Dear Supporter,
In this season of reflection and gratitude, we have much to be thankful for! In this month's edition, you'll see updates on:
Most of all, we're grateful to be in community with all of you. Thanks for being such strong supporters, and for all the work you do for a green and equitable Washington State.
Thanks for all that you do,
Jesse Piedfort
Chapter Director
Washington State Sierra Club |
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Picture credit: Brendan McDermid | Reuters
With President-elect Joe Biden set to take office in January, things are looking up for public lands in America. While the past four years have seen unprecedented attacks on publicly held and managed resources, there are a number of things the new administration can do to repair and reverse the path. Here's what President-elect Biden can do for our Public Lands:
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Thanks to advocacy by Sierra Club volunteers and dozens of partner groups, Washington state’s private energy utilities are prohibited through April 2021 from cutting off access to electricity or heat or charging late fees if customers can’t pay. But there’s more work to do to ensure that utilities don’t pass the costs of the COVID-19 pandemic on to low-income families and small businesses in our state. Here's how you can get involved:
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Transportation emissions are 44.6 percent of Washington State’s greenhouse gas emissions, more than half of which come from gas-powered cars. Simply put, transportation is one of our biggest opportunities to combat the climate crisis. As our elected leaders approach how to prioritize spending needs in the next transportation budget, it is critical they understand the current state of transportation access and equity in their districts. Learn more about the Disability Mobility Initiative, a new organizing and storytelling program at Disability Rights Washington:
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By Doug Howell, Beyond Coal Sr. Campaign Representative • 510 words / 4 min
On November 2nd, the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC) accepted PSE's sale withdrawal, marking a monumental win for the Beyond Coal Campaign. This victory wouldn’t be possible without the Sierra Club volunteers--- hundreds of people wrote comments and 60 contributed verbal testimony. Here's a recap of this big win and our plan moving forward:
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Welcome to Washington State Sierra Club!
With the Sierra Club, you can find your environmental community and make a difference right here in your neighborhood. Together, we can fight for the green, equitable Washington State for all.
We are hosting a Welcome Orientation for our new volunteers! This will be a space for you to meet other like-minded individuals, learn about the many committees and campaigns we work on in Washington State, and find a place to plug in. Please join us! |
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The Northwest Community Bail Fund
The Northwest Community Bail Fund (NCBF) works to ensure that people accused of low-level crimes have an equal opportunity to defend themselves from a position of freedom.
They provide cash bail for people who are unable to pay due to poverty and who are charged with crimes in King and Snohomish Counties and have no other holds. They also provide support to navigate the legal process with the aim of reducing pre-trial incarceration and its consequences, reducing the pressure to plead guilty. |
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WA for Black Lives
Organizing together to demand economic, political, and social justice in our state.
Washington for Black Lives is a unified Black-led coalition of organizations across the state building on the innate power of our communities.
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This episode talks with Wampanoag scholars Paula Peters and Linda Coombs, who tell us the real story of Thanksgiving, from an Indigenous Perspective.
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Our Reading List:
According to 2020 Yale University nationwide polls, 78% of residents in Snohomish County, and 71% in Island County, believe that global warming is happening. The number who worry about it are 68% and 64%, respectively. More of those worriers are becoming climate warriors. They
Erasing these protections not only threatens invaluable old-growth forests that help sequester carbon—it also threatens the well-being of Indigenous peoples who depend on these forests, rivers, and wild places to hunt, fish, and practice cultural traditions.
Guadalupe Paredes, a single mother of three who spoke at the hearing via a Spanish-language interpreter, said she was considered an essential worker but has lost a lot of work due to the pandemic. “We are asking that you please limit the fees that we are being charged to help our community so that we’re able to support our children,” she said. “They are entitled to a dignified life and not to be hounded or afraid of all the bills that are going to be coming due.”
Press Release: Federal Court Rejects Permits for Kalama Methanol Refinery
A federal district court vacated the federal permits required for the Kalama Methanol Refinery, sending the proposed project back to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) for a full, transparent environmental review. The Court found the Corps had failed to consider the cumulative impact of greenhouse gas emissions caused by the proposal and ignored the new regional pipeline the project would require.
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