Single mom struggles to pay power bill. Tell Gov. Lee #NoShutoffs!
May Newsletter
Here you will find opportunities for action, news updates, events, and more to help you explore,enjoy,and protect the beautiful state of Tennessee.
Important Note about upcoming scheduled events: Sierra Club will be maintaining its guidance announced 4/8 by Michael Brune. All in-person Sierra Club events of any size between now and Sunday, June 14th are canceled. Meetings may be held virtually. Our response plans remain in place through June 14, 2020. For more on Sierra Club responses to COVID-19, follow this page.
Tell Gov. Lee to prevent utility shutoffs!
#NoShutoffs #NoShutoffsTN
As of last week, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee is still letting utility companies shut off people's essential services, like electricity and water. The Knoxville News Sentinel reported that on March 31, the Tennessee Public Utility Commission ordered a cease from disconnecting people's utilities. However, this only applies to a couple companies due to TN's unique utility landscape. (The front-page Knox News article cited research done by a team of volunteers led by amazing chapter volunteer JoAnn McIntosh of Clarksville! They conducted a statewide survey of utility companies to see which had & had not adopted shutoff policies.)
And in national coverage, one working mother's story was covered by the Huffington Post. Struggling to pay her utility bill, she received no assistance from her small, local utility in middle Tennessee and feared losing power. Read the full article: "She's a Furloughed Single Mom of 3. The Utility is Shutting Off Her Power Anyway."
Public health and safety continues to be at stake. Add your voice! Write to Gov. Lee or call (615) 823-8795 to tell Gov. Lee to block utility shutoffs! When you call the number, you'll hear a 50-second recording that will help you make a big impact. Then you'll be connected to the governor's office.
We're all in this together, and your voice can help keep us all healthy and safe at home. Take action now.
General News Across the State
Partial reopening of TN State Parks. Many Tennessee State Parks reopened on April 24th for daytime visitors, with most parks operating from 7:00 AM to sundown. New overnight reservations will not be permitted until May 15th. Rangers ask that visitors maintain social distance, and visit parks close to home rather than far away. Some restrooms will be open, but others will be closed. Check the closures page before visiting, as there are certain parks or sections than remain closed for now.
Former TVA chairman blasts TVA for ad promotions during COVID-19 pandemic. "Four decades after heading the Tennessee Valley Authority, former TVA Chairman S. David Freeman is joining an environmental group highly critical of the federal agency and is urging TVA's biggest customer to split from America's biggest government utility. Freeman, a 94-year-old Chattanooga native who has worked as an engineer, attorney and executive for utilities in California, Texas and Tennessee, blasted TVA Wednesday for its current advertising campaign during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially in Memphis where the city-owned utility is considering a split from TVA." Read full article by Dave Flessner - Times Free Press - Apr. 29, 2020.
Chattanooga plans for solar farm at Moccasin Bend Sewage Treatment Plan. The City of Chattanooga is planning a $5.25 million solar farm that will provide power for Moccasin Bend Sewage Treatment Plant. The plant is the largest user of power among the city facilities, costing about one half of the city's electric bill. The planned 10-acre solar farm will offset about 8% of the plant’s total power use, saving about $200,000 and paying for itself within 20 years. Read more in The Chattanoogan - Apr. 17, 2020.
No internet? No phone? No access to public hearings on proposed waste dumps in Tennessee. "Tennessee pollution regulators are still issuing permits and holding public hearings on proposed waste dumps despite a suspension of in-person proceedings amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a Knox News review shows. The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation also is easing up on pollution control enforcement and monitoring actions, citing the need for “pragmatism” related to the pandemic." Tennessee conservation groups have written a letter to the state attorney general stating that TDEC must stand firm and continue to enforce codified environmental protections for Tennesseans. Read full article by Jamie Satterfield - Knoxville News Sentinel - Apr. 27, 2020.
