Sustainable Music From The Forest To The Stage

Deforestation harms communities, ecosystems, and the planet. (Photo: geograph.org.uk)

There are many things you may personally know and love about your guitar, from the sound that it makes to the way it feels in your hands when you play. But if it is an acoustic guitar, what do you know about the wood that it’s made of? Illegally harvested wood in products that we use every day, including guitars or drumsticks, is a real problem.  That’s why some musicians are standing up and showing their commitment to the environment by saying ‘no’ to illegally sourced wood in instruments and other products.

The Barenaked Ladies, Guster, and Ben Folds Five are taking part in an eco-friendly music tour, “Last Summer on Earth,” sponsored by REVERB, a non-profit group dedicated to making these music tours more environmentally sustainable. These popular bands are using their platform to promote environmental causes, including curbing deforestation and stopping the illegal timber trade. They believe it is important for musicians to know where the wood in their instruments comes from because of the environmental implications of illegal logging and trade in illegally harvested wood.

Deforestation, for example, is a serious problem driven in part by the illegal timber trade. And although the U.S. government has a powerful law in place to help curb illegal logging and timber trading, the Lacey Act, trade in illegally harvested wood still occurs. These bands, with the support of groups like REVERB, the Sierra Club, and the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), want to share with music fans the far-reaching power of the Lacey Act.

Efforts to combat trade in illegally harvested timber fit into the larger climate struggle, as trees are necessary to help stabilize our climate. The ability of the trees to transform carbon dioxide into oxygen may be one of our best defenses against climate chaos. Moreover, illegal logging also affects indigenous communities who strive to protect their lands from illegal encroachment. When loggers act illegally, our environment isn’t the only victim -- whole communities also suffer.

If you play the air guitar exclusively, this post may not be for you. But if you, your friend, or your child plays the viola, bass, acoustic guitar or another wood instrument, then REVERB, the Sierra Club, EIA, and bands like Barenaked Ladies, Guster and Ben Folds Five are all working toward a more sustainable and musical future for you.

"Last Summer on Earth" launched on Monday at the Verizon Theatre in Grand Prairie, Texas and will run through July 30, 2013 where it will end in Brooklyn, NY. To find a concert near you, check out barenakedplanet.org.

--Kristen Elmore, Sierra Club media team intern
"Last Summer on Earth" image courtesy of benfolds.com

Ohio Beyond Coal: Global Wind Day 2013

On Friday, June 14, 2013, Sierra Club Ohio and Moms Clean Air Force organizers, volunteers and Columbus area residents celebrated Global Wind Day at the Columbus Commons.  As part of the celebration, participants made pinwheels and learned about the wind energy industry in Ohio as part of the Commons for Kids activities.

Global Wind Day is a worldwide event that occurs annually on June 15.  It is a day for learning about wind, its power and the possibilities it holds to change our planet.  It is also a day for discovery of the work that has already begun by pioneers around the world. In more than 75 countries around the world, wind farms are in operation, generating energy from a clean and renewable source.

Not Just Another Father’s Day

Ron Weisen (third from left) and other members of the National Volunteer Committee for the Sierra Club Global Population and Environment Program stand with Kim Lovell (sixth from left), the program's director.

By Ron Weisen, National Volunteer Committee Chair, Sierra Club Global Population and Environment Program

This is my last Father’s Day as just a father.

My daughter is expecting her first child, and by next year, I’ll be Grandpa, too. It’s one of those moments that makes you take stock, think about the future. Think about what really matters.

Right now, I’m thinking about what kind of world we’re leaving my daughter, and her child. My daughter grew up blessed, as did I, to live in a country where we have access to clean water, health care, education. A country where more and more women are empowered to make their own choices about when to become parents, knowing that they’ll be able to raise healthy, happy children.

Not all women are so lucky. Several years ago, as part of my volunteer work with the Sierra Club, I visited a small village in Madagascar. It was one of the most moving experiences of my life. The entire village turned out to meet us – men gathered under one tree, women sitting under another, as eager as we were to make new friends.

Inner City Outings: Feeding Off the Kids' Energy

Inner City Outings connects kids from city neighborhoods with the outdoors -- something they rarely ever get to experience. For ICO leaders, just witnessing the kids' reaction to nature makes the program worthwhile. The proof is in the thank-you notes.

"It's amazing," says Roger Johnston, who currently chairs the Inner City Outings group in Los Angeles. "For kids, there's a natural attraction of the outdoors. These trips always end with them wanting to come back. The last outing, a bunch of them were writing down the name and address of the place we visited so that they could go with their parents."

Roger is one of many ICO volunteers across the country who run 50 ICO groups. Together, they conduct more than 800 outings each year, serving about 14,000 youth. Many of these kids have no outdoor experience and instead live in areas that struggle with crime and drugs. ICO outings provide a respite from that and connect kids to natural areas that they didn’t even know existed.

