We are working to protect the natural world on the local, state, and global levels. In 2017, we are focusing on supporting the Kansas City Streetcar extension line campaign, participating in state conservation efforts, and fighting to take action on climate change.
Streetcar Extension Line Campaign
THB supports mass transit as a key to reducing our carbon emissions and improving air quality in Kansas City. So THB is helping the Streetcar campaign make the case for the Streetcar Line Extension south from Union Station to UMKC's Volker Campus and spread the word about the three special elections required to get this extension passed. See more info about the upcoming special election here. To help this campaign, please volunteer here,
Conserving Our State's Natural Wealth
We humans are part of a web of life upon which all of our wealth and our very existence depends. It is necessary to protect this natural system like we would protect our own lives and the lives of our children, because that is exactly what we are doing. Missouri is a state rich in natural wealth that needs protected and conserved from our many waterways, to our national and state parks, to our rich top soil, to our lush forests, to the air we breathe. The Sierra Club is continually addressing threats to our natural resources and promoting wiser ways of living in harmony with the rest of the living world. Some of the current conservation issues we're involved in are:
- Missouri River Conservation
The Missouri River is a vital part of our state's ecosystem that humans and many other creatures in Missouri depend on. We routinely speak into the rule making processes of the Corps of Engineers as advocates for the health of the river and restoring it to a more natural river for the creatures the live in and around it.
The Army Corps of Engineers is considering 6 alternatives for its Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS). A public comment period is open until April 24, 2017. Learn more about Alternative 2 that the Club supports and how to contact the Corps here. To help our group with this effort, please visit our Get Involved page.
- Land and Water Conservation Fund
The Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) is a decades-old a bipartisan congressional commitment to protect natural, cultural, and recreational resources across America. The Fund provides money for national parks, national wildlife refuges, national forests, rivers and lakes, community parks, trails, and ball fields in all of our 50 states, including Missouri. However, Congress annually diverts the LWCF money for other uses, breaking their promise to the American people. The money available for the LWCF varies yearly, crippling the program.
This is why the Sierra Club and other organizations are working to make permanent the authorization for the Land and Water Conservation Fund. We support legislation currently in Congress (HR502), which provides that no less than 1.5% of the annual authorized funding amount or $10 million, whichever is greater, shall be used for projects that secure recreational public access to existing federal public land for hunting, fishing, and other recreational purposes.
There is a national effort to get enough U.S. Representatives to co-sponsor this bill, which was referred to the House Subcommittee on Water, Power, and Oceans in Feb. We need as many Republican members of Congress as possible on board as well as those Democrats we can count on already. To help THB push to make this important fund permanent, please volunteer here. For more information on the LWCF and the national effort to make it permanent, visit this site: http://www.lwcfcoalition.org/about-lwcf.html
Fighting To Take Action on Climate Change
As environmentalists, we're always fighting both offense and defense by pushing policy-makers to take bolder action on climate change and warding off efforts to undo progress in this area. Unfortunately, we are currently doing a lot of defense, resisting The Trump administration's climate wrecking policies. It is more important than ever for our members to resist this administration's actions with public outcry and sustained complaints to our elected officials. Visit the "Get Involved" page to volunteer for the Communications team and the Legislative Committee.
- People's Climate March
Missouri Sierra Club members participated in the historic 2014 People's Climate March in New York, which was the largest demonstration of support for climate action in US history. https://peoplesclimate.org/
On April 29, 2017, the March is occurring again in Washington D.C., with local marches happening on the same day across the country. These events are important to pressure our government to stay in the Paris Climate Pact and increase our efforts to reduced carbon emissions in time to preserve a livable world.
THB made it a priority to support the endeavor to send a bus of local people to the national People's Climate March and support organizing the local version of the event in Kansas City. THB is co-sponsoring the local march and the Group donated funds to both efforts. For more information about joining us at the local event, see our recent post.
- Beyond Coal campaign
The Beyond Coal campaign is the Sierra Club's national campaign to transition our electrical grid beyond coal to clean energy. The campaign is active in Missouri as our state is heavily dependent on coal, despite the state having lots of opportunities for renewable energy. The campaign has been successful in getting a number of ancient coal-fired power plants shut down in Missouri, reducing carbon emissions and improving the air quality for Missourians. Click here for more information and how to get involved.
The living world is under many different threats. So, if something speaks to you that is not on in our focus areas, come talk to us about organizing people around that issue.