HBG June Program
WHEN: Tuesday, June 11, 7:00pm, Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church, 2931 Kingston Pike.
WHAT: Bike Ride across The Southern Tier of the United States
by Bob Whetsel and Daniel Duncan
In the fall of 2015 Bob & Dan traversed the United States on their bicycles starting in San Diego, CA and finishing 9 weeks later in Saint Augustine, FL. This was a small group, self-contained ride sponsored by Adventure Cycling. Come and hear details, see slides and ask questions.
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Newsflash
New CEO of TVA seeks to tackle concerns over coal ash, transparency and the threat of losing its biggest customer. In responding to critics of TVA for lack of transparency in coal ash cleanup, CEO Jeff Lyash promised to review TVA policies to address concerns by lawmakers about the secret manner in which TVA conducts some of its business. The article by Dave Flessner in the May 9 Chattanooga Times Free Press can be found at: http://bit.ly/2vRQa9R.
See a related article by Mike Reicher in the May 5 Nashville Tennessean, Why TVA might store coal ash for decades near Nashville, but will remove it from former Memphis plant: http://bit.ly/2WD6DKH.
Also related - Facts on The Hazards of Coal Ash from Sierra Club Beyond Coal postings: https://content.sierraclub.org/coal/disposal-ash-waste
“Living near a wet coal ash storage pond is significantly more dangerous than smoking a pack of cigarettes a day, according to a risk assessment done by the EPA. The toxins found in coal ash have been linked to organ disease, cancer, respiratory illness, neurological damage, and developmental problems. People living within one mile of unlined coal ash ponds can have a 1 in 50 risk of cancer—more than 2,000 times higher than what the EPA considers acceptable.”
Cities Pressure TVA to Boost Renewable Energy as Memphis Weighs Breaking Away. The Sierra Club’s Ready for 100 campaign (RF100) is encouraging cities to transition to 100% clean, renewable energy. Cities large and small across the country have made the commitment. Knoxville has yet to sign on but is working towards such a goal. Memphis is leading the way to 100% sustainability in Tennessee. “Memphis, encouraged by environmentalists who have laid out a roadmap for transformation, comes as other large cities in Tennessee—including Nashville and Knoxville—are encouraging TVA to transition faster to renewable energy.” Read the article in “Inside Climate News” by James Bruggers at: http://bit.ly/2vVTpwM
A “must read” - News Alert: One million species face extinction, U.N. panel warns, and humans will face devastating effects. A UN report released this month says “Nature is declining globally at rates unprecedented in human history – and the rate of species extinctions is accelerating. The health of ecosystems on which we and all other species depend is deteriorating more rapidly than ever. …We are eroding the very foundations of our economies, livelihoods, food security, health and quality of life worldwide.” Instead of being immobilized by how overwhelming this and other news is, let’s talk about it around the dinner table, at the coffee shop, in the break room at work, with friends and family. Through awareness, our individual actions, and through “transformative change” we can make a difference and nature can still be conserved, restored and used sustainably. Two important articles: Article by Darryl Fears, May 6 Washington Post: https://wapo.st/2W2n5XK and the UN report can be found here.
U.N. Photo of an endangered sea turtle.
2019 SIERRA CLUB (Tennessee) LEGISLATIVE REPORT
by Scott Banbury, Conservation Program Coordinator, Tennessee Chapter of the Sierra Club (smbanbury@gmail.com or 901-619-8567)
Legislation/outcomes covered in the report:
CONSERVATION EDUCATION DAY - WIN
HB1021/SB431 SINGLE USE CONTAINER RESTRICTION PREEMPTION BILL - LOSS
SB264/HB156 ANTI PIPELINE PROTEST BILL - PARTIAL WIN
SB 308/HB377 ROUND UP YOUR UTILITY BILL BILL - PARTIAL WIN
SB178/HB165 SEPTIC TANK FREE-FOR-ALL BILL - PARTIAL WIN
SB 923/HB 219 PYROLYSIS/GASIFICATION OF PLASTIC WASTES - PARTIAL WIN
SB417/HB361 LANDFILL/HAZARDOUS WASTE PUBLIC PARTICIPATION - COULD BE A WIN
SB1056/HB964 ILLEGAL TIRE DUMPING - UPCOMING WIN
Read all or parts of the report here: http://bit.ly/2Q1cNlj
U. S. Supreme Court strips TVA of automatic immunity from some lawsuits. “The Supreme Court rejected TVA’s claim that as a ‘public corporation’ created by Congress, the utility — the nation’s largest electricity provider — can use the government’s shield of immunity when either the utility or its contractors are accused in lawsuits of wrongdoing related to the power business.” See the article by James Satterfield, Knoxville News Sentinel, May 1, 2019. http://bit.ly/2HlI66D
Need to explain the science of climate change to your friends? Check out this article by Mark Pace in the Chattanooga Times Free Press (and skip the first part about the weatherman).http://bit.ly/2JwgZZj
Talking books with Emily Ellis. Last, but far from least, see the May 10 article by Betty Bean (KnoxTNToday.com) about new Tennes-Sierran editor Emily Ellis: http://bit.ly/2YsTBAb.
