speak Up!" webinar, to learn how to take action regarding the upcoming Regional Shoreline Adaptation Plan.
► Bid today! Although our Guardians of Nature Benefit has sold out, the silent auction is open.
► Voice your concerns and help protect Coyote Valley.
► Tell San Francisco to protect our waters and the Clean Water Act.
► Help list the Burrowing owls as an endangered species.
► Take a hike! See the comprehensive list of Chapter activities available into early October.
It's Time to Speak Up!
Part Two: Reviewing the Regional Shoreline Adaptation Plan Draft
October 9th
7:00 - 8:30 pm
We depend on the Bay for our own resilience, but can the Bay depend on you? The public draft of the Regional Shoreline Adaptation Plan (RSAP) will be released September 16, and launch an unprecedented opportunity for the public to help set the standards for how the entire Bay Area plans for sea level rise!
Join the Bay Alive Campaign for the second webinar in our series about the RSAP, which will shape how the San Francisco Bay Area deals with sea level rise for decades to come. We’ll help you understand what’s in the draft, and learn how to deliver effective public comments to boost sea level rise resilience for both communities and nature. Be sure to watch the recording of our first webinar, so you are informed and ready to review the draft with us at 7pm on October 9. Learn more and register.
2024 Guardians of Nature Benefit
We are thrilled to announce that the 2024 Guardians of Nature Benefithas officially sold out! If you were not able to secure a ticket, you can still be part of the event by joining our online silent auctionand helping us reach our $100,000 fundraising total goal.
We also invite you to stay tuned for information about next year’s event, and we look forward to welcoming you then. Thank you for being a part of our community of changemakers!
Help Protect Coyote Valley
In 2014, the City of San Jose rezoned 275 acres of hills for the Heritage Oaks Memorial Park project despite objections by the environmental community. The cemetery will cover 102 acres, affecting the landscape by excavating hills, removing 100 native oak trees, and installing non-native turf grass. Thankfully, at the insistence of environmental groups, a supplemental Environmental Impact Report (EIR) will be prepared. Public input is essential for the EIR to be impactful. Email the City by October 7 to voice your concerns about this large project that impacts our Coyote Valley! Learn more.
Exxon on Trial! For Deceiving the Public about Recycling and Hiding Harms of Plastic Pollution
This past Monday, September 23, the Sierra Club, the Surfrider Foundation, Heal the Bay, and San Francisco BayKeeper filed one lawsuit against petroleum and plastics manufacturing giant ExxonMobile while the California State Attorney General’s Office filed another.
The California lawsuit calls out Exxon’s fraudulent use of the “chasing arrows” usage on plastics products to imply that they are readily and safely recyclable while, truthfully, only a tiny portion about 5% of worn out plastics are recycled in the United States. Read more.
Tell San Francisco to Protect Our Waters and the Clean Water Act!
Send a letter to the San Francisco Supervisors urging them to stop the dangerous lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Act (EPA)
San Francisco has quietly gotten ready to dismantle parts of the Clean Water Act in its lawsuit to avoid cleaning up its pollution of our waters. The EPA has sought to prevent San Francisco from releasing raw sewage into the ocean. Instead of changing its ways, San Francisco is asking the Supreme Court to take away EPA's power to require the City to keep its coastline safe and clean. We need San Francisco to stop the lawsuit immediately and clean up its mess! Learn more and send your letter. Read the press release.
Our Letter to the Editor Writing Group's First Letter Published!
“Sea level rise is threatening our aging infrastructure, such as wastewater treatment plants, which are usually located on the shoreline. To combat this, we should invest in nature-based solutions that can be designed to further purify treated wastewater, build diverse bayshore habitats and mitigate flooding due to sea level rise, such as the Palo Alto Horizontal Levee Pilot Project. We need to invest in restoring our natural assets so that all creatures can continue to enjoy a healthy bay.”
This is the seventh of an awareness through artwork series, by our 16 year-old volunteer Aiden Chen, that we introduced in January.
