Big Names Attend Sierra Club Sportsmen Presentation

Thirty-one people, including Representatives Wexler, Holt, Grijalva, Inglis, Eshoo, and Dorgan, as well as members of various wildlife advocacy organizations, attended the June 30 Congressional Press Briefing titled “Conserving the Big Game Migrations of the American West.” The event was sponsored by Congressman Rush Holt, and speakers included representatives from the Sierra Club, the Western Governors’ Association, the Western Wildlife Council, Freedom to Roam, the Wildlife & Habitat Initiative, and the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation.

The briefing was put on by the Sierra Club’s Sierra Sportsmen program, which aims to unite conservation-minded anglers and hunters from around the country and empower them to be leaders in the protection of our wild places and wildlife. The goal of the briefing was to bring attention to the rapid loss of migration routes and wildlife corridors in the western states for big game such as caribou, pronghorn, and mule deer. Climate change and poorly planned development are cited as the main reasons for this loss of habitat. During the briefing, both science and policy were used to discuss what is already being done about this problem and why it is such a crucial issue.

The effect of habitat loss on the sportsmen industry was especially highlighted. As climate change reduces the food supply for big game animals, which are popular prey for hunters, the animals are forced to migrate to new habitats. However, when their migration corridors are destroyed, the animals cannot move to more plentiful habitats, and thus they face extinction. With no animals to hunt, the sportsmen trade also is threatened. 

See what else the Sierra Sportsmen program is up to by visiting the website.

This entry was written by Sierra Club Media Intern Natalie Gaber.

Confrontation in West Virginia

 

Larry Gibson lives on a 50-acre homestead on the side of Kayford Mountain in West Virginia that has been in his family for 200 years. More than 300 of his ancestors are buried in the cemetery on Kayford Mountain. 

The mountains of southern Appalachia are home to a rich cultural heritage, as well as some of the most bio-diverse forests on earth. They are also rich in coal, and since 1986, mountaintop removal mining (MTR) has been steadily demolishing Kayford Mountain, leaving behind the moonscape pictured below.

Larry's homestead used to be surrounded by peaks and ridges supporting deep forests and mountain streams. The Gibson's haven't moved, but their house now occupies the highest point of land around, as the surrounding 12,000 acres of Kayford Mountain have been blasted to smithereens. The Gibson's cabin is the right-most structure in the settlement pictured below. In 2007 a portion of the cemetery where the Gibson's relatives are buried was bulldozed.

For more than 20 years Larry has held out against coal company efforts to buy him out, meanwhile helping found the Keeper of the Mountains Foundation, which celebrates and nurtures mountain culture. The foundation also allows him to travel the country spreading the word about MTR. Larry welcomes concerned citizens, students, journalists, and government officials to visit his homestead to see first-hand what mountaintop removal does to the land.

Larry also helps host the Mountain Keepers Festival over the July 4 weekend at Stanley Heirs Park on Kayford Mountain, where people camp out, learn about the mountains, and share food, stories, music, and solidarity.

This year, a group of people dressed in T-shirts issued by the Massey Energy Company crashed the party, intimidating and verbally threatening festival-goers. They were apparently unarmed, but one half-naked man in their company rubbed meat all over himself and threatened to slit people's throats before Massey employees who were recognized as local residents led him away.

The incident was captured on video. [Viewers, note that this clip contains strong language and is not suitable for children.] State police were contacted, but by the time they arrived two hours later the intruders were nowhere to be found. The video has been forwarded to the West Virginia State Police and the U.S. Department of Justice.

It is not clear whether the intruders acted on their own or were encouraged by Massey, the largest operator of MTR sites in the state. It should also be noted that not all of the party-crashers behaved threateningly; the ones who led the shirtless man away were apparently embarrassed by his behavior, and one member of the Sierra Club's Kentucky Chapter who was in attendance reported that there was "an exchange of barbecue" before the Massey crew drove off.

What is clear is that the practice of mountaintop removal is deeply divisive to residents of southern Appalachia, often pitting neighbor against neighbor and even driving a wedge between family members. Learn more about mountaintop removal mining and how we can move beyond coal.

Kayford Mountain photos by Vivian Stockman, courtesy of the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition.

Sierra Club, Tribes Team Up to Protect Sacred Lands

The Sierra Club and its tribal partners won a hard-fought victory on June 15 when 541 square miles of New Mexico's Mount Taylor, held sacred to many southwestern tribes, were listed on the state's Register of Cultural Properties. The designation will trigger an automatic consultation with the tribes for any new development proposals in the area.

"The tribes and other community leaders are committed to opposing new mining proposals one by one and to do everything they can to use this cultural designation to protect Mount Taylor," says Sierra Club Associate Regional Representative Robert Tohe, below, himself a Navajo.

 

For the last year-and-a-half the Sierra Club's Environmental Justice Program has been working with the Acoma, Laguna, Zuni, Hopi, and Navajo tribes to protect Mount Taylor from uranium mining. Despite enormous pressure from pro-mining interests, the New Mexico Cultural Properties Review Committee (CPRC) voted to permanently list Mount Taylor to the state registry.

