White House announces 'America the Beautiful' conservation initiative. "The Biden Administration on Thursday introduced its "America the Beautiful" plan to conserve 30 percent of the nation's land and water by 2030, calling it the country's first ever national conservation goal and issuing a stark warning about the state of the country's natural areas." Read more by Katie Surma & Judy Fahys - Inside Climate News - May 7, 2021.
EPA releases updated tool to help communities protect recreational waters. "The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released an improved mobile app (Sanitary Survey App for Marine and Fresh Waters) to help communities identify potential sources of pollution to recreational waters. This science-based and data-informed tool empowers communities and supports engagement in local decisions in protecting the health of swimmers and recreators from contaminants at lakes, rivers, and beaches while supporting the vitality of water-based economies." More info here.
America’s new normal: A degree hotter than two decades ago. "...Scientists have long talked about climate change — hotter temperatures, changes in rain and snowfall and more extreme weather — being the “new normal.” Data released Tuesday by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration put hard figures on the cliche. The new United States normal is not just hotter, but wetter in the eastern and central parts of the nation and considerably drier in the West than just a decade earlier." Read more by Seth Borenstein - AP News - May 4, 2021.
The Brood X Cicadas' 17-year Itch. “...Oh, the best part for me as a scientist and ecologist is just to witness this very unusual and unique event where you literally have billions of cicadas coming out of the ground and striving for light,” he told me with excitement. “They’ve had this dreary dismal existence under the earth for 17 years! Once they’re out, they’re up in the treetops and it’s romance. They’re singing their hearts out to find that special someone." Read more by Heather Moyer - Sierra - April 10, 2021.
Scientists seek clues to microplastics problem through 'pickled fish' time capsule. "TVA's 56-year-old collection offers look back back to when microplastics, fish and humans were first becoming connected in the Tennessee River Valley... It's a time capsule that could reveal whether decades of a disposable society is leading to microplastics entering food sources." Read more by Ben Benton - Times Free Press - May 2, 2021.
How artificial streams inside this Oak Ridge lab are making our nation's water safer. "A squat brick building tucked between a forested ridgeline and a bend in White Oak Creek, though unassuming, is home to a scientific facility that grapples with one question: What's in the water? This is the Aquatic Ecology Lab, part of Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Environmental Science Division, which studies how the energy we use every day impacts our rivers, reservoirs and wetlands." Read more by Vincent Gabrielle - Knoxville News Sentinel - May 4, 2021.
"If you want to help track the emergence of the Brood X cicadas, download the free Cicada Safari app for iOS or Android, and then, when you see a cicada, snap a photo and submit it to have your cicada added to a live map. If you’ve spotted a cicada, share a photo of it with us at EarthSky Community Photos." Image via Wikimedia Commons.
Honoring Lost Workers
Workers Memorial Day Observance Honors Kingston Coal Ash Spill Cleanup Workers: “Mourn for the Dead, and Fight for the Living!”
By Todd Waterman, Harvey Broome Group [edited]
At the April 24th union-organized Workers Memorial Day, anguished Knoxville News Sentinel reporter Jamie Satterfield held up a star-studded mask presented to her by Janie Clark, who calls her “Little Star.” Kingston cleanup workers like Janie’s beloved husband Ansol were denied dust masks by TVA cleanup contractor Jacobs Engineering. Ansol’s memorial cross (pictured below) commemorated their sacrifice. Jamie asked Kingston survivors Ansol, Ron Bledsoe, and Tommy Johnson and their families to stand for applause.
Four days later, on April 28, Jamie shared that Ansol Clark had suffered a heart attack. She asked that we pray for him, Janie, and their son Bergan. But in three days, another Kingston worker was gone.
Janie Clark says she will host a future Celebration of Life for Ansol, whose cross she will maintain. She feels the loving support of her fellow coal ash activists, and will devote her life to fighting with us for coal ash victims like Ansol.
The Workers Memorial honored first workers who died from COVID-19 contracted at work, then East Tennessee workers who died on the job in 2020, and finally the more than 50 Kingston cleanup workers who have now died. Speakers included worker champions, union organizers, local representatives, and more. Musicians Jay Clark and Dan Kimbro closed with Ron Bledsoe’s first-hand account of his experience working for Jacobs Engineering, his powerful song “Kingston” which Ron, now suffering from COPD, can no longer sing.
Jamie Satterfield speaks at Workers Memorial Day in April, holding up the starry mask gifted to her by Janie Clark. Photo: Todd Waterman.
