Michigan Chapter Update
April 5, 2015
In this Issue:
- Sierra Club Calls for Ban on Fracking in Michigan
- Sierra Club Endorses Proposal 1
- Join us April 18th with Congressman Kildee and State Director Gail Philbin
- DNR Director Approves Graymont Land Sale
- Sign Up for Lobby Day May 6!
- Political Committee Fundraiser May 6 Features Gayle Miller and Dan Farough
- Sierra Club Agriculture Committee Seeks Members
- THANK YOU to our Donors!
- Donate to the ICO Camper Scholarship Program
- Explore and Enjoy! Saugatuck Dunes State Park
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Michigan Chapter Calls for Ban on Hydraulic Fracturing in State
The Sierra Club Michigan Chapter is calling for a complete ban on high-volume, hydraulic fracturing in Michigan to meet the challenge of climate change and avoid public health and environmental risks. The Chapter Executive Committee acted after more than a year of study and deliberation, considering growing evidence of harm and increasing calls nationwide for a ban.
Sierra Club Endorses Proposal 1 - Safe Roads Yes
The Michigan Chapter of Sierra Club has endorsed Proposal 1 on the May election ballot, a proposal that would increase funding for public transit. "Proposal 1 provides essential funding for Michigan’s public transportation needs that have long been neglected," said David Holtz, Chair of the Sierra Club Michigan Chapter Executive Committee.
Proposal 1 will provide $115 million a year in increased funding for public transportation throughout Michigan. This will allow expanded bus service for seniors, low-income workers and others while reducing the use of cars and greenhouse gas emissions. Proposal 1 will also provide $10 million a year to the Department of Natural Resource's Recreation Improvement Fund which provides grants for the operation, maintenance and development of recreation trails and restoration of lands damaged by off-road vehicles and inland lake cleanup. Find details on Proposal 1 here from Safe Roads Yes.
UPDATE: DNR Director Approves Modified Sale of Land to Graymont
DNR Director Keith Creagh has approved a modified sale of state-owned land and mineral rights to the Canadian mining company Graymont despite extensive public opposition and the agency's failure to follow their own guidelines for allowing the public to review the changing proposal. Sierra Club Forest Ecologist Marvin Roberson provided extensive written and oral testimony throughout at least nine modifications in the original proposal, and his input played a significant role in reducing the size of the land sale to just over one-tenth the size originally proposed. The approved project also involves a land exchange and the sale of over 7,000 acres of mineral rights to Graymont.
"The DNR's process and decision to sell this land owned by all of the people of Michigan to a private corporation for commercial benefit is clearly out of step with Michigan values, and Sierra Club will oppose any future projects of this sort," said Michigan Chapter Conservation Director Anne Woiwode. "Our children's natural heritage is too important to let political pressure roll back 100 years of conservation in the Great Lakes State."
Sign Up NOW! Citizen Lobby Day on May 6th
Sierra Club will host our first Citizen Lobby Day of the year on May 6. This unique and exciting event involves dozens of Club members and supporters who converge on Lansing to educate lawmakers about important environmental issues.
You'll have fun meeting your legislators and kindred spirits, like Central Michigan Group members Bill Rittenberg, Rob Zimmer, Jenna Pedrin and Dave Errickson in the photo to the right meeting with State Rep. Sam Singh. On May 6, we will discuss the benefits of clean energy and the dangers of fracking with lawmakers.
Pre-registration for Lobby Day is required. Find more info on the event and sign up here!
Sierra Club Political Fundraiser
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Former Chapter Political Directors to Speak at Political Committee Fundraiser May 6
Are you sick of reading about how Michigan’s legislature keeps attacking the environment? Here’s your chance to fight back!
The Michigan Chapter's Political Committee is hosting a fundraiser on May 6 in Lansing. Come hear from Gayle Miller and Dan Farough, the two previous Sierra Club Political Directors, who will be the honored speakers at this event. All of the money raised at the fundraiser will go toward helping elect pro-environment candidates to the Michigan legislature and local offices!
Sierra Club Political Fundraiser
Wednesday, May 6th,
4pm – 6:00pm
Kelly’s Downtown Irish Pub
220 S Washington Square South
Lansing, MI, 48933
RSVP to mike.berkowitz@sierraclub.org if you'd like to attend. Can't make it to the fundraiser but still want to help make it a success? Click here to make a donation for the fundraiser!
April Showers Bring ... Manure Runoff (Eeeeww!)
