Current Situation

Due to the evolving COVID-19 pandemic situation, we are sensitive to our constituents during this challenging crisis. . . .

Revised COVID-19 pandemic situation extends moratorium on gatherings to Feb 28, 2021. Sierra Club in-person events have been cancelled or postponed, and the cancellations extend to Feb 28, 2021. (We anticipate that the cancellations may be extended further). Some group and chapter business meetings that have been restructured for remote participation will take place. The work goes on! Most group and chapter business meetings have been restructured for remote participation.
Cancelled Events (at least through Feb 28, 2021):
Harvey Broome Group Outings
Face-to-Face Harvey Broome Group Program Meetings
Events not cancelled:
online (via Zoom) Tennessee Chapter ExCom Business meetings but note virtual program meeting info below
online (via Zoom) Harvey Broome Group ExCom meetings

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“Virtual” January 2021 Program: Tuesday, January 12, 2021, 7:00-8:30 PM

What: “Update on Proposed Racetrack in Oak Ridge” by Virginia Dale and Ellen Smith
When:Tuesday, January 12, 2021, 7:00-8:30 PM
Where: Virtual via Zoom. Please Register through this Campfire Event Link.  About a week before the event (and a day before as a reminder) you will receive an e-mail with the information on how to connect to this program.

A developer is seeking to build a motorsports and entertainment complex in the Horizon Center industrial park in west Oak Ridge. The site is in the midst of ecologically sensitive areas on federal government (Department of Energy: DOE) land that are excluded from development by various legal arrangements and that include popular greenway trails. To allow a racetrack and related features to occupy land currently excluded from development, DOE and the City of Oak Ridge are considering proposals that would convert the site from an industrial park to an entertainment complex by waiving environmental controls as well as deed restrictions and zoning controls that restrict the area to industrial use. Virginia and Ellen will discuss the situation and the associated environmental and public policy issues.

Here's an event to get you started on the right foot come 2021:
Citizens Climate Lobby is co-sponsoring a film screening for Kiss the Ground, a beautiful and upbeat documentary about using agriculture to build soil and draw down atmospheric carbon into the soil.  
https://events.kissthegroundmovie.com/event/Fairer-World-Lindfield  
(registration is free but required)

Note: Consult the HBG website Calendar for updates to our calendar. Questions regarding HBG events should be addressed to HBG Chair Joanne Logan (loganjojolo@gmail.com).

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HBG and Local

Issues & Business

Workers, families, friends, and allied organizations will gather to pay tribute to the first responders of the 2008 disaster.

Left photo: Cleanup worker David Duggar, photographer unknown.
Right photo: Associated Press, from this ABC News August 28, 2019 article, "Sick and dying workers demand help after cleaning coal ash"

On December 20, 2020, Kingston coal ash spill cleanup workers and their families will lead a car caravan from Kingston City Park (333 W Race St, Kingston, TN 37763) to Swan Pond Sports Complex (101 Swan Pond Circle Rd, Harriman, TN 37748), where they will host a brief memorial service and prayer, including a release of doves. The memorial will pay tribute to the workers who cleaned up coal ash at the TVA Kingston plant following the spill on December 22, 2008, with special focus on those workers who have died or been sickened since the cleanup.

This event was planned in coordination with Statewide Organizing for Community eMpowerment (SOCM), The Tennessee Chapter of the Sierra Club, Appalachian Voices, Jobs with Justice - East Tennessee, Interfaith Worker Justice of East Tennessee, and the Knoxville-Oak Ridge Area Central Labor Council.

Janie Clark says, “We’ve been with these workers from the beginning, and we don’t want them to be forgotten. The workers went immediately to respond to the disaster, and no one stood between them and the harm they had to face.  We have lost over 50 workers, and many others have been scarred emotionally and physically. I hope and pray that people keep remembering, and for accountability. I don’t want this to happen to anybody else. We will never forget these workers, who cleaned up a community. ”

Those who wish to participate are asked to gather at the parking lot of Kingston City Park at 1:00pm EST.  Cars will begin to depart for Swan Pond Sports Complex at 1:30pm EST.  Every effort will be made to keep the cars safely together. Attendees are encouraged to bring respectful signs paying tribute to the workers.

The memorial service will begin at approximately 2:00pm EST at Swan Pond Sports Complex.  Speakers will include Janie Clark and Julie Bledsoe (advocates for worker justice and wives of coal ash first responders), Jason Williams (Kingston cleanup worker), and Roane County Commissioner Randy Ellis.  Reverend Jim Sessions of Interfaith Worker Justice will lead a prayer before the release of the doves.

COVID-19 Safety -- Some of the workers in attendance suffer from respiratory conditions, and we want everyone to participate safely! All participants are encouraged to stay in their cars for all parts of the event except the brief memorial service, which can also be heard by staying in your car. If you choose to leave your car, we ask that all of you without breathing challenges keep a mask fully covering your nose and mouth (ear-loop masks can be properly fitted by tying overhand knots in the straps), and that without exception you always remain a safe distance of ten feet away from people you don’t live with. Please bring wipes and/or sanitizer to sterilize any possibly shared surface you touch.