Victory Over Nukes: “Grassroots Politics At Its Best”

Gary & Laurie Headrick, founders of San Clemente Green, with San Onofre Nuclear Power Plant in the background.

On Friday June 7, 2013, Ted Craver, chairman and CEO of Edison International, the parent company of Southern California Edison, announced the permanent closure of the San Onofre Nuclear Power Plant, located between Los Angeles and San Diego, which had been offline since January 2012.  The Sierra Club’s No Nukes Activist Team, who campaigned tirelessly to decommission this nuclear power plant, was elated by this action. Leslie March, the Retire the Old Nukes Taskforce leader explained how this campaign began. “Closing San Onofre is the best example of grassroots politics at its best,” she said. “It started with the concern of everyday people that they were living near a time-bomb; then fueled by community concerns, the movement grew to a tsunami of its own as thousands of people joined into the fight.”

The Sierra Club’s campaign to close this power plant was invigorated in May 2012 at a national summit for Sierra Club nuclear activists in Washington, DC. This summit was a rejuvenation, celebrating Sierra Club’s work to move beyond risky nuclear power and preparing to continue the work.  It brought an opportunity for the California activists to meet and learn from national technical experts and veteran organizers from across the United States.  The networking opportunities at this event resulted in building communication between national experts, community groups, statewide utility experts, and the Sierra Club. After the summit, the Sierra Club’s No Nukes Activist Team began ramping up their campaign efforts to close down the San Onofre power plant.

In their campaign efforts, the Activist Team supported community groups led by San Clemente Green and the Los Angeles Chapter of the Sierra Club. They also sent out action alerts to California Sierra Club members, which targeted the California Public Utility Commission. Through these online actions, Sierra Club members worked with the Los Angeles City Council and other local governments to get them to pass resolutions calling for the closure of the plant. Additionally, the Team was there in April when the Los Angeles City Council formally opposed reopening the plant.

Sierra Club Educates, Green Team Recycles at D.C. Capital Pride

On Sunday, Sierra Club staffers Sarina Sawyer and Erin Turmelle and volunteer Max Warren worked as part of the "Green Team" at the 2013 Capital Pride Festival. The volunteers spent their day making D.C.'s LGBTQ pride event more environmentally sustainable. The Sierra Club's DC Chapter, Global Population and Environment Program, and Sierra Student Coalition were also present at Capital Pride with a booth raising awareness for environmental and human health safeguards.

Sierra Club Media Team Intern Kristen Elmore was there to capture the efforts on film:

 

Victory in California: Troubled San Onofre Nuclear Power Plant Will Close

San Onofre Nuclear Power Plant, as seen from the north from San Onofre State Beach (Photo: Wikimedia Commons.)

 
Last Friday, Southern California Edison announced that it will permanently close its San Onofre nuclear plant, located right above a popular surfing and recreation area between Los Angeles and San Diego.

A broad coalition of community groups, including San Clemente Green, San Onofre Safety, Women’s Energy Matters, Mothers for Peace, and national groups, Friends of the Earth and the Sierra Club, have been working tirelessly to shut down this old and dysfunctional plant for some time.

The coalition pressed local governments across the area to pass resolutions calling for the closure of San Onofre.  They educated residents on the risks associated with San Onofre and nuclear energy and conducted studies on the effect that closing the plant would have on the surrounding area’s energy supply. All of these activities were vital in securing the closure of this plant. This is a huge victory!

Sierra & Tierra: The Bitterness of Coal

By Javier Sierra

Dulce (“Candy”) Ortiz has committed herself to putting an end to the bitterness that punishes her community, Waukegan, IL.

This environmental justice activist of Mexican origin has said enough is enough and started to fight for the retirement of the coal-burning plant that for decades has been poisoning the air and water of this mostly Latino community.

The Waukegan Plant by the shores of lake Michigan (Photo Joe P. Dick)

“What I want is for the plant to be shut down for good, that it stops poisoning us,” says Dulce, a member of a coalition named the Clean Power Lake County, where the plant is located, by the shores of Lake Michigan.

Built in 1923, the plant is one of the country’s oldest and dirtiest. It’s also the worst local source of toxic mercury and of sulfur dioxide, a basic component of dangerous smog. A 2010 study by the Clean Air Task Force concluded that every year the Waukegan Plant contributes to 570 asthma attacks, 34 premature deaths and 54 heart attacks. Another report by the Environmental Law and Policy Center revealed that the plant’s pollution  costs Waukegan residents $86 million a year in health costs. Ironically, the power generated by the aging facility is exported to other states, leaving Waukegan only with its toxic legacy.

“I just want a healthy future for my son, who thank God does not have asthma, and I don’t want him to be like my mother, who does have asthma,” says Dulce. One of every six Waukegan residents suffers from this illness.

