Director's Message

Love is in the air… and in the ground… and in the water!

Save the date for a “date” with the Sierra Club’s Lone Star Chapter. In 2016, we turn 51 and we want to celebrate with an I Texas party on Saturday, February 20, at The Oasis on Lake Travis (aka the Sunset Capital of Texas).  

We are the oldest grassroots environmental organization in Texas and we are still in love with our great state. We believe that our signature open spaces, clean water, and natural resources are invaluable and should be protected for current and future generations. In addition to our state chapter office in Austin, we have 10 regional groups in Texas that fight for what we love every day.

Funds raised through the I Texas party will support our direct and grassroots legislative and administrative lobbying, education, outings, litigation, and endorsements of environmental champions for local, state, and federal office who care about our current conservation priorities.

Stay tuned for ticket and sponsorship info.

It’s Not Too Late: Add Your Voice to Strong Methane Pollution Limits

By now, thousands of you have written to the EPA or signed a petition in support of the nation’s first limits to dangerous methane pollution. If you haven’t yet, put down that leftover turkey leg, this will only take a minute ! The EPA’s new standards are particularly important in Texas, the nation’s largest oil and gas producer, for three reasons. First, methane is an extremely potent greenhouse gas, and has 86 times the climate-disrupting power over a 20-year period than carbon dioxide, making Texas a major contributor to climate disruption. Second, methane is a valuable product that’s being wasted. Completely usable natural gas is too often released during oil production and often flared or, worse, vented into the atmosphere, and trapping methane instead is better for the environment and the bottom line. Third, ozone-producing gases are also released alongside methane pollution. While the effect of methane as a greenhouse gas is a global issue, ground-level ozone affects the health of Texas residents on a local level, especially in cities with poor air quality like Dallas-Fort Worth, and those struggling to stay above bad air quality thresholds like Austin and San Antonio. Read more about methane here. You have until December 4 to send the EPA your comments. Thank you!!

Coal Interests Threaten to Destroy Native American Historical & Sacred Sites in Texas

Tired of the Starbucks red cup chatter? Get fired up about the Dos Repúblicas coal mine in South Texas because it is poised to destroy Native American historical and sacred religious archaeological sites in Maverick County. Citizens of Eagle Pass and the surrounding area have formed the Maverick County Environmental & Public Health Association to spread awareness and build support. "Native American tribes have repeatedly advised and raised objections with the Railroad Commission, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, U.S. Army of Corps of Engineers, Texas Historical Commission, and the U.S. Department of the Interior that Dos Repúblicas will destroy actual and documented existing Native American Historical and Sacred Religious Archaeological Sites within or near the permitted open surface coal mine boundaries near Elm Creek. It is their federally protected legal rights to preserve their historical and sacred religious archaeological sites - which have been stomped and denied by Texas oil and gas and coal mining-friendly state agencies." The association’s mission is to protect Maverick County from the open pit coal mine owned and operated by Dos Repúblicas Coal Partnership. To learn more about this issue, visit http://savemaverickcounty.com/.

Bruun: 2016 Funding Cycle for the SWIFT Program to Open Dec. 1

[From special contributor Bech Bruun - Chairman, Texas Water Development Board ] In 2015, the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) approved over $173 million in financial assistance for conservation projects from the State Water Implementation Fund for Texas (SWIFT) program. In the first year, we anticipate the sponsoring entities of those projects will save more than $5.7 million by utilizing the SWIFT program’s cost-effective financing. On December 1, 2015, the application period for the second round of the SWIFT program funding will open. Entities will have until February 5, 2016, to submit a preliminary, two-page application. Projects listed in the approved 2016 Regional Water Plans and the subsequent 2017 State Water Plan will be eligible for SWIFT program financial assistance. The TWDB anticipates that the 2017 State Water Plan may have higher capital costs associated with conservation strategies than previous plans, which means even more conservation projects could be eligible for SWIFT financial assistance. Conservation has always been a high priority of the TWDB and with the 2017 State Water Plan expected to have more conservation strategies than ever before, now is the time to get involved! Read the full story on the Lone Star Chapter’s blog to learn more about how you can become involved, the SWIFT program, and TWDB’s commitment to the conservation community.

