July/August 2001
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| Housing Pressures in Coyote & Almaden Valleys
by Dale F. Mead Cisco Systems’ proposed industrial development in Coyote Valley casts a huge housing shadow, not only on the communities south of Santa Clara County that have launched lawsuits to stop it, but as far away as California’s Central Valley, from which some Silicon Valley workers commute daily. |
| Human-Free Habitat: A Modest Proposal
by Ed Smith, Wilderness Committee Chair There is a growing awareness among that relatively benign human activities or even our mere presence may adversely affect many wildlife species. In March, the Chapter Conservation Committee and Executive Committee adopted a resolution recommending that the Sierra Club advance the principle that some areas be designated as human-free habitat, that is, reserved exclusively for wildlife. |
| A Letter on the Chapter’s Human-Free Habitat Resolution
Members of the Black Mountain Group ExCom speak out against the Chapter's endorsement of human-free habitat. |
| San Francisco Voters May Have Say on Runways
by Richard Zimmerman In a move that should give Bay supporters hope, San Francisco Supervisors Aaron Peskin and Tom Ammiano introduced a City Charter amendment that would require San Francisco voters to approve Bay fill projects sponsored by the City. If approved, this amendment would put the decision for SFO’s proposed runways in the hands of the voters instead of officials appointed by the Mayor such as the Airport Commission. |
| Sierra Club Puts the Juice Back Into Youth Program Unplugged by PG&E
The Sierra Club’s Youth in Wilderness program announced today they will grant $25,000 to The San Francisco Conservation Corps to make up for the money suspended by Pacific Gas & Electric Company. At the same time, Sierra Club leaders challenged the utility’s parent corporation to make up for the $7 million in charitable giving the utility suspended. |
| Victory for San Bruno Mountain
Federal officials announced in February that California will get $30.7 million to acquire habitat for threatened and endangered species, including more than $500,000 for land on San Bruno Mountain. |
| Letters to the Editor |
| Native Plants for People & Wildlife
by Georgia Stigall If you love color, variety, low maintenance and creating a home for wildlife, including butterflies, dragonflies, hummingbirds, amphibians, mammals, reptiles and songbirds—native plants are the sustainable method for attracting wildlife and providing habitat. |
| Sustainable Land Use Committee Starting Up
by Suparna Vashisht The Loma Prieta Chapter recently voted to create a new Sustainable Land Use Committee, in many ways a revival of the former Land Ethic Committee. The new committee’s work will be guided in large part by the recently approved Sierra Club California Urban Growth Management Policy Guidelines, designed to achieve the Sierra Club’s vision for the future of California. |
| Sustainable Land Use Committee
by Irvin Dawid Suparna Vashisht, our new Sustainable Land Use Committee chair, has undertaken an enormous task in offering to lead our revitalized Land Ethic Committee. She has waded into “policy waters” at state, regional, as well as local levels. If she is to be successful, this committee will need support from Club members, especially those not already involved in conservation issues. |
| Higher Miles Per Gallon Standards Would Save $$
Sierra Club and the California Public Interest Research Group released a report by the Union of Concerned Scientists today which showed that higher automobile miles per gallon standards would save California consumers more than one billion dollars annually. |
| Chapter’s First Year in the Human Race Walk-a-Thon
On May 12th, a beautiful Saturday morning, the annual Human Race Walk-A-Thon was held statewide. The Loma Prieta Chapter had participants from both San Mateo and Santa Clara counties at Coyote Point Park and Almaden Lake Park respectively. |
| Cooking Green: Plant-Based Organic Food
by Kay Bushnell Prepare an all-organic supper by following this month's recipe: “Linguine with Tomatoes, Olives, Fresh Herbs, & Nuts.” |
| Meandering
by John Maybury Saving a mountain, worldwide weirdness, green bullets, Norwegian wood, and other items of interest. |