The Yodeler

The San Francisco Bay Chapter Sierra Club Office in Berkeley, CA

Chapter seeks director

The Sierra Club Bay Chapter is hiring a new Chapter director. We are seeking an innovative leader with the vision and experience to help lead the Sierra Club into the future. The successful candidate has executive level experience in non-profit management, grassroots organizing, legislative lobbying, electoral campaigns, major gift fundraising and public relations. With 30,000 members, the Sierra Club San Francisco Bay Chapter is the Bay Area’s premier environmental grassroots and political organization with a one hundred year history of leadership in establishing environmental standards for the nation. For details, see … [Read More]

Hikers near Mount Diablo. Photo by Richard Rollins.

Legislation introduced on looming state-park closures

With 70 state parks slated to close this summer due to budget cuts (see July-August 2011, front page), two legislators have introduced bills to lessen the closures’ impact and to install a transparent and public process if the state should need to close any parks in the future. The closures were announced last summer, after the legislature passed the governor’s budget proposal to cut $22 million from the state-park budget. Testimony last year from Department of Parks and Recreation officials at a legislative hearing revealed an embarrassing lack of information and clarity as to how the department determined which of the state’s 278 … [Read More]

Parks

Candlestick Point State Recreation Area in San Francisco, threatened with closure in the governor's budget. Photo courtesy California Department of Parks and Recreation.

Governor’s budget revisions affect toxics and logging, but don’t protect parks

On May 15 Gov. Jerry Brown released the May Revision to his 2012-2013 state budget proposal. The expected budget shortfall for the year has climbed to $15.7 billion. Numerous environmental programs and issues are affected. The governor’s proposal does not changed planned budget cuts to the … [Read More]

Bill introduced to protect Berryessa Snow Mountain Area

Earlier this week, Reps. Mike Thompson, John Garamendi, and Lynn Woolsey introduced the Berryessa Snow Mountain National Conservation Area Act (H.R. 5545). This bill will secure permanent protection of much of the public lands in the Berryessa Snow Mountain region (see May-June 2008 Yodeler, page … [Read More]

Polo Field, Golden Gate Park, SF, looking East

Time running out to protect Golden Gate Park

Update (May 9, 2012): The Final Comments and Responses for the Environmental Impact Report have been released and are available at http://sfplanning.org/index.aspx?page=1828. The hearing is now scheduled for Thu., May 24. On Thu., May 17 24, San Francisco's Planning Commission and Recreation and … [Read More]

Scene from the proposed Patagonian National Park.

Green Friday Potluck: “Creating Chile’s Patagonia National Park: Conservación Patagónica’s model of wilderness protection”

Green Friday Potlucks (Northern Alameda County Group) Friday, June 8 -- "Creating Chile's Patagonia National Park: Conservación Patagónica's model of wilderness protection" Green Friday Potlucks are held on the second Friday of each month at the Sierra Club Office at 2530 San Pablo Ave. in … [Read More]

Vote yes on B in San Francisco–preserve Coit Tower

The San Francisco Recreation and Park Department is pursuing plans to transform San Francisco’s Coit Tower, a publicly owned building in a public park, into a venue for private parties for corporations and wealthy individuals. Proposition B gives San Francisco voters the chance to establish a … [Read More]

Conservation

“Turbulent Blue: Connecting the dots between sea level rise, our beloved Bay & global warming” – Saturday, May 5

Saturday, May 5, noon, Crissy Field, (accessible by Muni lines 28, 30, 43, and 45); we’ll meet across from 924 Old Mason, in the Presidio. Join the Sierra Club, Center for Biological Diversity, Wild Equity Institute, Pacific Institute, and others as we Connect the Dots among global warming, sea-level rise, and their impacts on communities, animals, and plants. We’ll [...]