Questions: Contact Adam Hughes
Statewide Organizing for Community eMpowerment (SOCM)
(865) 249-7488 (w) -- (203) 906-9161 (c)
adam@socm.org
www.socm.org

SC National is creating a full-time staff position for a TN-dedicated rep on the Beyond Coal Campaign. This position will be a tremendous asset to the Chapter and to volunteers working on energy-related issues. More information, including job description, qualifications, and application, is posted publicly on the Sierra Club website linked below. Official announcement.

KUB posts intentions with respect to disconnections for non-payment.

They also include their suggestions for “assistance” for those in need, and how those of us in better circumstances can assist those in need via “Project Help."

For utility companies in other counties and municipalities in Tennessee, e.g., Alcoa, LaFollete, Lenoir City, Maryville, Clinton, and more, read their pandemic response policies.

Federally Funded Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)

This federal program provides federally funded assistance in managing costs associated with: home energy bills, energy crises, weatherization and energy-related minor home repairs.

There’s Still Time for YOU to:
 Sign the Petition to Rename Nathan Bedford Forrest State Park.
(Help us get to 5,000 signatures!)

Nathan Bedford Forrest State Park in Benton County was named after a Confederate General notorious for being the first Grand Wizard of the KKK.
Sign the petition at this link.

Tennessee Chapter Sierra Club posts list of leaders on website

Who to call, text, or write - contact info for Chapter Admin plus Conservation and Issues Committees can be found under the “About Us” tab on the chapter website.
https://www.sierraclub.org/tennessee/our-leadership
Read about other local events in Tennessee in our Chapter e-newsletters.

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State and National Newsflash

*** Note to readers about accessing these articles

Election news

Photo courtesy of the White House - going green!

"Counted out: Trump's desperate fight to stop the minority vote." An historical perspective on Trump's attempts to stop the minority vote. November 17, by Gary Young, The Guardian.

Related article:  "Anger builds in Black community over Trump’s claims of voter fraud in big cities." In his quest for evidence of voter fraud, Trump targeted heavily black cities such as Philadelphia, Detroit, Atlanta, and Milwaukee. A lawyer with the Biden campaign characterized trump's efforts as 'a “remarkably brazen attempt” to disenfranchise Black voters.'" November 20, Ashley Nguyen, Kayla Ruble, and Tim Craig, The Washington Post.

"Trump’s Election-Fraud Bluster Finds an Audience.”  The fantastical claims of voter fraud in favor of Biden are apparently believed by a majority of Trump's supporters. In fact, he lost five states that he won in 2016, and lost overall by over 7 million votes in the popular vote count. Trump’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency concluded that this was the most secure election in American history. "Even Trump appointee Attorney General William Barr did not find any evidence of significant fraud." In so many words, Trump is the "loser" and his claims of fraud are a hoax. December 5, Peter Slevin The New Yorker.

Latest attempt to bolster Trump's baseless claims of voter fraud : "17 Republican Attorneys General Back Trump in Far-Fetched Election Lawsuit." The 17 have decided to support the Texas attempt to delay certification of the election. Legal experts point out that Texas has no standing to bring the case. December 9, Jeremy W. Peters and Maggie Haberman, The New York Times.

"Sen. Alexander criticizes Texas lawsuit." The outgoing senator from Tennessee apparently disagrees with all but one of Tennessee's U. S. congressional delegation, as well as with the Tennessee Attorney General. In an interview on NBC's Meet the Press, Alexander stated “I mean, our position, my position, Republicans believe that states are in charge of elections, . . . And Texas is a big state, but I don't know exactly why it has a right to tell four other states how to run their elections.”  December 11, Celine Castronuovo, The Hill.

Environmental news:

The Sierra Club announced its support for the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) announcement that it will be taking steps to promote the widespread adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) throughout its seven-state service region. “The expansion of electric transportation in the Tennessee Valley means cleaner air, climate action, and economic benefits for local communities,” added Kent Minault, a volunteer leader with the Tennessee Chapter of the Sierra Club and EV owner based in Knoxville. “We look forward to working with TVA and other interested parties to increase EV adoption, including by securing public funding for charging infrastructure in low-income and rural areas and creating cash incentives for people to lease or purchase EVs across the Tennessee Valley.” December 15, Ricky Junquera and Jonathan Levenshus, Sierra Club.

"On environmental protection, Biden’s election will mean a 180-degree turn from Trump policies." The author, a law professor at Indiana University, points out that ". . . the Biden administration will quickly signal to the nation that effectively applying the nation’s environmental laws matters to everyone – especially to communities that bear an unfair share of the public health burden of pollution." November 12, Janet McCabe, The Conversation.

