HomeMy WebLinkAbout043024 - Director’s Notes_ From Ben Jealous_ April 2024ALERT: BE CAUTIOUS This email originated outside the organization. Do not open attachments or click on links if you are not expecting them.
<http://image.emails.sierraclub.org/lib/fe9b13727661047e75/m/1/SCLogo_HorizWebBlack_200x72pxforCM.png>
Dear John,
Today marks the close of an Earth Month for the history books. I’m proud to share with you some incredible wins that are a testament to the Sierra Club’s grit, tenacity, bold vision,
and years of tireless work to make happen. It is thanks to the tenacious presence and pressure of our base of donors, volunteers, and supporters across the country that any of these
victories were possible. Because of your support, our impact is hastening the dawn of a new tomorrow in which none of us – or our children – will have to fear for the survival of our
precious planet.
Thank you for your unyielding commitment to the Sierra Club and its mission!
Ben
<https://image.emails.sierraclub.org/lib/fe9b13727661047e75/m/2/8bc767ab-dd50-45c3-82df-f23ae8b36f76.png>
________________________________
SPOTLIGHT: EPA Announces Comprehensive Standards to Slash Power Plant Pollution
<https://click.emails.sierraclub.org/?qs=62d25c86781152c696cd938e6a0088a2507b03990367eade2d20e34f175001ab1f5f89645684c32f9e2993955232b7f275fdf7f824fd61f3>
The package of rules announced last week by the Environmental Protection Agency is the most comprehensive suite of rules ever to regulate pollution from the power sector. These new standards
mark the beginning of our next chapter in the fight to transition to a 100 percent clean energy economy. In addition to improving public health and addressing the climate crisis, they
provide the tools to finally hold electric utilities and coal plant operators around the country accountable for their air, water and climate pollution.
The suite of rules <https://click.emails.sierraclub.org/?qs=62d25c86781152c6e12616a44dcfe8c739319d26e515eb683e04e52662676d51ee7c45064a7c35e8bcc3d2869fda5b43e5cbfb6836e2e355> includes:
* Carbon pollution standards that will limit pollution from existing coal-fired power plants and new gas plants; reducing emissions that worsen the climate crisis as well as other dangerous
compounds.
* Mercury and toxic air standards that will protect vulnerable communities from air pollution, including heavy metals and mercury.
* Coal wastewater standards to reduce toxic pollutants and heavy metals, including mercury and arsenic, discharged by coal-fired power plants into our rivers and lakes.
* Coal ash pollution rules that will protect groundwater and communities from dangerous coal ash ponds, landfills, and dumps that leak toxic pollutants into our waterways
More Highlights
Sierra Club celebrates Earth Month with a series of massive policy wins and more than 700 grassroots events nationwide: Throughout the month of April leading up to the EPA rules announcement,
our conservation and climate campaigns racked up a string of hard-fought victories <https://click.emails.sierraclub.org/?qs=62d25c86781152c6ed37ae26bfab8331e3ca310307f6751f1490e607f744901b9038f36980
f75acb299825b26a683572a8aad855237d006b> from the Biden administration. The Department of the Interior announced protections against drilling on 13 million acres of land in Alaska’s National
Petroleum Reserve. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) issued a game-changing rule that reshapes the Bureau’s mission to serve the common good by making land conservation a priority
on equal footing as the agency’s work to manage fossil fuel exploration and extraction. We learned President Biden plans to expand the San Gabriel Mountains and Berryessa Snow Mountain
national monuments in California by hundreds of thousands of acres. And on Earth Day, the administration announced $7 billion in funding for solar projects that will lower energy costs
and reduce pollution in low-income communities across the country. That is just to name a few.
As we’ve celebrated all these victories, the Sierra Club team has been a well-oiled machine in our own Earth Month activities across all our various channels, with weekly themes, exciting
videos and social media content, a field toolkit, and no shortage of ways for our supporters to explore, enjoy, and protect our planet – including more than 700 events and activities
across the country!