Travis Audubon to Host Adventurer Dorian Anderson Dec. 17

We have partnered with Travis Audubon to host a special evening, December 17 in downtown Austin, with modern-day adventurer Dorian Anderson. In 2014, Anderson completed a year long, cross-country Biking for Birds journey. He completed a 17,830 mile journey across 28 states traveling by bicycle, kayak, and on foot to raise awareness for bird conservation, sustainable and healthy travel, and land conservation. Overall, his efforts raised $50,000 for preserving birds and their natural habitats. Don’t miss out on an opportunity to hear Anderson’s amazing story and raise money for native bird conservation! For more information on the event, visit Travis Audubon’s website here.

Big Thicket Loves Some Ken Kramer, And So Do We!

The Lone Star Chapter congratulates Dr. Ken Kramer for receiving the Maxine Johnston Distinguished Service Award at the Big Thicket Association’s 51st Annual Meeting in Beaumont, Texas. Dr. Kramer was among several individuals receiving honors at the October 10 meeting, and was recognized for his years of work with the Sierra Club. Dr. Kramer retired from his position as the first director of the Lone Star Chapter after 23 years in 2012. He now volunteers as chair of the chapter’s Water Conservation Committee, and also serves on the state’s Water Conservation Advisory Council, the University of Texas at Austin’s Advisory Council for the Environmental Science Institute, and the Texas Water Foundation Board, among others. The Big Thicket Association has been advocating for the southeast Texas forest since 1964, and ten years later helped establish the Big Thicket National Preserve, the first preserve created by the National Park Service. For more information, visit www.bigthicket.org.

What Happens When A Lot of Thought and Public Discussion Is Put Into Energy Decisions? Groundbreaking Solar Investments!

Despite some truly out-of-touch and increasingly out-of-date pro-fossil fuel sentiments from State Rep. Paul Workman, the City of Austin has received a lot of praise for its forward-thinking, well thought out decisions on new energy resources. If you’ve read anything about Austin Energy, or Austin’s Generation Resource Plan in the last few years, you’ve probably heard about about solar energy’s affordability and the need to retire the city’s oldest and dirtiest fossil fuel plants. On the heels of historic solar energy investments, Conservation Director Cyrus Reed takes a look back at how Texas’ capital city became a solar powerhouse.

Want to Get Your Fundraising Feet Wet? We Want You!

The Lone Star Chapter is seeking a creative and motivated individual to help raise our profile during Amplify Austin Day, but make no mistake - it’s more than one day of work! This is a great opportunity if you are interested in a career in development, fundraising, event planning, public relations, or social media coordination! You will learn more about fundraising and event planning in the non-profit field, while making an impact on critical environmental issues like climate disruption, air pollution, renewable energy, and water conservation. Amplify Austin Day is Austin’s annual community-wide day of online giving. The 24-hour period provides an easy and fun way for the Austin community to give together while helping hundreds of local nonprofits. Last year, over 500 nonprofits participated, so we need your help to make us stand out among the rest!

• In case you were away from the planet recently, President Obama rejected the Keystone XL pipeline! In a letter to the editor of the Houston Chronicle, Chapter Director Reggie James pointed out that while this news should be celebrated widely, it comes as bittersweet to many communities in Texas because the southern leg has already been built.
• It’s not a Texas story, but it could be. In Ohio, Duke Energy re-purposed its retired coal plant as an energy storage facility, taking advantage of the existing infrastructure to implement this emerging technology.
• The State Comptroller will soon make new building energy codes official in Texas. This will come as great news across the state, as new construction will be more energy efficient, saving new homeowners money on utility bills, growing our local economy, and reducing the need for dirty power plants. Conservation Director Cyrus Reed laid it all out in a commentary in the El Paso Times.
• Irving Impact is a great volunteer community group to follow on Facebook. Irving Impact is a group of Irving citizens working to raise awareness of the dangers of fracking and the relationship between fracking and earthquakes.
• San Antonio City Council just unanimously voted to approve a water rate increase to pay for the controversial Vista Ridge water pipeline project. Meanwhile, Abengoa, the parent company of the company that wants to build Vista Ridge, entered pre-bankruptcy last week.