by Wallace McMullen, Ozark Chapter MRCC delegate
The Midwest Region Conservation Committee (MRCC) recently held its fall meeting in Chicago. It chose to focus on reducing pollution from coal-fired power plants as the committee’s priority for next year. That problem affects all nine U.S. Chapters as well as our newest member, Eastern Canada. Due to mercury pollution, the problem also has a direct effect on rivers and the Great Lakes. The MRCC is hoping to expand from doing issue workshops to doing more long-term follow-up, using the Sierra Club’s planning matrix model.
Other significant decisions were made as well. The MRCC voted to forego Big River Week in Washington DC next year in favor of a scaled-down training event somewhere along the Mississippi River. They also voted to dissolve the Ecoregion Task Forces – Great Lakes and Mississippi River Basin – and appointed two individual issue coordinators instead: Jack Norman and Deb Neustadt. Dissolving the Ecoregion Task Forces was not meant to de-emphasize Great Lakes or Mississippi River work – resisting the Army Corp plans for the Mississippi is more important than ever, as is Great Lakes work on toxic cleanups and pollution. This was a process change to respond to a perception that the Task Force model no longer worked effectively.
Barb Frank from Wisconsin will succeed Dave Scott (Ohio) as MRCC Chair. Barb is a club veteran who has been recognized by the national Sierra Club for her long-term dedication. I was elected Vice-Chair of the MRCC, and Debbie Neustadt of Iowa was elected Treasurer.
The Ontario Chair, Paula Boutis, reported remarkable success in volunteer activation, with 100 active volunteers out of a membership of 900. We in Missouri want to learn her secrets!