The Sierra Club did media releases throughout New Mexico and worked hand-in-hand with the tribal grassroots group Dine Bidziil and cultural/spiritual groups Dine Hataalii and Aza Bee Nahangha of the Dine (Navajo) Nation.

"With the help of Sierra Club online organizer Jessica Eagle, who sent out action alerts to Rio Grande Chapter members, we were able to get more than 450 comments submitted to the CPRC in support of the tribal nomination," says Tohe, who attended all the meetings with the state and delivered supporting nominations at every CRPC hearing on the Mount Taylor designation.

Dr. David Begay, policy advisor to Dine Hataalii, was instrumental in laying the foundation for the win. Begay is pictured below, delivering the support resolution for Mount Taylor from the Dine Hataalii Association at the CPRC meeting in the House Chamber of the New Mexico legislature in Santa Fe on May 15. He also led an offering ceremony on Mount Taylor last fall to help the tribes prevail in the fight to protect their sacred lands.

Earth Day 2009: A Snapshot

Sierra Clubbers from coast to coast and beyond rolled up their sleeves and participated in all manner of Earth Day activities and celebrations this year. 

In Flagstaff, Arizona, Club organizer Andy Bessler, his son Noah, and Grand Canyon Chapter staffer Stacey Hamburg tabled at a Flagstaff Earth Day event, above and below, that drew an estimated 2,500 attendees.

Bessler also emceed the event, which featured four bands performing on a solar-powered sound stage. "Walking the talk in hosting this event was key," says Bessler, pictured below in black t-shirt with Noah.

    

Flagstaff Mayor Sara Presler challenged residents to support sustainability in the city. Bessler worked with volunteers from the City and the Sierra Club to organize seven service projects around town. "More than 125 people participated," Bessler says. "Each of them got a little seed packet with wildflowers that said, 'Thanks from Sierra Club and Native Plant and Seed.'"

Thousands of revelers, above, turned out in Luquillo, Puerto Rico, for the Fourth Annual Leatherback Turtle Festival. "Turnout was bigger than ever," says Puerto Rico Sierra Club organizer Camilla Feibelman. "We continue to promote the protection of the Northeast Ecological Corridor and appropriate development of Luquillo as a gateway community to the nature reserve."

New Borderlands Team Lobbies Against Border Wall

Sean Sullivan, chair of the Sierra Club's Borderlands Team, one of the four new Activist Network teams, appeared on Democracy Now on Monday to talk about the environmental impact of the 600-mile-long border wall.

Sullivan and others from the Borderlands Team are in Washington, D.C., this week lobbying in support of Congressman Raul Grijalva' s Border Security and Responsibility Act (HR 2076). Take action here.

Sierra Stalwart Is Garden State's Go-To Green Gadfly

Photo by Saed Hindash, courtesy of Inside Jersey Magazine

According to Inside Jersey Magazine, over the last five years New Jersey Sierra Club Director Jeff Tittel has been quoted eight times more often in the state's newspapers than the "runner-up green guy." Not only that, over the last two years Tittel was quoted 400 more times than the Speaker of the New Jersey State Assembly. New Jersey Business Magazine has called him the most visible environmental activist in the state.

Part of the reason is Tittel's penchant for candor and the pointed verbal zinger. The New York Times has referred to the "rhetorical hand grenades" he lobs to reporters. He called New Jersey's environmental commissioner a "pander bear" for changing his position on a state-sanctioned bear hunt, referred to pharmaceutically tainted drinking water as "Viagra Falls," and characterized suburban sprawl as "land cancer." Asked if he ever actually hugged trees, he said yeah, but only after keg parties.

But the real reason Tittel makes the news so often is his indefatigable work on behalf of New Jersey's air, water, public lands, built environment, and clean energy future. According to the Times, political insiders in the state capital know him as one of Trenton's most hard-edged lobbyists.

"Mr. Tittel's influence in Trenton has spread like an oil spill in wind-whipped waters," the newspaper says. "It would [be] difficult for even the most casual consumers of New Jersey's news in recent years to avoid coming across the name Jeff Tittel."

More than a decade ago Tittel gave up a more lucrative career as a political consultant for environmental activism when he became a staff organizer for the Sierra Club. He is credited with transforming the New Jersey Chapter into a force to be reckoned with, and "raising the profile of environmentalists across the board." In 2005, Tittel received the Sierra Club's staff Excellence Award.

Read Inside Jersey's interview with the Sierra Club's go-to guy in the Garden State.

Sí Se Puede Ser Verde! (Yes, We Can Be Green!)

In late February, 15 high school students from East Los Angeles spent a day in the San Gabriel Mountains, sponsored by the Sierra Club's Inner City Outings program (ICO) and the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC).

"This was my first time to the snow," says Jesse De La Torre (below in Los Angeles jacket), a 15-year-old student at Montebello High School. "I never thought there was a place like that in L.A."