Tennessee News
New possible threat to Memphis' drinking water discovered along Byhalia pipeline route. "A new study has found a connection between two aquifers that sit directly under the planned route of the Byhalia Connection Pipeline, showing the potential risk to Memphis' drinking water if the crude oil pipeline were to spring a leak. The study, conducted by the Center for Applied Earth Science and Engineering Research at the University of Memphis (CAESER), showed that there are two breaches that connect the Mississippi River Valley Aquifer, a shallow aquifer, and the Memphis Sand Aquifer, the source of Memphis' drinking water." Read more by Micaela A Watts & Samuel Hardiman - Memphis Commercial Appeal - May 12, 2021.
Existing pipeline makes Byhalia Connection unneeded, environmental groups say. "The Southern Environmental Law Center is asking the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation to rescind its approval of the proposed 49-mile oil pipeline because a pipeline that follows a parallel route already exists... In its letter to state officials dated Thursday, April 29, the law center said there’s already a pipeline in place, known as the Collierville Connection Pipeline, that could serve the same purpose." Read more by Blake Fontenay - Daily Memphian - April 29, 2021.
Mines haven't produced coal for months, but Tennessee legislature OKs $1M for regulation. "After some fits and starts, the Tennessee General Assembly pushed legislation through this spring that will bring a floundering, nearly dormant coal industry back under state control. It will cost nearly $1 million a year to do it, even though oversight was originally promised to be free." Read more by Tyler Whetstone - Knoxville News Sentinel - May 11, 2021.
Tyson Food’s expansion in west Tennessee is pitting longtime farmers against one of the nation’s biggest protein suppliers. "...Scores of chicken operations like these have sprung up in west Tennessee in just the past three years, proliferating as Republican lawmakers have led successful efforts to remove environmental oversight and hamstring local officials from enforcing public health rules, while the administration of Gov. Bill Lee has offered millions in economic incentive packages for Tyson’s meat processing plants." Read more by Anita Wadhwani - Tennessee Lookout - May 3, 2021.
Hardeman County Commission approves land rezoning for charcoal company, despite public outcry and allegations of illegality. "The Hardeman County Commission voted Tuesday night to approve the rezoning of land for Royal Oak Charcoal, following an hours-long public hearing that was fraught with high tension and numerous allegations of illegality. The motion passed 11-4. This marks the third attempt made by the commission to rezone land for the company as “I-2 Hazardous Industrial,” this time at site near the towns of Cloverport and Mercer in Madison County, a 186-acre property located off Tennessee Highway 138 and Cox Road, on the county line." Read more by Angele Latham - Jackson Sun - April 28, 2021.
Waste Management sues Davidson County over landfill expansion rejection. "A fight over the future of a controversial landfill in Nashville’s predominantly Black Bordeaux neighborhood has now landed in court. Waste Management, the owner of the Southern Services Construction & Demolition landfill, filed suit in Davidson County Chancery Court after an oversight board rejected its plans to expand its 77-acre landfill by an additional 17 acres." Read more by Anita Wadhwani - Tennessee Lookout - May 6, 2021.
"Opponents of the proposed Byhalia Connection Pipeline march during an April rally from the National Civil Rights Museum to Memphis City Hall. A Memphis City Council committee has tabled voting on an ordinance against the pipeline until its July 6 meeting. Photo by Brad Vest for MLK50." Article by Carrington J. Tatum - May 4, 2021.
TVA Watch
TVA Coal Ash Disaster Revisited: Is it time for EPA to regulate the toxic sludge as hazardous waste? "...Despite the protests of many whose lives have been affected by this demonstrably toxic substance, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has for years refused to classify coal ash as hazardous waste. Instead, the agency continues to regard coal ash as solid waste — the same designation given to household garbage. The distinction is an important one. As solid waste, coal ash is subject to different and far less stringent federal regulations regarding how it is handled than something officially deemed “hazardous” would be. The U.S. government didn’t exercise any authority over the handling of coal ash until 2015, when President Obama’s EPA issued the first-ever federal rule pertaining to its disposal — in direct response to the Tennessee spill." Read more by Glynn Wilson - New American Journal - May 1, 2021.
State opposes opening up TVA transmission lines for other power suppliers. "Tennessee's attorney general claims an effort by local power companies to try to bring cheaper power to their customers along Tennessee Valley Authority transmission lines will hurt most of the state's electricity users by shifting costs and reducing power reliability. Although the state of Tennessee has no regulatory role over the federally owned TVA, the state's top legal officer is asking the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to block a motion by four TVA distributors to go elsewhere for their power supplies." Read more by Dave Flessner - Times Free Press - May 18, 2021.
