August 2004
Welcome to e-Sierra
The email newsletter of the Sierra Club North Star ChapterAugust 2004 / Issue 26
WELCOME
The North Star Chapter welcomes you to our monthly e-Sierra. Please find updates on critical environmental issues; upcoming events; opportunities to become involved; and a North Star Chapter calendar of events. For additional Sierra Club information visit our website at http://www.northstar.sierraclub.org/.
STOP THE ATTACK ON OUR WILD FORESTS!
Last month, the Bush administration proposed reversing the hard-won protections we have for roadless areas on national forests. The roadless rule was the most popular environmental protection ever-and now we need to tell the Bush administration, "hands off our wild forests". Go to http://whistler.sierraclub.org/action/tamain?alid=341 to register your comments! Learn more about how the roadless rule protected Minnesota's last remaining forests at http://www.northstar.sierraclub.org/campaigns/forests/policy/roadless.html.
MINNESOTA COMMUNITIES AT RISK
Interested in how the Bush Administration's environmental policies have put Minnesota communities at risk? Interested in helping to get the word out to friends and colleagues on the Bush Administration's attack on the environment? For a copy of Minnesota Communities at Risk; How Bush Administration Policies Harm Minnesota Communities drop a note to or read the report online at http://www.sierraclub.org/communities/mn/.
MINI DONUTS...DEEP FRIED PICKLES...POLITICIANS...ENJOY A FREE DAY AT THE STATE FAIR!
The Sierra Club has a booth at the Minnesota State Fair, and we need your help! If you can volunteer at the Sierra Club booth for at least three hours on any day of the Fair (August 26 - Sept 6), we'll give you a free ticket to the Fair for that day! This is a great way to learn more about the Sierra Club's work in Minnesota, and meet lots of fellow Fair goers. For more information, contact Scott Elkins at 612-659-9124 or .
TOUR DE SPRAWL IS COMING SOON
Our 9th annual Tour de Sprawl will be held on Saturday, September 18th in St. Paul, MN. We may not keep up with Lance Armstrong, but the ride will feature some of the best new urbanist and environmental preservation projects in the region. We'll begin near Lake Phalen and ride through Maplewood, North St. Paul, and Oakdale on the way to our end-party in Lake Elmo. Along the way, the tour visits wetland reclamation projects, smart growth redevelopments and beautifully preserved open spaces. And we'll even see the World's Largest Snowman! To preregister, or for more info, contact Trevor Russell at 612-659-9124 or .
JOIN OTHER OUTDOOR ENTHUSIASTS FOR A DAY HIKE - MILLE LACS KATHIO STATE PARK - SUNDAY, AUGUST 15
Join us for a full day hike at the Mille Lacs Kathio State Park in a landscape that has been inhabited by Native Americans for more than 4,000 years. We will hike the rolling glacial land through forest bog and meadows, with views of the nearby lakes and the Rum River. Meet at the Sierra Club office at 8:00am to head out to the park, so please be on time. Wear hiking boots, sunglasses and a hat. Bring 2 liters of water, lunch, sunscreen, insect repellent and rain gear (just in case). Call Dawn Wilson if you have any questions at 952-285-4370 or send her an e-mail at . Interested in hiking, biking, enjoying the outdoors, see additional outings at http://www.northstar.sierraclub.org/activities/outings/index.html.
RECLAIMING WETLANDS NEIGHBORHOOD WALK AND ICE CREAM SOCIAL - TUESDAY, AUGUST 17
Please join Sierra Club members in learning about threatened Minnesota Wetlands, how they've been under attack by the Bush Administration and what you can do about it! Local Sierra Club leader Judy Helgen, who is featured in our Communities at Risk Report, will provide background on the destructive policies of the Bush Administration towards Wetlands. Then we'll hit the streets of Mounds View to distribute our Communities at Risk Reports, so bring your walkin' shoes and rain gear - we'll walk rain or shine! At 8:30 we'll gather for an ice cream social. Tuesday, August 17th, 6:30 - 8:30 pm, Mounds View, MN, Groveland Park (Corner of Groveland Rd and Ardan Ave in Mounds View) For additional information contact Stacy Boots at 612-659-9124 or .