"The president-elect is making the climate a top priority." Biden says he will fight climate change as part of his strategy to accomplish his short-term priorities of controlling coronavirus and energizing the economy. A poll taken during the campaign by the New York Times and Sienna College found 66 percent of likely voters favored Biden's plan. Nov 13, David Leonhardt, The New York Times.

"Tennessee solar farm to power Google data centers through TVA Green Invest program."  TVA has announced that, as part of its "Green Invest Partnership," it will build two 100-megawatt solar plants in Tennessee and Alabama that will provide energy to Vanderbilt University and two Google data centers. November 14, Dave Flessner, Times Free Press.

"Removing Toxic Coal Ash From Allen Plant Enters Logistics Phase." This article addresses the current status of the TVA proposal on transferring the coal ash from the Allen plant to a safer location. November 18, Katie Riordan, WKNO Radio (NPR Memphis).

Potential impact of Biden Presidency on TVA? According to the article, "President-elect Joe Biden has the opportunity to remake TVA's influential nine-member board, with the chance to make as many as six nominations next year. What's more, clean energy advocates are hoping Biden's wide-ranging climate platform will lead TVA to adopt more aggressive carbon-cutting and energy efficiency plans and use new technologies to clean up its power grid." November 23, Kristi E. Swartz, E&E News.

"Biden prioritizes climate crisis by naming John Kerry special envoy."  Kerry was President Barack Obama's secretary of state, and, as special envoy, he will be a Cabinet-level official in the Biden administration. He will also be on the National Security Council, reflecting the importance of climate among national security issues. The appointment reflects and emphasizes Biden's (and Kerry's) prioritizing climate change as an existential threat to the U.S., as well as to the world at large. November 24, Kate Sullivan, CNN.

Opinion piece by one of our own: "TVA should stop getting breaks from the federal government and stop polluting."  The article reviews water-quality-related pollution issues arising from TVA power operations, related "rule rollback" actions by EPA, and TVA's successful efforts to obtain delays in with compliance, even with the weakened quality standards. November 27, JoAnn McIntosh (guest columnist), The Tennessean.

"Not a Single Major US Bank Is Now Willing to Finance Arctic Drilling." With the recent announcement by Bank of America, all six major U.S. banks have now committed to NOT finance drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge." This has happened in spite of Trump's willingness to sell drilling rights, and reflects the backlash against Trump's efforts by the majority of Americans, as well as anticipated efforts by the Biden Administration to prevent drilling. December 1, Ben Cushing, Sierra Club.

More "Handwriting on the Wall?" "New York State’s pension fund will drop many of its fossil fuel stocks, saying they are a bad long-term investment." December 9, Anne Barnard, New York Times.

CAFO pig waste lagoons in eastern North Carolina (Sierra Club photo by Lisa Barret)

"The impact of chicken houses and new facilities as Tyson Foods expands across West Tennessee."   According to the article, Tyson already has two processing plants in west Tennessee, and multiple "chicken houses" that are within 50-60 miles of the processing plants. Each chicken house barn is 600 feet long and 42 feet wide, to house 25,000 or more chickens! These are "industrial sized" farms, called "concentrated animal feeding operations" (CAFOs) by regulators.  Also according to the article: "If completed, the factory-like houses will expand into West Tennessee communities like Beech Bluff, Mercer, Huron, Trezevant, Huntingdon, Cedar Grove, Bradford and Trenton." The article points out a problem for local communities: "Adding to the frustration in 2017 and 2018, Tennessee lawmakers rolled back environmental regulations in the state, making it impossible to enforce clean air and water laws before they happen. The state can only regulate those issues on the back end after a complaint."  One resident is quoted:  "They basically want to build an industrial size chicken farm across from my house and in the backyard of a bunch of other people's homes." December 11, Adam Freeman, Jackson Sun.

Related article: "Appeals court affirms Smithfield’s liability for noxious odors, noise, and pests." Any such unpleasant conditions near your home? Could it be the result of a CAFO or similar "industrial" farm operation near you? If so, you should read this article about a case resolved in Federal courts. November 24, by Southern Environmental Law Center.

Read about other events in Tennessee in our Chapter e-newsletters.

*** A democracy with informed citizens requires the professionalism that we have historically expected of credible news sources. Most “local" newspapers today are asking folks who access their online news stories to purchase a subscription to their paper. This is understandable generally, and reminds us that we should do our part to pay for the resources that result in publication of local news. Those of us who use summaries of published print news, as we do, are no exception, and we ask the same of our readers. However, we also believe that a person who only wants to see an occasional article published in a newspaper should not be required to subscribe. So if you believe that you are in the latter category - only an occasional reader, you may be able to read an article without a subscription if you "browse anonymously" or clear your browser cache before activating a link to an article. This may help you avoid many "pay walls" at these news sources (some sources restrict access even with anonymous settings). Another approach is to search for alternate source on the particular news item. But we recommend that our readers who find themselves accessing an online news source on a regular basis subscribe to an online version of the paper, which is generally much cheaper than a  print version.

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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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