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Politics is not a Spectator Sport!
by Joan Tomlinson, Harvey Broome Group
I recently went to a kick-off rally for a friend who is running for a seat on the Knoxville City Council. It was a good reminder that our politics – local to national – is not a spectator sport. I want to encourage you to be thinking about your time and talents that will be needed in the 2020 national election. It is not too soon to be deciding how you will work to change our National government to be in better alignment with the great Sierra Club motto of exploring, enjoying, and protecting our planet. Let’s vote into office those who will move toward that great motto, not away from it. Let’s make our voices heard. Yes, here in Tennessee. It’s too important to ignore.
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Bull Run: A Community United!
By Todd Waterman, Harvey Broome Group
Forty-four of us heard prominent environmental Attorney Amanda Garcia provide invaluable information on Bull Run’s coal ash - and how to get TVA to properly clean it up - at our 2nd Claxton Community Bull Run Closure Meeting on May 7, organized by Statewide Organizing for Community eMpowerment (SOCM) and partners Sierra Club and Appalachian Voices.
Southern Environmental Law Center Nashville Managing Attorney Garcia said TVA should properly and safely remove the fly ash from the wet ash ponds, which extend out into Melton Lake and are submerged in 18 feet of groundwater. She shared legal and regulatory tools to persuade TVA to finish excavating the ponds despite their preferred option to leave some ash in place (kudos to all of you who submitted Action Alert comments on that plan to TVA).
An animated discussion ensued, with Amanda and others fielding residents and officials’ questions. Two Kingston and Bull Run coal ash workers suing TVA shared eyewitness accounts of ongoing TVA negligence (Since the Kingston spill, at least 40 Kingston spill disaster workers have died and 400 have been sickened, the Knoxville News Sentinel reports).
In an example of government at its best, Bull Run's neighbors and officials are working effectively together to make sure TVA treats us right: among the forty-four who turned out for our second Bull Run community meeting May 7 were Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank, several County Commissioners, Oak Ridge Mayor Pro Tem Rick Chinn, and County Law Director Jay Yeager. Catherine Denenberg, a force to be reckoned with, is leading their efforts.
The next day I delivered the community’s adamant coal ash cleanup message at the TVA Board’s Listening Session in Franklin.
On May 13 Commissioner Denenberg’s Intergovernmental Committee heard retired groundwater contamination experts Ellen Smith and Sid Jones say removing ash from the wet ash ponds might not justify exposing workers and others to its dangerous and highly respirable airborne dust, some of which is already blowing across Claxton’s playground from the dry ash stack where TVA dumps it.
At the next Intergovernmental meeting on June 10, three top coal ash officials from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation will shed some light on Ellen and Sid's question and others.
You’re invited to show up and be counted there and at our next Bull Run meeting, to be scheduled in late June!
“Coal ash comments due Monday,” Ben Pounds, The Oak Ridger
“We demand answers about Bull Run coal ash, Anderson County tells TVA,” Jamie Satterfield, Knoxville News Sentinel /USA Today
Amanda Garcia has provided these coal ash resources.
Amanda Garcia points to Bull Run’s unlined wet fly ash ponds in Melton Lake; worker Jason Williams describes excavating Bull Run Stilling Pond 2C
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Please sign the
Ready for 100 Petition
“Ready for 100” is a nationwide Sierra Club initiative to get U.S. Cities to commit to 100% renewable energy sources by 2050. If you’re not familiar with the initiative, check here: https://www.sierraclub.org/ready-for-100.
Harvey Broome Group’s Ready for 100 initiative has collected 332 petitions that support deployment of solar energy locally. The goals of this initiative are to promote clean energy, environmental justice and energy efficiency by gaining support from the City of Knoxville government. If you are interested in supporting these goals, please sign the petition, which you can download from: https://bit.ly/2FhlzrI.
Please return your signed petition to: janatclimatechange@gmail.com.
FAQs on Ready for 100: http://bit.ly/2HgdF2V
Chicago has commited to 100 percent clean energy.
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Sing for the Climate
Tennessee Interfaith Power & Light and friends are organizing a June 29 (2-5 pm) concert at the Tennessee Amphitheater at World’s Fair Park. Singer-Songwriter Maggie Longmire is booking musicians for this free concert. It’ll be good: Maggie organized Louie Bluie for years. The objective is to create momentum for a forum within which a growing number of community groups may work together “to move through the challenges of climate change." More details may be found at http://climateknoxville.org. Organizations that wish to table and/or help sponsor the event are invited to contact Louise Gorenflo, climateknox@gmail.com.