Leading the trip were Edward Acevedo (at right, below), Program Director for LULAC's National Educational Service Center in Los Angeles, Angeles Chapter ICO leader Melody Anderson (in pink jacket), and chapter outings leader Gerard Lewis (in yellow & black jacket). Also pictured are Alejandro Meeks (left) and Emely Llanes (center).

"The kids had a great time," says Acevedo. "The trip was an introduction to the local mountains that serve as a backdrop to their gang-infested neighborhoods. They used sleds, made snow men, had snow ball fights—all the things they've previously seen only in photos and movies. Many of them didn't realize how close these mountains really are to their neighborhood."

Sierra Club, Hunters Team Up to Protect Utah Lake

Photo by Marc Heileson 

 

In addition to providing fun recreational opportunities, Utah Lake, the largest freshwater lake in Utah, is home to hundreds of bird species, providing essential resting and nesting grounds for a host of migratory waterfowl.

 

But now this important habitat is at risk from developers who want to build a causeway over the lake to connect the eastern and western shores. The causeway would spread development along the entire west side of the lake and cause serious harm to the wetlands and wildlife surrounding the lake.

 

“Utahans have hunted these same marshes for 150 years,” said Utah Sierra Sportsmen organizer Marc Heileson,  who has been working with the Utah Waterfowl Association to fight the project. “They want to protect them for future generations, and so do we. By working together I think we can defeat this damaging bridge to nowhere in Utah.”

 

Together the waterfowlers and the Sierra Club are standing up against the developers and homeowners pushing the project.

Lone Star Video Primers Help Promote Chapter Agenda

The Sierra Club's Lone Star Chapter, which maintains a LoneStarSierraClub video page on YouTube, recently produced two videos for the current Texas Legislative session, which meets every two years from January 13-June 1. Both videos were produced and directed by Chapter Communications Coordinator Donna Hoffman.

Visit Your Legislator!, hosted by Chapter Conservation Director Cyrus Reed, above, is a primer on meeting in person with your legislator, starring chapter activists Terry Moore, Don Villa, and Roy Waley as they pay a visit to State Representative Elliott Naishtat at the State Capitol in Austin. But the methods and strategies outlined in this how-to video are applicable no matter where you live.

Legislative Priorities, below, also hosted by Reed, features guest appearances by Chapter Director Ken Kramer, Conservation Chair Evelyn Merz, and Air Quality Chair Brandt Mannchen, talking about specific chapter priorities.

As activists of all stripes increasingly communicate in the video medium, both of these videos are instructive for Club chapters and activists wishing to jump on the YouTube bandwagon. Bottom line: shooting and editing a video on a budget and uploading it to YouTube are a lot easier than you may think.

Puerto Rico Chapter Marks Milestones, Looks Ahead

The Sierra Club's Puerto Rico Chapter celebrated two milestones at its Annual Assembly in late January: its 1,000th member and its fourth anniversary as a chapter. Above, chapter leaders at the Assembly.

 

"We started laying the groundwork six years ago," says chapter organizer Camilla Feibelman, "and in 2005 the Club's board of directors came to Puerto Rico to approve us as the organization's first Spanish-speaking chapter. We started with just a couple dozen members, but since then we've gained a thousand more through outings, chats, and conservation campaigns."

 

Below, Chapter Outing leader Evalexa Tomei staffs a booth at the Assembly...

...and Chapter Chair Angel Sosa presents Jose Sesman with a volunteer merit award, below left. Below right, Chapter Conservation Chair Victor Marcial Vega tickles the ivories.

  

The Chapter's biggest success to date was helping block two mega-resorts proposed by the Marriott and Four Seasons corporations in the Northeast Ecological Corridor, below, nesting ground for the endangered leatherback sea turtle. With bipartisan support, in October 2007 Governor Anibal Acevedo Vila signed an executive order designating more than 3,200 acres of the Corridor as a nature reserve.

 

Below, a Sierra Club outing to el Yunque, immediately adjacent to the Corridor, and the only rainforest in U.S. Forest Service jurisdiction.

Feibelman cautions that Puerto Rico's new governor has not yet made his position clear on managing the Corridor. "We're trying to get the management and land use plan approved by the planning board so we can begin developing the Corridor as an ecotourism destination and the adjacent towns as gateway communities," she says. "We hope the new governor will lead the way." 

In reaching the 1,000-member mark, Feibelman gives a special shout out to chapter volunteer leaders Angel Sosa, Evalexa Tomei, Nayda Diaz, Alberto Perdomo, Alin Blanchet, Victor Marcial Vega, Francisco Perez, Eva Perez, Jose Menendez, Ana Elisa Perez, Eva Luz Menendez, Jennifer Robles, Kristal Ibarra, Lisette Alvirio, Adriana Gonzalez, and Igri Rosado.

All photos by F. Claudio, except photos of Northeast Ecological Corridor and el Yunque rainforest.