<https://click.emails.sierraclub.org/?qs=62d25c86781152c6c1d1c27261d8acde23ba2d8c00de204e2392b8a1e77244310767c5130e5d2f6d06741e0e80efbfcd3eedca4be5a3b073>
Check out my Earth Day video! <https://click.emails.sierraclub.org/?qs=62d25c86781152c6c1d1c27261d8acde23ba2d8c00de204e2392b8a1e77244310767c5130e5d2f6d06741e0e80efbfcd3eedca4be5a3b073>
<https://click.emails.sierraclub.org/?qs=62d25c86781152c6fabf45679a1c8441e3ae043328acce4dcd8847b752655f08b2651e6f830108e91736be2902f540e42c422374d73b45ad>
<https://click.emails.sierraclub.org/?qs=62d25c86781152c6fabf45679a1c8441e3ae043328acce4dcd8847b752655f08b2651e6f830108e91736be2902f540e42c422374d73b45ad>
Photo by Jeffrey Watkins
New England is now coal-free (!!!): Sierra Club and our partners reached a deal with Granite Shore Power to retire the coal-burning units at Merrimack and Schiller Stations in New Hampshire,
by 2028 and 2025 respectively. New Hampshire will be the 16th coal-free state and New England will now be the nation’s second entirely coal-free region, following the Pacific Northwest.
This victory is the culmination of years of activism by Sierra Club volunteers and staff, and is thanks in large part to the visionary leadership of Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign
and our partnership with Bloomberg Philanthropies. Since we kicked off Beyond Coal in 2010, 382 coal plants have been retired or are slated for retirement. By closing these plants,
Beyond Coal has removed even more carbon from our atmosphere than President Obama’s proposed cap-and-trade program would have by this point in history. We have a lot to be proud of.
Our incredible New Hampshire chapter also deserves much credit for their years of innovative organizing and advocacy in the fight to close Merrimack and Schiller. Following the announcement,
our amazing New Hampshire Director Cathy Corkery published an op-ed about the importance of the victory <https://click.emails.sierraclub.org/?qs=62d25c86781152c6bb6b96b586aa7e1a669de1cbf33be4f71683c
dedc1fb685b8eed7938e4bc2e5784376735a81255299f4ce79a1f6bd83c> and I wrote my own piece about the tireless work of the activists <https://click.emails.sierraclub.org/?qs=62d25c86781152c6e0f789d5ec9ab1
454d6fc55c680b86a11d57637f65811babbf15d1451c0542eefcfbb80f4ec8703092a79651f757ac98> that made this win possible.
Thanks again, for everything. We would love to hear from you with any questions or feedback. You can reach me directly at ben.jealous@sierraclub.org <mailto:ben.jealous@sierraclub.org?subject=>
or contact Shabina at shabina.bahl@sierraclub.org <mailto:shabina.bahl@sierraclub.org?subject=> .
<https://image.emails.sierraclub.org/lib/fe9b13727661047e75/m/1/a8244918-345d-4d93-a5d1-4e55223af2b4.png>