It's that time of year when factory farm operators empty manure lagoons and start spreading millions of gallons of waste on fields that may still be snow-covered or frozen. This common practice is one of the chief causes of the algal bloom that fueled a toxin in Toledo’s water supply that left 400,000 people without drinking water last summer. More recently, you may have read about a huge liquid manure spill in Allegan County that threatened the Rabbit River this past February.
Sierra Club has been battling factory farm pollution since the late 1990s, fighting for stronger laws, regulations and enforcement of animal factories. More recently, we've spearheaded Less=More, a coalition that seeks to end subsidies to polluting factory farms and shift support to sustainable agriculture.
If Toledo's poisoned water supply or the recent spill in Allegan County concerns you, now is a good time to get involved in our work. We're looking for volunteers with a passion for a healthy, sustainable, humane food system to join our Agriculture Committee. As a subcommittee of the Chapter's Conservation Committee, this group will help guide our approach to the various environmental issues stemming from farming practices in the 21st century.
If you're interested, contact Committee Chair Paul McCullough at pdmac@mac.com.
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THANKS to Many of YOU!!
March came in a lamb and out like a lion!
Many of you came out to support the Chapter's work in Michigan by contributing to our March Chapter Fund Appeal and helping end the month on a strong and forceful note ...like a lion! Your support is making it possible for the Chapter to reverse the familiar saying of...."March comes in like a lion and out like a lamb," and we THANK YOU!
We've received over 350 gifts to date which will help the Michigan Sierra Club work hard for you throughout 2015! As a Sierra Club member or supporter you know we don't shy away from the long, hard fights of ending dangerous fracking, safeguarding our Great Lakes, moving Michigan beyond coal and towards clean energy, fighting for healthy, locally grown food, exploring our state's wonders and protecting Michigan's forests and wild places. Check out our EVERGREEN Program and other giving options on our website for the many ways to support the Michigan Chapter.
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Donate to the ICO Camper Scholarship Program to Share the Joy of Nature with a Child!
Children
who experience the joys and wonder of nature become adults who love and protect
nature. The Sierra Club Michigan Annual Retreat at Camp Miniwanca August 21 - 23 offers unique
experiences that transcend economic, geographic, racial and other social
barriers through educational workshops and recreational activities.
Among these
activities are kite flying, camp fire story telling and s'mores, astronomy,
orienteering, night hike, knitting, biodiversity hike, bird & bat house
building, high ropes course & rock climbing, outdoor cooking, kayaking and
beach swimming. We also offer
educational presentations on the connection between politics & the
environment and how to protect our environment from the dangers of Concentrated
Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) or hydraulic fracturing. The Michigan Chapter
invites you to take an active role in preparing tomorrow’s environmental
stewards for the challenges ahead.
The ICO Camper Scholarship Program was established to help Sierra Club Michigan grant scholarships to families & children who cannot afford the entire camp fee and whose involvement in the annual retreat will provide families with the resources they need to restore and preserve the environment in their communities while broadening the diversity of the Sierra Club community. No matter how big or small, your donation ensures each camper will have a truly rewarding adventure. Your gift will help fund a full weekend of lodging, meals, activities, learning and fun at each level below:
- One child and one adult chaperone - $230.00
- A family of two adults and two children $460.00
- A teen or adult $150.00
Please contact Cecilia Garcia at cecilia.garcia@sierraclub.org or 517-484-2372 x10 to find out how to make your donation! Donations to the Sierra Club are not tax-deductible. On behalf of each camper that will enjoy our annual retreat this year, thank you for your support and dedication to the planet!
Explore and Enjoy! Saugatuck Dunes State Park
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Michigan's 79 state parks have been called the best state park system in the nation. Having such spectacular places so near many of us guarantees a low-carbon vacation that ends with no feeling of having missed out. Parks like Saugatuck have the added advantage of being near PLACES like Saugatuck/Douglas, with their galleries, restaurants, a great microbrewery, and plenty of lodging (although in March, much of that was closed). There can't be many areas in the nation where a nice long hike in spectacular scenery can be followed up by a Singapore IPA.
The trail system has north and south sections, with a connector. The north section is rather flat; the south loop not so much. Hike it counterclockwise to avoid a long climb in deep sand with your back to a stunning Lake Michigan view. Dune restoration is going on there, with Austrian pines being removed. When you see stumps, think of crowded-out plants returning. There's no campground in this park; it's basically a parking lot surrounded by beauty. Give back by joining in one of the events to remove invasive species, or take a garbage bag and grab some of the depressing amount of plastic junk on the beach. Giving back just feels right.
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