Dear Friend :

I hope you had a wonderful 4th of July holiday!  Read on to find out about upcoming events and about how you can protect Wisconsin's wild places for years to come!

PROPOSED KOHLER GOLF COURSE THREATENS LAKE MICHIGAN DUNES

Attend the Public Hearing on Kohler's Proposed Golf Course Wed., July 16!

The Kohler company has proposed constructing a 247 acre golf course in the Black River Forest north of Kohler Andrae State Park.  Although the bulk of the development would be on private land, the company also seeks an easement for a maintenance shed and road that would impact 12 acres of state park land.  If constructed, this would be Kohler's 5th luxury golf course in the area.  A local citizens group, Friends of the Black River Forest, has formed to voice concerns about the potential for this development to destroy native forest, sand dunes, and Indian mounds.  They are also concerned about increased runoff from fertilizer and pesticides impacting water quality of the Black River (already impaired due to excess phosphorus) and Lake Michigan.  

To learn more, read the recent posts on this issue on James Rowen's excellent blog, the Political Environment, and read the recent article on the golf course in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 

Citizens who would like to take action can sign this petition, and if you live in the Sheboygan area, attend the Town of Wilson public hearing this Wednesday, July 16 at 6:30 PM, 5935 S. Business Drive, Sheboygan, WI.  Thank you for supporting the Friends of the Black River Forest in their efforts to protect this beautiful area.

SHARE YOUR WISCONSIN PHOTOS! 

Do you have beautiful photos of Wisconsin's native plants, wildlife or landscapes?

Send us your Pictures Today!

Threats to our natural resources, from factory farms to sand mines to coal plants? Your electric car, bicycle, or a local solar system or a wind farm?  A recent Sierra Club outing? If so, we'd love to use these images to enhance our local conservation campaigns!

The John Muir Chapter is seeking donations of digital photos from Wisconsin along with permission to use them on our website and in our print materials. Some of your photos will help us overhaul our website, which is scheduled to launch this fall! 

Email your high-resolution photos (We prefer jpeg images that are 800 pixels or larger)  along with pertinent details about each image (the what, where & when) to john.muir.chapter@sierraclub.org or you can add them to our Flickr group, Sierra Club - John Muir Chapter pictures. We'll add them to our photo library. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, help us tell the story of Wisconsin and why it is so important to Explore, Enjoy & Protect our state!  Thanks in advance for your help!

ATTEND THE AUTUMN ASSEMBLY WITH KEYNOTE SPEAKER RON SEELY

Register for the Autumn  Assembly today!

Sierra Club's Autumn Assembly, featuring keynote speaker Ron Seely, will take place October 10-12, 2014 at the Phantom Lake YMCA Camp in Mukwonago, Wisconsin. Phantom Lake YMCA camp sits on 72 acres of scenic woodlands and offers a variety of opportunities for attendees to connect with nature.  This year's event, hosted by the Great Waters Group, includes a tour of Johnson Controls International's Glendale Facility, a hike at Engel Conservation Area, a sunset canoe ride on Phantom Lake, and a tour of Lulu Lake.

Our Autumn Assembly will also feature  updates on Waukesha's proposed Great Lakes water diversion, white nose syndrome and Wisconsin bats, tar sands threats to the Great Lakes, solar energy, expanding transit, Penokee Hills geology, frac-sand mining and more!

On Saturday attendees will get the chance to support Sierra Club's conservation work by bidding on great items at our silent auction, generously donated by businesses including American Players Theatre, Discovery World at Pier Wisconsin, East Town Spa, Fair Share CSA Coalition, Fontana Sports Specialties, Eagle Optics, Formecology, Madison Magazine, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Madison Wine & Hop Shop, Milwaukee Ballet, Milwaukee Boat Line, Olbrich Gardens, Peninsula Players Theatre, The Spice House and others! In addition to the silent auction, Saturday night also includes our awards ceremony for outstanding allies and volunteers, and a campfire jam session! 

Register by September 15 to avoid late fees! For more information, visit the Autumn  Assembly webpage. Thanks to Community Shares of Wisconsin, H&H Solar Energy, Just Coffee, and Wells Print and Digital for sponsoring this year's event. We hope to see you there!

LAST CALL FOR MALLARDS BASEBALL: LEARN ABOUT OUR SOLAR HOMES PROGRAM!

Attend the July 31 Mallards game

We are SO close to gathering 100 Sierra Club friends for the Thursday, July 31 Mallards Game, but we WON'T get to promote our organization to others at the game unless we sell the last 19 tickets THIS WEEK! So this really is the last call!  Please visit www.mallardsgroups.com and use the group code "sierra" to buy your tickets TODAY. You'll help us spread the word about our solar homes program & our local work to fight climate change!

Our friends at H&H Solar will join us in the stands to answer any questions you have about our solar homes program, which allows you to support the Sierra Club and get a discount on a solar system from our partners at H&H Solar.  You'll also get a free hat and support our conservation work with every ticket sold! So, please buy your Mallards tickets for Sierra Club's community night during the July 31 baseball game today (after clicking on the link, enter the group code "sierra")!

Can't make this fun summer event?  Click here to learn more about our solar homes program, and fill out a request for a FREE solar assessment for your home today!     

As always, we have a lot going on this summer and plenty of opportunities to get involved! Check out our Events Calendar webpage.  Hope to see you soon!

Sincerely,

Shahla Werner, Director
Sierra Club - John Muir Chapter