This toxic bombardment not only comes from the air but also from the water. The Waukegan Plant has violated clean water regulations several times by dumping heavy metals of great toxicity, such as arsenic, boron, antimony and manganese, which have leaked to the ground water.

Also, each year, the coal plant spews almost 100 pounds of mercury into the environment. Just one gram of mercury can pollute a 20-acre lake. This potent poison is absorbed by fish, and humans get it into our bodies by consuming the fish.

According to a Sierra Club study, 31% of Latinos fish regularly, especially in lakes, and 76% of them consume what they catch and share it with their families. Because fishing is very popular in Lake County, these percentages could be much higher.

Unknowingly, these anglers could be putting their families and themselves in danger because mercury is a neurotoxin that can cause severe damage in the brain development of the fetus and young children. In high concentrations, it can cause mental retardation and even death.

“Midwestern Generation [the plant’s owner] told us they will build a park for our children. But what good is a park when our kids cannot go out because of the pollution coming from the plant?” wonders Dulce.

This bitterness in Dulce’s community repeats itself throughout the country. According to the EPA, more than half of all the water pollution generated in the US comes from coal-burning plants. And four out of five of these plants have no legal limits in the amount of pollutants they can dump in the water.

That’s why the EPA, for the first time ever, has proposed water-quality standards for coal-burning plants that will force these polluting facilities to clean up their mess. If they are finally approved, the days of the Waukegan Plant will be numbered. As it is, Midwestern Generation has already filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

Big Coal will fight these proposed EPA standards tooth and nail. But if the standards are finalized, for Dulce, it would mean the end of this bitterness called coal-burning pollution.

Javier Sierra is a Sierra Club columnist. Follow him on Twitter @javier_SC

Inner City Outings: Nashville Youth Enjoy the Outdoors

For Craig Jervis, people's love of the outdoors starts at a young age.

"When I was young, I was told to go outside and play. So I made the neighborhood mine. I knew every nook and cranny. I knew which ponds had bass in them and which had catfish. I knew where to find snakes. I went out and stayed out until dark. So it just got in my blood," he said.

Now he serves as chair of Inner City Outings in Nashville, where he helps today's kids experience those same adventures.

"I guess I thought that there'd always be backyards and places to play. But living in the city, I guess I didn't know that wouldn't always be the case. A lot of kids don't have that."

That's where Inner City Outings steps in. ICO comprises 50 volunteer-run groups across the country that reach 14,000 youth and lead more than 800 outings each year. In many cases, ICO kids have no outdoor experience and instead live in urban areas with high crime and gangs.

"They’re disadvantaged in many ways," Craig says. "A lot of kids are in single-family homes or being raised by an older sibling. So they're not getting the adult attention they need. That's what really sucked me into ICO. It's not so much that they need outdoor experiences as much as they need adult presence. They are worth the time we invest in them."

The Nashville group went on 12 outings last year, including three canoe trips, with a total of 240 kids participating. Craig said he's interested in doing more trips that involve water. Last summer, the kids produced this video of their adventure on Duck River.

Craig hopes to incorporate education into outings. He recalls asking ICO kids where they thought their water came from, and their answer was "the tap. So we’re going to try to educate more around that," he says.

"We're going to work on map reading skills, safety, basic things. We want to make today's participants tomorrow's leaders and give them the skills to enjoy the outdoors. That way at a later time they’ll know how to take their family or friends with them."

These are experiences that stay with kids for a lifetime.

"What was on my mind was, where is the advocacy for the outdoors going to come from? Most conservationists have signature experiences from their youth, whether it's fishing with their dads or camping with family. Many of these kids don't have that opportunity and this is a way to really open that door."

Want to get involved? Visit Inner City Outings.

New Formaldehyde Safeguard Another Move in the Right Direction for Public Protection

Becky Gillette has long fought for stronger public protections against formaldehyde emissions. The Sierra Club's Volunteer Formaldehyde Campaign Director, Gillette first became involved in this issue when high levels of formaldehyde were harming the health of the families living in the emergency trailers provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

Formaldehyde is used in adhesives to make building materials and products, and exposure to the chemical can cause eye, nose and throat irritation, other respiratory symptoms and, in certain cases, cancer.

So on Wednesday, Gillette and many others applauded the Environmental Protection Agency's proposal of a new safeguard that will limit formaldehyde emissions that comes from the manufacture of wood products.
 
Gillette helped champion the law directing the EPA to instate this safeguard, a law passed by Congress in 2010 with widespread support from industry, especially the Composite Panel Association, and bipartisan majorities in both the U.S. House and Senate.

"This protection will benefit all Americans since these wood products -- commonly known as particle board or pressed wood -- are used in thousands of products such as furniture, cabinets and flooring," said Gillette, who's been called "the Erin Brockovich of formaldehyde." She's also won awards for her commitment to the issue.

The next step is for the EPA to move quickly forward in finalizing this long overdue protection, added Gillette. The EPA must also ensure that imported wood complies with the standard.