Shots fired! Climate change documentary misrepresents environmental movement. Michael Moore’s new film Planet of the Humans is causing confusion and outrage. The film accuses Bill McKibben, Michael Brune, and other clean energy supporters as being in collusion with billionaire capitalists. The Sierra Club has issued a statement in response to the film’s misinformation, denouncing it as “riddled with outright falsehoods, inaccuracies and distortions about the Sierra Club, clean energy, and climate activism,” noting that the filmmakers didn’t bother to get basic facts straight. The film is only viewable on YouTube, and one reluctant platform called Films for Action, which admits the movie is propagandistic . For more in-depth coverage, read Emily Atkin’s reaction piece or Ben Wehrman's 6 Reasons Why Planet of the Humans is a Disaster of Misinformation.
The Sunrise Movement comes to Nashville. "On a sticky morning in September, about a hundred young people march down 5th Avenue in Nashville, Tennessee, waving banners and singing. "Which side are you on, now, which side are you on?" The simple tune was written in 1931 to raise awareness about National Miners Union members in Kentucky who were being evicted, harassed, and killed. Later, the song was adopted by civil rights activists. Today's protesters—members of a youth-led national climate justice organization called the Sunrise Movement—sing their own version as they step. The activists are headed to Representative Jim Cooper's office and then on to the office of his brother, Mayor John Cooper. They want the mayor to declare a climate emergency, and they've decided to occupy his front lobby until he agrees to meet with them." Read full feature by Leanna First-Arai - Apr. 21, 2020 - May-June edition of Sierra Magazine.
Nashville Sunrise Movement members Sudeep Ghantasala, Eli Motycka, Martaze Gaines, and Lauren Hindman. Photo by Ariel Cobbert. Youth activists are pushing local politicians to take bold climate action now, not in 2050. The Sunrise Movement, founded in 2017 by a group of 12 recent college graduates, now has 260 hubs across the country.
Coal Ash Lawsuit Updates
TVA Contractor Jacobs Engineering wants coal ash workers to pay for failed mediation. "Jacobs Engineering is asking a judge to make the Kingston coal ash disaster relief workers who sued the company pay for a failed attempt at mediation. The firm says in a motion filed in U.S. District Court this week the workers’ attorneys twice violated local court rules on confidentiality: once in a January meeting with a judge and once in an April court filing." Full article by Jamie Satterfield, Knoxville News Sentinel - May 1, 2020.
Jacobs Engineering makes second round of settlement offers in Kingston coal ash case. "A global government contractor accused of endangering the Kingston coal ash cleanup workers is offering 197 of them $10,000 each to walk away from their lawsuits against the firm, Knox News has learned. The offer by Jacobs Engineering comes just weeks after a separate group of Kingston coal ash disaster relief workers rejected a settlement proposal that would have left those 197 co-workers and their families out in the cold, the ongoing Knox News investigation shows. Since the historic December 2008 spill of 7.3 million tons of toxic coal ash waste at the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Kingston Fossil Plant in Roane County, 48 cleanup workers have died and more than 200 are sick, according to a tally from court records by Knox News." Full article by Jamie Satterfield, Knoxville News Sentinel - May 1, 2020.
Events
Save the Date(s)!
While in-person Sierra Club activities between now and June 14th are canceled, look forward to these future events...
Tennessee Chapter Fall Retreat: Please join us October 23-25, 2020 at Pickett CCC Memorial State Park. This will be a fun filled retreat with hikes, youth activities, and outings leader trainings at a great time to enjoy autumn in the Cumberland Mountains!
Citizen’s Climate Lobby’s Southeast Climate Conference: The conference has been rescheduled for August 22-23, 2020 in Knoxville. Tennessee Environmental Conference: This conference has been rescheduled for October 12-14 in Kingsport, TN.