Current sponsors: Allies of Knoxville Immigrant Neighbors, Beardsley Farm, Centro Hispano, Citizens Climate Lobby, Keep Knoxville Beautiful, Knoxville Interfaith Power & Light, Knoxville NAACP, Knoxville Women’s March, League of Women Voters, Narrow Ridge Earth Literacy Center, Sierra Club (Harvey Broome Group), Socially Equal Energy Efficiency Development, Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, Statewide Organizing for Community eMpowerment, Sunrise Movement, TN Citizens for Wilderness Planning, TN Clean Water Network, Trees Knoxville.
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APIEL: the 2019 Appalachian Public Interest Environmental Law Conference
When: Friday, September 27 - Sunday, September 29, Knoxville
Where: University of Tennessee College of Law, 1505 Cumberland Ave, Knoxville, TN 37996
Sponsored by UTK College of Law, Sierra Club, United Mountain Defense (UMD), and others.
At APIEL 2018, Kentucky activists Davis Mounger and Jim Scheff wrap up their presentation, “Winning: It’s a thing: Strategies and stories from the front line of public lands defense.”
APIEL is unique in our region as an informal and lay-friendly opportunity to learn from and connect with environmental lawyers, leaders, and activists concerned with environmental and social justice from all over the country - and it’s open to all. Two days of workshops are scheduled generally two at a time.
“The conference features a series of workshops with the goal of exchanging information, sharing skills, and fostering collaboration between grassroots organizations, the bar, and future lawyers and policy-makers.”
Register to attend, apply to present, and find more info at APIEL.org
Send questions and ideas about the conference to apiel.info@gmail.com
Click to View APIEL's Website
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Other Events
3rd Annual Cheers to Clean Water Paddle-Off. Saturday, June 9.
website to register: https://runsignup.com/Race/Events/TN/Knoxville/PaddleOff
Tennessee Sustainable Transportation Forum, October 1-2, 2019, UT Conference Center, Knoxville. The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT), and Tennessee Clean Fuels (TNCleanFuels) will hold the fifth annual Tennessee Sustainable Transportation Forum & Expo (STF&E) on October 1-2, 2019 at the UT Conference Center in Knoxville. The research, technology, planning, and policy developments shared at STF&E aim to improve transportation efficiency, reduce vehicle emissions, and address the mobility needs of all. An agenda for the 2019 STF&E will be made available soon. Learn more about STF&E at: www.sustainabletransportationforum.com. Registration is currently open at http://stfe.eventbrite.com.
Knox Climate Actions has the latest information and events related to climate activism.
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HBG/Chapter Events
The Spring Chapter Retreat and ExCom meeting were held the weekend of May 4-6 at Fall Creek Falls State Park. Hiking adventures were led by Tennessee State Naturalist, Randy Hedgepath. Our speaker, Dr. Melanie Mays of ORNL, summarized key findings from two recent reports sponsored by the US Global Change Research Program. The ExCom meeting was well attended and included interesting reports about funding, fundraising, membership, conservation, and litigation. We all had a great time hiking, networking, connecting, and learning. Come join us for the Summer Retreat!
Randy Hedgepath's hike to the base of Fall Creek Falls.
 Joanne McIntosh’s Saturday Ready for 100 meeting
Joanne McIntosh’s Saturday "Ready for 100" meeting included a discussion on Sierra Club’s longstanding anti-nuclear policy, which some said should be revisited in the light of the climate crisis and new "walk-away-safe" reactor designs. That led to Axel Ringe's successful Sunday ExCom resolution to form a committee of Chapter and Group Environmental Chairs which could either decide Chapter policy on such issues in the absence of national policy or bring recommendations for changing existing national policy to annual meetings of the national Sierra Club Council of Club Leaders, for which Mac Post is our current delegate.
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HELP THE HARVEY BROOME GROUP
PROTECT OUR ENVIRONMENT
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Can't donate now? Sign up for Kroger Community Rewards. Kroger donates a portion of what you spend to the Harvey Broome Group as long as you designate HBG as your preferred charity.
Here's how:
1. Go to the Kroger Community Rewards web page
2. Register (or Sign In if you already have an account.)
3. Enroll in Community Rewards (or Edit if you're already enrolled.)
4. Enter HBG's Community Rewards Number 27874.
That's it. Swipe your Kroger Card when you shop and know that you're helping protect your environment.
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Who We Are
Founded by legendary conservationist John Muir in 1892, the Sierra Club is now the nation's largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization -- with more than two million members and supporters. Our successes range from protecting millions of acres of wilderness to helping pass the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and Endangered Species Act. More recently, we've made history by leading the charge to move away from the dirty fossil fuels that cause climate disruption and toward a clean energy economy.
The Harvey Broome Group (HBG) is one of five Sierra Club Groups within the Tennessee Chapter. HBG is based in Knoxville and serves 18 surrounding counties. HBG's namesake, Harvey Broome, was a Knoxvillian who was a founding member of the Wilderness Society and played a key role in the creation of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Visit our website.
Join HBG.
Donate.(click the Donate button on the HBG home page)
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