WASIOJA GROUP: UTAH REDROCK WILDERNESS MULTI MEDIA SLIDE SHOW:
Presentation by Bob Brister, Outreach Coordinator, Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance. Wild Utah: America's Redrock Wilderness is a multi-media slide show featuring stunning images by noted wilderness photographers and the voice of Pulitzer Prize winning author Wallace Stegner. After the show, Bob will give a brief update on Utah wilderness issues including America's Redrock Wilderness Act, which would add over 9 million acres of spectacular Utah federal lands to the National Wilderness Preservation System. Everyone is welcome. Thursday Sept. 23, 7PM-8PM at the Quarry Hill Nature Center, 701 Silver Creek Road NE, Rochester. For more information contact Jon Rosenblatt at 507-282-7911 or send an e-mail to .
TRANSPORTATION SOLUTION: POLLUTION?
MNDOT wants to expand I-35 in Minneapolis with a plan that ignores transit and spews more dirty emissions into the Twin Cities. North Star Chapter's Transportation Committee is working hard to submit environmental assessment comments by August 19th, and we need you help. Please call Mat Hollinshead at (651) 698-0260 to learn how you can help improve this project and keep transit buses running on 35W!
SAVE OUR NATIONAL FORESTS FROM ATV NOISE AND RUTS - WE WANT QUIET FORESTS
Help Improve the Forest Service's Off-Road Vehicle Rule:
http://whistler.sierraclub.org/action/tamain?alid=339
ACTION NIGHTS
Action Nights at the Sierra Club Office! Every Wednesday and Sunday Night from 6:30pm - 8:30pm. Come on in to the Sierra Club office Wednesday and Sunday nights to meet fun people, eat free pizza and make a splash in local organizing around holding the Bush Administration accountable for their irresponsible and destructive environmental policies. For more information call Stacy Boots at 612-659-9124 or .
EXPLORE MINNESOTA'S WILD FOREST OVER LABOR DAY WEEKEND
September 3 is the 40th Anniversary of the Wilderness Act! Sign up now to celebrate and explore Minnesota's wild forests. Sierra Club has planned a three-day camping and hiking trip to visit roadless areas we're fighting to protect in Superior National Forest. This Sierra Club trip will explore places that exemplify our forest protection values: Crosby-Manitou State Park, a wilderness park overlooking Lake Superior where the original hardwood forest still thrives; Hog Lake Wilderness Study Area, one of the largest potential additions to the Boundary Waters wilderness area; and, Silver Island and Tomahawk logging projects, closer than a mile from the Boundary Waters. We'll meet at Crosby-Manitou State Park at 1:00pm on Friday, September 3. Thursday and Monday are open days for further exploration of our wild forests or the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Call Joshua Davis at 612-659-9124 for more information and to sign up.
YOU CAN HELP MINNESOTA'S WOLVES - FED'S SEEKING COMMENTS NOW
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) announced in July that it
will seek to remove the eastern gray wolf from Endangered Species
list and turn management of the wolves over to the states where
they live. Minnesota's wolves have thrived under federal protection
and this ought to have signaled a victory of the Endangered Species
Act.
http://www.northstar.sierraclub.org/campaigns/wolves/index.html
MEET UP OR MISS OUT
Meet up http://www.sierraclub.meetup.com/ and join others who share a love of the environment.
PRESIDENT BUSH AND CONGRESS WATCH
Keep tabs on President Bush and Congress.
http://www.sierraclub.org/politics/http://www.sierraclub.org/wwatch/
SCHEDULE OF UPCOMING EVENTS
Aug 11: Volunteer Action Night at the office
Aug 12: Political calling at the office- volunteers needed
Aug 15: Volunteer Action Night at the office
Aug 16: Political calling at the office- volunteers needed
Aug 17: International Committee Meeting
Aug 17: North Star Student Group
Aug 18: Family Volunteer Night at the office- Kids welcome!
Aug 18: Inner City Outings
Aug 19: Political calling at the office- volunteers needed
Aug 22: Volunteer Action Night at the office
Aug 23: Political calling at the office- volunteers needed
Aug 24: Clean Air Committee
Aug 25: Water Committee
Aug 25: Excom
Aug 25: Volunteer Action Night at the office
Aug.26: "Roadless Rule and Protecting our Forests" Community Meeting, Saint Paul
Aug 26: Political calling in the office- volunteers needed
Aug 29: Volunteer Action Night at the office
Aug 30: Political calling in the office- volunteers needed
Sept.18: Tour de Sprawl
Sept 27: Clean Air
Sept 28: Water Committee
Sept 28: Excom
For More Calendar Information Contact:
For Interesting Submissions: heather.cusick@northstar.sierraclub.org
Our postal address is:
Sierra Club - North Star Chapter
2327 E. Franklin Ave
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55406
United States