‘TVA’s inaction sends the wrong message’: Controversial mining operation on Duck River ignoring orders to halt. "A Tennessee gravel and sand mining operator has been ignoring a cease and desist letter for months, and opponents say its continued construction on the banks of North America’s most biodiverse river may already be harming wildlife. The Duck River in Middle Tennessee has the most species of any river on the continent, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency Assistant Chief of Biodiversity Pandy Upchurch said, with at least 151 species of fish and 55 species of mussels including eight federally endangered species." Read more by Travis Loller - Associated Press / Printed in the Tennessean on May 8, 2021.
TVA Cumberland Steam Plant could close under weight of federal change. "In one of a few possible scenarios, the Tennessee Valley Authority's Cumberland Fossil Plant in Cumberland City of Stewart County could be permanently shut down under increased federal pressure to put an end to coal-fired electrical power generation." Read more by Jimmy Settle - Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle - May 11, 2021.
TVA plans to phase out coal power by 2035 as utility turns to more gas, nuclear and renewable energy. "The Tennessee Valley Authority, which once got nearly two thirds of its power by burning coal, is preparing plans to phase out the last of its aging fleet of coal power plants within the next decade and a half and turn to more natural gas, nuclear and renewable energy sources like solar and wind power to generate more carbon-free electricity." Read more by Dave Flessner - Times Free Press - April 28, 2021.
TVA balks at sale of abandoned Bellefonte nuclear plant to Chattanooga developer Franklin Haney. "The Tennessee Valley Authority, which began building the Bellefonte Nuclear Power Plant in Northeast Alabama in 1974 but never finished the twin-reactor plant, is fighting an effort by developer Franklin L. Haney to buy and complete the half-finished facility. Through the company he formed to acquire Bellefonte known as Nuclear Development LLC, Haney is suing TVA for not completing the sale of the 1,400-acre Bellefonte site, which Haney agreed to buy after TVA abandoned the Jackson County plant five years ago." Read more by Dave Flessner - Times Free Press - May 17, 2021.
By JD Jackson, Chief Operating Officer of SEEED (Socially Equal Energy Efficient Development) [edited]
Building a solar powered home has become more expensive because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The residential construction industry has seen a sharp increase in the price of lumber and building materials. We will need help to absorb some of the cost of new construction, but the potential return on investment for the community is enormous.
First, there is the possibility of a low-income family receiving a newly built home in their own neighborhood—the same neighborhood that is presently being sold out to wealthy businessmen and affluent residents for gentrification. The goal is to keep these properties in the hands of local folks who embody the authentic community that only comes from decades of living in these neighborhoods. We believe in development without displacement , by helping low-income residents obtain a piece of the American dream of homeownership in their own community. With home ownership, we will change their trajectory and mindset from generational poverty toward generational wealth. We will be positioning the working poor to build equity that will be available to their descendants. They also gain the emotional equity and pride that comes with finally having a home that they can call their own.
Secondly, there is the impact of young people from marginalized communities gaining a career path out of poverty and into the construction industry. These SEEED cadets have the opportunity to gain firsthand knowledge in every aspect of building a new home from the ground up. This develops apprenticeship skills in a myriad of trades that can propel them into a career path of their choosing. We will afford them access to an accredited program that will not only train them, but give them the certification that is needed to take them from a laborer, to an apprentice, to a journeyman, to a foreman, and ultimately to a general contractor with entrepreneurial aspirations.
Don’t nothing stop a bullet like a job.The lack of opportunities for these young people can lead to hopelessness, despair, and discontentment, and a sense that there is no way out of their circumstances; this can make gangs and crime seem like the easiest way to be accepted and to make money. Our impact on the community is to give these at-risk youth hope, aspiration, and the means for a better way to obtain a livable wage and a career that will take and keep them out of poverty.
Lastly, this home will help decrease the carbon footprint by using energy efficient systems. This will introduce them to the benefits of living an environmentally friendly lifestyle. We will install solar panels on the roof, battery energy recovery system, micro-circuit for power outages, tankless hot water system, and the most advanced energy efficient materials to ensure less energy waste and lower utility costs. The estimated savings will be between 60%-80% off their utility bill, making it more affordable for the home dweller. We want to show the neighborhood that they don't have to settle or take a back seat when it comes to having healthy, affordable, modern, and efficient homes located in their communities.