This email was sent to: jeffbocc@co.jefferson.wa.us
This email was sent by the Sierra Club
2101 Webster St Suite 1300, Oakland, CA 94612
Unsubscribe <https://click.emails.sierraclub.org/?qs=62d25c86781152c695424c23b763f59201a90360f10a3fb1d8912d53d98a0befaa8b52b2761633a2f5637aab7ee418e13ecd14ec3804894d75e80ba45ba8b482>
| Manage Preferences <https://click.emails.sierraclub.org/?qs=62d25c86781152c6328344c27303b7b8ff58d4b8f4c84bf46883832c2c4e3934c51480cca0989ee0c1b5682681338ff3cdc1c981c7b1c92459b96205ec666f3a>
| View as web page <https://view.emails.sierraclub.org/?qs=4ed4ac20274e1fba249b5515ad685fc150fc37f84cabca9435c3c755897c6cf61739cff5f5238e15b5ba087616d3386c3fadc5622ea9893cec18bac21f870695475ae866e4
a97b7c9aa03e1d3817eda9>
<https://click.emails.sierraclub.org/open.aspx?ffcb10-fe921072716c037975-fe2e15727d640578761c75-fe9b13727661047e75-ff231d767363-fe5810797460007b771d-ff061573756401&d=70239&bmt=0>
uKKcSDhfDkZ4HHd13yRrnEI+PTf1lKEl3/tNHse/ig3PIfjrb5mHQGCEbV0CcgGhKmYQsfP4wgowSRh3NfzyD9pz+uPV7z/YpBXHwOLWgPsW5KXT/8lnyx715ejwekGsc0xPA5XmbcTHtdCBVRjuWQv7UolX/fI/quKNG6hz1XplrHi1AUMhaANL50zzkyl6G5ELBup
Z+ehOHZY49xJIi6oLtRvfimWYmOtsigXYrZIobWH8WbvjtRFm/sy2Dx3TehNWcLvNnIoqBXwm3megoyRH4wm5LWUV48gg4bDiiHU0969cBOHk7II9zf/hgVtr9Qxv7o4hhklG4bMeVYwshWqHmPPQiltR5zUAMc+4DIZWXxLfEx6eqEfPmaWsrNEbSiML5Luo6lLq8A
6D+CQkrw0JIPk+h5A+gJ6ErT2KVwxREQDxvUPm2YU/bTd5o0Z7FMlRAC6dDrThsyAnLYKUciUTSX5bnDFgLMWRLEdjetlkNjmEG5xururOuUTF4RsTP5v+ZdHEOwP4u9S1jMgoPJjUQVGFMnEjGoQxUx78vojkeXXdkM+E0tL6iW9nVCYdNbu1ILwm8v/AyKxPoXp0H
0isklho5TdOS54Iy36nudf0LW3r+g2MSIVuuPj3MsIH6AZWCKAJtJM8W3dfd5R84rxXQu9bYlfomlLHXLhnKU5N5HxNflAgDK9aRj4zuiDEA9z2k9lv9Qdk1IMhnfDQl1H0byjSi4w41j6Lfs416l7PZ4doSDYdj1aMVBT8LoK2ASiFMpD5CGGYnJpfo5psm+YhNb3w
7s9FCs5bSlUaSdjPrR+HJ5/12lz2O6RLQNQE4SLPlEF4ZODLGFecCw9Pm/Ph+AJ9cvDGBMBH8BsoqYY99znRkNVYhvJk+e0bdPLtFS2bRPSsc85c34lbHHctf66bw70lsnnLWv/HhyNWb3HYrJoNlAxgxeWKOduiMEIGQlv1dWFCM7EdRrmTz48J/fgrpBVIA/K8wjl
UP5LpF5BZLSOXUDVPYaiwYtw/ZbLTFpmxeAAUVmT9bohJel8tnJVfBzlMRUbqo9uco746kBQLBY7R3OFWbAR4fzHtaiZJecgGKgXf0Z4Tx6A9K4tU0xnZXvI/paNdvb3tvE4qN6sDfCkNzdmLEqdVvUql1lBzQn/nVwmoPrXeGHXPQtRRLUnItQeWMCsdOeFFr3WXs6
UVhyE+ZMaUwNZBFdL+SOSthAFiRv3hHbB34e0oMjvb4vB5yO85ivtM40W/17YV/juxORmCXNT8l1uFZ4TPfsiDTc/GcHjishdJdtlVbtD81xAD4Qgk8TCy9qhzZ/HMyn6jnoFPdoSsTxtam9mIWWet0UBHscltLTkbkgNnS/pAPPbKDI5bDYlZt/b/9yFC9n21qTnkJ
n+ftfmDk19si8XbvM2/xGhsy52Kn7uBOz38U/QDLvBeqrn+evBy9otWNxLqmHXxcUNin6nF7hNQiyKpBQHrEHaqzWd2hK7kjRptLP3zQ4m0jCP8NbA2s/aWH/ZJWczeLvyHolwgp/v6jy8U1DTDlp40EsEiHMmbuGUvu3SdYGnKPhkwp1zqgcixjdxkPJj+oIHhrLi+
wHdRR65/lXVnH/89LG5xhnvGyjvEmzVyRdjDJJaQKzTKg9l4euHaSUP1F2ZGgQvXwO6hOUTdEdmv2kpB1yI3eqghq2xaijsysSzQvgQVY9NU/jX3zQ9RUUfMy3eQ6eF7b+Qg3PmQU1dnriVgaD9kL/KEPnu8LbinqxnYo/UP5HXrs08rTohgWJNRCD/ca9oL9GkPdA=
=