Report-back: Conservation Education Day
Pictured below are some of the 60 members of the Sierra Club, Tennessee Conservation Voters, Tennessee Environmental Council and Tennessee Interfaith Power and Light who met with 50 legislators at this year's Conservation Education Day in February, built on the success of the previous two years. Sadie Corbutt, a member of the Chickasaw Group, made a big impact as the plastic bag lady posing with several key legislators and making an appearance at a committee hearing. The plastic bag ban bill did not pass this year, but we were able to change some votes and get closer to our goals. Each year, we establish more relationships. We need to keep that connection up throughout the year to make the biggest impact. To learn more about Conservation Education Day, contact Bill Moll, Chapter Conservation Chair (404-401-7899 or whmoll@aol.com).
Call for Nominations: Chapter At-Large Excom
The Chapter's Nomination Committee is seeking candidates to self-nominate or suggest nominees! This year, 3 out of seven members of the Chapter’s At Large Executive Committee (ExCom) reach the end of their term. The Sierra Club’s democratic process ensures it is held accountable to its membership with viable candidates who best represent our members’ interests. Any Chapter member in good standing is eligible for nomination.
The ExCom sets the Chapter budget and strategic direction, reaches consensus on conservation positions, raises money, appoints officers and committee chairs, plans important events, and approves litigation and electoral endorsements. To accomplish all of this, the Chapter ExCom meets 6 times a year (4 electronic meetings, 2 in-person meetings) every other month, and there is e-mail correspondence between meetings.
After receiving your nominations by July 31, 2020, the Chapter Nominations Committee will consider and recommend candidates for the ballot, which is published in the November/December edition of the Tennes-Sierran bi-monthly newspaper. Candidates may also get on the ballot by petition and are allowed space on the ballot to advocate for their election. Candidates receiving the top votes will start their 2-year terms in January 2021.
Any Sierra Club member wishing to be considered as a Nomination Committee candidate should indicate their intent by July 31, 2020. Email Charlie High at cahigh1722@aol.com or snail mail at 1722 Sweetbriar Avenue, Nashville, TN 37212.
Sierra Club Election Results
Below are the results for the 2020 Sierra Club Board of Directors election. Congratulations especially to Rita Harris, a Tennessee Chapter member from the Chickasaw Group!
The five candidates elected:
Marion Klaus 46,463 17.46% Ramón Cruz 44,025 16.55% Rita Harris 40,267 15.13% Patrick Murphy 37,966 14.27% Natalie Lucas 37,287 14.01%
Results for other candidates who ran: Peter Sargent 33,805 12.70% Igor A. Tregub 26,267 9.87%
For the data nerds: Valid Returns by Internet 11,897 (20.80%) Valid Returns by Mail 45,295 (79.20%) Total Valid Returns 57,192 Invalid Ballots: 379 Total Ballots Distributed 703,857
Special Features
Dear Eartha: Advice from an Eco-Guru
Dear Eartha,
Seems like the novel coronavirus has many of us in the grip of pervasive anxiety, what I heard somebody call “ambient sadness.” Has our planet and its people descended to a grief that will never end – people out of work, millions on unemployment, bailouts for airlines but not for citizens without health coverage, and “essential workers” being called heroes while given no pay increase and barely any PPE? Can you offer any hope, Eartha? – A Generation Z-er Needing Hope
Dear Needing Hope, Yes, these are the worst of times but, also, as Dickens wrote, the best of times, too! For with our anxiety, sadness, and despair comes the realization that what connects all of us and climate action is organizing with the helpers (Thanks, Mr. Rogers!). According to a recent column by the great environmentalist Bill McKibben, your generation sees no reason to have children because you see no future for the planet. You get the science, unlike many of your grandparents’ generation, despite many of them reading about Zero Population Growth in high school and college. And you are fearful because of this awareness.
But you are also building the legacy of Extinction Rebellion and the Sunrise Movement. These organizations are committed to changing the status quo of non-action and are led by youth organizers. They understand that the economics which fuel our values do not inherently benefit the common folk. As Kim Stanley Robinson recently put it in an amazing piece in The New Yorker: “Economics is a system for optimizing resources, and if it were trying to calculate ways to optimize a sustainable civilization in balance with the biosphere, it could be a helpful tool. When it’s used to optimize profit, however, it encourages us to live within a system of destructive falsehoods.”