SEEED Green Home Groundbreaking in April. Marquita Bradshaw'sSowing Justice representative began by asking us to remember Austin-East’s slain Anthony Thompson, Jr. He then called for environmental justice: “Those closest to the pain should be closest to the power.” To end on “a note of hope,” he released Monarchs and other native butterflies. (Photo: Todd Waterman)
Meet a Member
Many thanks to Susan for stepping up as our next Defender Fund Volunteer!
By Susan Johnston
Hello, I’m Susan Johnston. I’m your new chair of the Sierra Club Defenders Fund, our program to raise money to fund the position of our lobbyist at the Tennessee General Assembly. A long-time resident of Nashville, I live in a cohousing community, an intentional community that holds environmental issues as a stated value. I am active here on our landscape committee, where I take great joy in planting as many native plants as I can.
I love walking in Nashville’s many parks, trails and greenways, enjoying the beautiful scenery we have in in all seasons. I see the job of Defender chair as a great way to pay back a tiny bit of what I owe this marvelous world.
The spiderwort is in bloom at the rain garden in Susan Johnston's cohousing community.
Events
Important Note: The Sierra Club's Safety Management Team has extended its prohibition on both travel and in-person meetings through July 4, 2021. Meetings and events continue to be held virtually for now.
Listed in order of occurrence:
View 'Plastic Wars' documentary. "This March 2020 joint investigation with NPR and the Investigative Reporting Workshop at American University reveals how plastic makers have publicly promoted recycling for decades, despite privately expressing doubts from almost the beginning. The documentary is a powerful look at how the plastics industry has used recycling to help sell more plastic — and why the plastic waste problem has only grown." Stream on Youtube (53 min watch).
HBG June Program: Life of a Monarch Butterfly. According to Scientific American over 80 percent of all life on Earth are insects with over 50 percent of those going through complete metamorphosis. It happens all around our homes all throughout the year, but few of us ever witness it. Join local naturalist and author Stephen Lyn Bales for a look at monarch butterflies and his documentation of one from egg to first flight. Tues. June 8th at 7:00 pm ET. Virtual via Zoom. Sign upthrough this Campfire Event Link.
Nature Hikes at Glen Leven Farm in Franklin, TN . The Land Trust for Tennessee will host hikes on the second Saturday of each month through December. Register to hike the nature trail and participate in a themed activity on a historic property not usually open to the public. Timed-entry tickets required. Admission is $5. Register here.
Book circle sponsored by Environmental Education in Tennessee. "We will read and discuss the book All We Can Save: Truth, Courage, and Solutions for the Climate Crisis. We are starting this process to create community and amplify dialogue centered around climate change. Everyone is welcome!" Starts June 15th.Sign up at the link here.
National Children & Youth Garden Symposium. For nearly three decades, the American Horticultural Society has been cultivating tomorrow’s gardeners by energizing, inspiring, and training today’s garden educators. The 29th annual professional development conference will take place as a virtual event. This year's theme is youth empowerment and speakers will give educators the inspiration and tools needed to discover and nurture the passion within a child and create the space and support for a child to pursue that passion. Occurs next month July 7- 9.More info here.
Save the Date: Cherokee Group is hosting the next Chapter Retreat on October 29-31 at Booker T Washington State Park, pending National Sierra Club loosening restrictions for in person meetings. Hopefully, we can all get together and meet in person again!
Clingman’s Dome - Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Image credit: Jody Claborn via Creative Commons.
Special Features
Dear Eartha: Advice from an Eco-Guru
Dear Eartha, I've been so busy getting my business back up and running now that more of us are emerging into the daylight of eating out and socializing that I haven’t kept up on what’s happening to our planet. You seem to have your finger on that pulse. Can you catch me up? Thanks for all you do. —Coming Up for Air & Information
Dear Coming Up,
Not sure if my finger on the pulse is going to revive anything anytime soon, but I’m happy to help. Here’s a run-down of what I’ve been reading lately, which covers global conservation goals, corporate vs individual responsibility for climate change, consumerism, and food consumption.