The California Brown Pelican is a seabird that lives off the California Coast with a remarkable conservation history. Like the Bald Eagle, it too suffered from DDT pollution. However, it too made a massive comeback, eventually being removed from the Endangered species list while retaining monitoring and some protections. Although their populations are much healthier now, these pelicans still face dangers from other types of pollution and to the variability of fish populations they rely on. In addition, sensitivity to human activity means encroachment and development are once again threats that must be considered as well. The California Brown Pelican flips a fish when eating so that the spines don’t snag on its pouch as it gets swallowed. 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.
Can Our Bay Depend on You?
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!
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.
Announcing Our 2024-2025 Environmental Stewardship Program
Save the Date! We'll be kicking off our 2024-2025 Environmental Stewardship Program on Thursday, December 12th, at 6:30 pm. BIODIVERSITY is this year's theme. The first session will introduce the them topic and explore our Bay Alive Campaign. This will be the first of six sessions, being held the second Thursday of the month. Each session will explore a different environmental issue on biodiversity that we're working on and where you can help. Another exciting change is that we will offer a hybrid program so we can meet and share some time together before the program. Much more to come. For now, save the date, December 12th, 6:30 pm.
Please Help List the Burrowing Owls as an Endangered Species
Sadly, the Burrowing Owl population of the Bay area has dwindled close to extirpation (local extinction). The California Fish & Game Commission will hold a public hearing on October 10th to determine whether listing western burrowing owl populations in California as threatened or endangered under the California Endangered Species Act (CESA) may be warranted.
"This bill restricts opportunities for public comment and judicial review related to managing and logging forests. People may disagree about forest management methods, but even if they disagree, public comment and judicial review are important aspects of our democratic process. We make better decisions when they are reviewed, and when additional scientific perspective is included. [...] The bill also institutionalizes the bypass of current environmental legislations. If it is passed, additional logging could move forward, damaging forests, biodiversity, habitat and our water supply."
Draft Environmental Impact Report for Rezoning of Airport Parcels and General Plan Amendment
Palo Alto City Council Directs Staff to Protect Baylands and Parkland
Plans for Palo Alto’s Airport Expansion threatened to encroach into dedicated parkland and vulnerable habitat for endangered species such as the Salt-marsh Harvest Mouse. Expanded airport operations could worsen emissions as well as noise and air pollution impacts which are already burdening the communities of Palo Alto, East Palo Alto, and Menlo Park. Our letter to the City Council advocated against the expansion and was joined by more than a dozen organizations. Read more.
Redwood Shores BioTech Campus Meets Community Resistance
The September 5, 2024, Redwood LIFE development's Community Workshop #2 drew a crowd of around 75 at the Redwood Shores Library, filling the room with anticipation. When the session opened to questions, resident voices were raised, challenging the format. Without open dialogue, many felt unheard, as if the workshop mirrored previous developer-led meetings where community input seemed unwelcome. Concern was expressed at residents being asked to provide design input in the absence of answers or information about concerns that had been raised in the past community meeting. Learn more.
Environmentalists’ hopes for a quick decision to ban artificial turf in Santa Clara County and in Sunnyvale were dashed on August 27th when both voted to “study” the issue further before making a final decision.
Four Council Members punted due to pressure from misinformed sports groups.
The most disturbing aspect of both decisions to postpone was the fact that they were seemingly made under pressure as sports groups launched an orchestrated pushback to ensure the continuation of toxic playing fields. Read more.
In the Community
BioBlitz (Oct. 6th), Trashy Tuesday (Oct. 8th), Cleanup (Oct. 12th), and Weeding (Oct. 20th) from our friends at Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful.
2024 Fall Plant Sale, October 11-14, from our friends at California Native Plant Society, Santa Clara Valley Chapter
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.
2019.05.19 Chapter Director hiked to Eagle Peak, Yosemite National Park.
“Our huge wealth cannot heal the holes in our hearts, because
consuming things does not satisfy our longing for meaning.
We’ve learned that piling up material goods cannot fill the emptiness
of lives which have no confidence or purpose.”