She suggested we need a new “political economy” to recalculate our values, actions, and outcomes. Putting pressure on political candidates is always a good place to start and this is an election year of great importance.
I know I may sound like a broken record, but it’s the same voice of indigenous peoples, the labor, women’s, and #MeToo movements who also woke up to those “destructive falsehoods”: Get organized and get involved. Think globally and act locally works every single time. Pick your organization and come on out, and - just for now - stay six feet apart. Wearing my mask, my message remains: Don’t agonize, organize!
Compassionately yours, Eartha
Got an environmental query for Eartha? Submit your question to "Dear Eartha" via Enews.SierraTN@gmail.com
Species Spotlight
This month's featured genus is
Hydrangea
This bigleaf hydrangea cultivar (Endless Summer, The Original) is the first that was discovered that can bloom on both old woody stems as well as new growth. Photo courtesy UTIA.
A southern staple, the classic Hydrangea is a perennial bloomer with white, pink, or purple/blue flowers.
Its name is derived from Greek, roughly translating to "water vessel." (Hydra= water, and angeon= vessel.) But be careful not to overwater, as hydrangeas like well-drained soil.
The flower color is affected by the amount of aluminum in the soil, which changes pH levels. Acidic soil (pH lower than 6.0) tends to yield blue flowers, while alkaline (pH higher than 7.0) yields pink. White hydrangeas are not affected by soil pH (they stay white).
Hydrangeas are quite poisonous and release cyanide when eaten. Feast with your eyes, not with your mouth!
Remote Volunteer Opportunity
The Sierra Club TN Chapter needs someone to take over fundraising for the Sierra Club Defenders of Tennessee, our lobbying program for the Tennessee State Legislature. We have a lobbyist who represents us, and his salary needs to be funded. The work can all be done from home. If you are interested in the position, please contact Sherry Loller at sherryloller@hotmail.com or 615-889-2968.
Program Ideas Wanted
We would like to hear your ideas for interesting programs for the Middle Tennessee Group. Maybe the speaker is someone you know or heard at another event. Maybe it's one of our previous speakers or a new idea to consider. Look through our past programs for inspiration.
Program Chair, Sinclaire Sparkman, will make the necessary contacts and set up the program. Then come and enjoy the program with us. We have a social hour before the program where you can meet and talk with the presenter and others interested in conservation and environment.
Are you a Sierra member who has been receiving our bi-monthly print publication, TheTennes-Sierran? You can now opt out of getting a paper copy of the newspaper and instead receive it digitally as an email attachment. To request paperless delivery, open this form to make your request.
Got digital skills to share?
Put your technical skills to good use by building your resume and supporting a great cause – join the Digital Strategies Team!
Sierra Club uses several world-class tech platforms to help volunteers and Groups in the Tennessee Chapter deliver our conservation messages. We use Salesforce to maintain membership records, and Marketing Cloud to produce and distribute our newsletters. Our websites are maintained using Drupal CMS, and we use Zoom for video conferencing.
Here's a chance for you or someone you know to spend a few hours per month working with great people and improving or gaining valuable skills. We provide training and support.
We are the Tennessee Chapter of the Sierra Club, the world’s oldest, largest, and most influential grassroots environmental organization. With over 3.8 million members and supporters, the Sierra Club has the resources to empower people and to influence public policy through community activism, public education, lobbying, and litigation.
Our mission is to Explore, Enjoy and Protect the Planet.
As we all deal with a global pandemic with COVID-19, we wanted to let you know how the Sierra Club is adapting and responding so we can keep doing the important work of helping our communities, protecting our natural and human environment and fighting for a just, clean energy future.
Thank you for supporting Sierra Club Tennessee Chapter!