From Green Life: The Latest from the Sierra Club (5/20/2021): The eminent American biologist E.O. Wilson first suggested the idea of setting aside half of Earth for wild nature and biodiversity in his 2002 book, The Future of Life. He went on to expand this concept in his 2016 book, Half Earth , and the following year he started the Half Earth Project. In 2019, a group of researchers sought to flesh out Wilson’s ambitious vision when they released the Global Deal for Nature, laying out a road map for setting aside 30 percent of land and water by 2030, with an additional 20 percent of the planet conserved as “climate stabilization areas.” Since then, the “30 by 30” goal has stuck and has become the new benchmark by which to measure conservation success. So far, 50 countries and 70 US mayors have committed to the 30x30 goal, and it is echoed in Pres. Biden’s latest conservation initiative, “America the Beautiful.”
From Bill McKibben, The Particular Psychology of Destroying a Planet(The New Yorker , 5/19/2021): ”How is it that some people, or corporations, can knowingly perpetuate the damage? Or, as people routinely ask me, Don’t they have grandchildren?” After analyzing almost 200 sources, Harvard researchers Geoffrey Supran and Naomi Oreskes concluded that Exxon officials had embraced a strategy “that downplays the reality and seriousness of climate change, normalizes fossil fuel lock-in, and individualizes responsibility.” The authors found that this corporate strategy followed the same pattern the tobacco industry had used to shift responsibility away from corporations and onto consumers. The fossil fuel industry used these same "demand-as-blame arguments to oppose litigation, regulation, and activism." As Supran summarizes, “ExxonMobil tapped into America’s uniquely individualist culture and brought it to bear on climate change.”
From PBS’ Greta Thunberg: A Year to Change the World : “We can’t fight against climate change without individual change,” says Thunberg. “The fact that it’s the way we behave, the way we consume that is the problem. But it is not possible to live 100% sustainable today. Which is something that is fundamentally wrong, of course.” One quarter of all of our greenhouse gas emissions are related to our food consumption. It takes 60 kg of CO2 to produce one kg of beef. It takes .04 kg of CO2 to produce a turnip. How are we feeding our cattle, or transporting the food? And what about clothing? China uses far more coal in the production of clothing, in addition to the transport of them across the world. Buying used clothes cuts down our carbon emissions use.
I'll leave you with this thought from Michael Brune, Executive Director of the Sierra Club: “Eliminating the filibuster will open up enormous opportunities to strengthen our democracy, tackle the climate crisis, and create a more just and equitable country. This arcane Jim Crow–era rule belongs in the history books, not in the legislative chambers where our leaders are supposed to move this country forward.”
Hope your pulse is not racing but pumping you towards continued peace and activism! Good luck with getting back to business – Your partner in the struggle,
Eartha
Dear Eartha is penned by Rita Bullinger. Got an environmental query for Eartha? Submit your question to "Dear Eartha" via Enews.SierraTN@gmail.com
Species Spotlight
This month's featured species is: Sweetshrub(Calycanthus floridus)
Sweetshrub is native to the eastern US, from Pennsylvania to Florida, and west to Mississippi. Sweetshrub is known by many common names including Carolina allspice, spicebush, strawberry-bush, sweet bubby, or sweet Betsy.
The "sweet" moniker derives from the often fruity fragrance of its flowers, which bloom late spring and scattered throughout summer. The flowers are long lasting and can be added to potpourri when dried. Different cultivars tend to have different scents, such as pineapple, spiced apple, strawberry, or banana. The scent is variable from plant to plant.
During autumn, the leaves of this deciduous, medium-sized shrub turn golden yellow, then brown and fall off. Sweetshrub is deer resistant and tolerates a variety of soil types, but tends to prefer well-drained soil and partial sun.
Call for Ex-Com Nominees!
The July 31st deadline to receive nominations is coming up. This year, 4 out of the seven At-Large Chapter ExCom members will end their term. 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. The Chapter ExCom meets 6 times a year, bi-monthly. At-Large candidates must be willing and able to participate fully.
After receiving your nominations by July 31, the Chapter Nominations Committee will consider and recommend candidates for the ballot, which is published in the November/December edition of the Tennes-Sierran newspaper as well as online for members receiving Sierra Club emails. Candidates may also get on the ballot by petition by July 31, 2021. All candidates are allowed space on the ballot to advocate for their election. Candidates receiving the top votes will start their 2-year terms in January 2022.
Any Sierra Club member wishing to be considered as a 2022-2023 At-Large candidate should indicate their intent by July 31, 2021. Email Todd Waterman at jtoddw@gmail.com or mail to 418 Orchard Knob Road, Clinton, Tennessee 37716.
Paperless Delivery
Are you a Sierra member who has been receiving our bi-monthly print publication, the Tennes-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.
Contact Us
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