In this article:
- ‘Ground War’ - Invitation to summer film event
- Pesticide Team - How to make a bigger impact
- Maryland’s Chlorpyrifos Ban Bill - Outcome, next steps
- Montgomery County’s Lawn Pesticide Law - Latest court ruling
- Public Health Committee Meeting, June 9th - What it is and how to volunteer
Fun Summer Film Event:
You are invited to join us to watch a free screening of 'GROUND WAR', the new pesticide documentary! The film was a 2019 selection in the DC Environmental Film Festival. Sierra Club Maryland Chapter is a proud co-sponsor in helping bring this film for it’s first showing in Maryland.
GROUND WAR: When Playing Fields Become Battlefields
Sunday, JUNE 30th, 6:15pm
Gaithersburg Arts Barn Theater
311 Kent Square Road
Gaithersburg, MD 20878
More info and to reserve free tickets >> bit.ly/groundwarmd
A filmmaker’s investigation into the death of his father takes him deep into the world of golf, chemical lobbying, and citizen activism, where he learns that the rampant use of pesticides around the world may be far more damaging than he thought.What chance do we have at creating a safer world for ourselves and our children? The answer may lay with the incredible people he encounters along his journey. Watch the trailer.
The film also follows the story of Montgomery County's landmark pesticide law and investigates how pesticides affect on our waters. A panel discussion with local activists and experts, including Paul Tukey (Glenstone Museum’s Chief Sustainability Officer) and Jay Feldman (Executive Director of Beyond Pesticides) will follow the film.
Invite family and friends. Film is free and open to the public, however seating is limited, please reserve tickets in advance. We look forward to seeing you there.
The film event is also co-sponsored by Kentlands Community Foundation, City of Gaithersburg, Safe Grow Montgomery, Muddy Branch Alliance, MOM’s Organic Market, and Beyond Pesticides.
Want to make a bigger impact on harmful pesticides?
Now’s your chance to volunteer on our pesticide team. The pesticide team works on state legislative bills and assists local chapters and members on pesticides and pollinator issues. Whether you’d like to work on educating and outreach projects, or work on legislative bills, Sierra Club Maryland’s a great organization to be a part of. All you need is passion and we’ll guide you with the rest. Please email Ling Tan for more information: Ling.Tan@mdsierra.org
What happened to the Maryland Chlorpyrifos Ban bill:
The Smart on Pesticide Coalition, which Sierra Club Maryland is an active member, made significant progress in the 2019 session thanks to the many of you who sent letters, called, or attended pesticide lobby night to reach out to your Maryland delegates and senators. You have our sincere thanks for your important advocacy!
Largely because of your actions, Maryland successfully passed the bill through the House of Delegates and the Senate Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee (EHEA). Unfortunately, the bill did not make it to the final step of voting on the floor of the Senate.
There was an unprecedented backup of bills required to be voted upon on the Senate floor in the remaining 7 days of the 2019 session. This crisis prompted leadership to decide that controversial bills that would involve a time-consuming floor debate, like ours, would not be brought forward for a vote this session. Even though we’re very disappointed, there’s some good news -- the chairs, bill sponsors and committee members who supported the bill are committing to passing a "clean" bill next year.
We’re excited to work on this issue again in 2020, and we hope you’ll consider joining our pesticide team to move on this important issue! To volunteer, contact Ling Tan: ling.tan@mdsierra.org
Montgomery County Healthy Lawns Act won in the latest court battle against the pesticide industry:
In April, the Maryland Court of Special Appeals ruled in favor of Montgomery County's lawn pesticide law, aka Healthy Lawns Act. The appeal judges determined that Montgomery County is NOT preempted on the lawn pesticide law, and the ruling restores the law as it affects private properties! The landmark law prohibits the use of harmful cosmetic pesticides (including weedkillers) on both private and county-owned lawns.
This ruling affirms the right of all Maryland’s counties and local jurisdictions to protect their communities and waterways from harmful pesticide exposure, this is especially important for people’s health, our kids, pets, bees and other wildlife, and our Chesapeake Bay.
Thanks to many of our local members who support this effort, here’s another opportunity to take action:
Montgomery Parks continues to resist fully implementing the law in all Montgomery County parks. Currently, only 10 out of 421 parks are pesticide-free and Montgomery Parks does not plan to make any more parks pesticide-free.
The Safe Grow Montgomery Coalition has a new petition urging Montgomery Parks to stop using glyphosate (the ingredient in Roundup weedkiller) on common weeds and to take all parks pesticide-free as soon as possible. Read and sign the new petition at: bit.ly/StopToxicParks
Next Public Health Committee Meeting - June 9th:
Have you heard of Sierra Club Maryland’s Public Health Committee? We’re a new committee where volunteers can work on a range of issues related to public health, including banning chlorpyrifos pesticides, reducing lead exposure, and addressing sources of air pollution, particularly those with environmental justice or other disparate impacts. To further highlight disparate impacts, the Committee is also focusing on developing a strategy to use Spatial Epidemiology as a visual way to communicate more efficiently with policy makers and the public.
The Committee meets quarterly and has monthly conference calls on the third Wednesday of the month at 8:00 pm.
Our next in-person meeting is Sunday, June 9th, 9am-12pm in Silver Spring. New members are welcome. Email ling.tan@mdsierra.org for meeting details or more information.