spring 2008 delaware sierra club newsletter

8/9/2019 Spring 2008 Delaware Sierra Club Newsletter

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Delaware Sierra NewsA Sierra Club Newsletter about Environmental Matters Important to Delaware March April May 2004Spring 2008

Letter from the Delaware Chapter Chairby Jay Cooperson

The other evening I encountered an old friend,

Nan Norling, who for many years served the

State of Delaware with distinction as chair of the

Public Utilities Commission. Inevitably the conversa-

tion turned to the controversy over the proposed

wind farm off the states Atlantic coast. She

remarked that the current struggle was the reverse of

that which has occurred in some places over theinstallation of wind turbines. Here the proposal has

widespread public support, and the endorsement of

the public agencies that reviewed the plans at the

express directions of the legislature.

TheNew York Times on Sunday, April 6th noted

that there was a major shift in the thinking of econo-

mists and scientists that the problem of global

warming was not going to be solved only by impos-

ing caps of emissions of green house emissions, as

important as that remains. World growth in popula-

tion and the rapidly expanding economies of

developing countries, like China and India, make itclear that of energy demand will grow. The fostering

of alternative technologies has become even more

imperative.

We understand that legislators at the state and

local level rarely make decisions under the direct

influence of international trends. But the forces of

global change do filter through the national govern-

In This IssueLetter from the Chair 1

Sierra Delaware Land Use Committee 2Newark Explores Cool Cities 3

Southern DE Group Meeting Notes 3

Annual Membership Meeting Notice 4

Delaware Chapter Events Calendar 5

Political Committee Updates 6

The Free-Trade Fly In The Ointment 7

Introducing Intern Caitlin Reese 7

Delaware Chapter And Southern

Delaware Group Leaders 8

Sierra Club - Delaware Chapter

100 West 10th Street, Suite 1107

Wilmington, DE 19801

NON-PROFIT

U.S. POSTAGE

PAID

WILMINGTON, DE

PERMIT NO. 740

ment and regional compacts; we see emerge agree-

ments between states to set levels for energy supplied

from alternative sources. One such source is wind

power. Competition will occur between states in this

region for such power. Locations for wind powered

turbines do not exist in Delaware and competition for

wind power from the hills of Pennsylvania, even the

Midwest and elsewhere will grow. Private property

owners frequently resist the development of windfarms. Energy loss from transmission lines with

todays technology remains high. These and other

factors undercut Delmarva Powers claims that it can

now, and in the future, obtain all the wind-based

energy it wants from distant sources at a low cost.

Yet some legislators continue to place obstacles in

the path of utilizing offshore wind. They have done

so by holding hearings that have been tendentious,

even hiring counsel at public expense to engage in

hostile examination of Delaware citizens and organi-

zations and place limitations on witnesses opposed to

the position of Delmarva and the hearings chair, Sen-ator Harris McDowell (D), Wilmington.

Sound environmental policy also requires that the

governmental process be open and that powers vest-

ed in the legislature not be delegated by them to

agencies which are not responsible to them or the cit-

izens of this state. That is exactly what will occur if

Continued on page 2


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Continued from page 1

the house, senate and eventually the governor were to

approve Senate Bill 228 introduced by Senator

McDowell and others. This proposed bill would

make the Sustainable Energy Utility (SEU) an

agency without responsibility to the legislative or

executive branches of government, rife with the

potential for conflicts of interest, and the power that

will come from revenue generated by the sale of car-

bon dioxide (CO2) emission allowances. We can look

to the current investigations in the state of Alabama

to see the result of such conflicts and, close to home,

the abuses that occurred not long ago within the

Delaware River and Bay Authority (DRBA).

Members of the Delaware Sierra Club have raisedserious questions about the propriety of the multi-

state sale of such allowances and this policy must be

debated, both on the local and the national level. For

the moment the SEU exists. If the SEU is to provide

any interim value while we develop long term energy

solutions, than it must be organized properly, with

transparency, full oversight and a governing board

and staff that cannot benefit directly or indirectly

from its policies and operations.

Sierra Delaware Land Use Committee Report

Delaware Chair LetterContinued

by Dave Keifer, Sr.

The Land Use Committee is working to develop a

program that will advance the policies of the

Club and the Chapter, provide a variety of projects

to match various members interests, and improve

the quality of life in Delaware.The Chapter has a long history in land use issues

and existing policies and positions may be found on

the clubs web site, along with relevant policies of

the Sierra Club.

The primary focus of the Committees work ini-

tially will be a review of Delawares planning

legislation at the State and local (county and munici-

pal) levels. The original State Planning Act was

passed by the General Assembly in 1961 (Laws of

Delaware Chapter 184, pages 542 553). New Cas-

tle County and the municipalities had planning and

zoning authority prior to that; Kent and SussexCounties got enabling legislation in 1968. The State

Planning Act was repealed but various pieces of leg-

islation have restored parts of the concept. However,

there has not been a comprehensive review since the

Council of State Governments drafted the 1961 pro-

posal.

Another issue that could be developed if there is

adequate member interest is sea level rise and shore-

line erosion. There is much talk about globalwarming and resultant sea level rise. Without engag-

ing in that debate one way or the other, the fact is

that the sea rises and the shoreline moves landward

and land use policy and regulatory programs need to

operate in conjunction with that knowledge, not

merely keep paying people to rebuild structures

demolished by natural forces.

There is also the matter of the required periodic

updating of local comprehensive plans and their

implementation which needs the oversight of a con-

servation-oriented organization.

If you are interested in becoming involved in this

important program, email me at [email protected]

or call 302-678-2612. The Land Use Committee is

looking for members in all three Counties.


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With the federal governments inaction on the

issue of climate change, local governments

are taking the lead in making communities more

sustainable. In February, a group of concerned

Newarkers gathered to discuss this issue under the

framework of the Sierra Clubs Cool Cities pro-gram.

The major goal of the Cool Cities program is to

encourage mayors and local leaders throughout the

country to sign the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection

Agreement to reduce global warming carbon dioxide

pollution in their cities to 7 percent below 1990 lev-

els by 2012. To date, over 400 mayors have signed

the agreement, representing 61 million Americans.

Upon signing the Agreement, cities are then

charged with assessing current practices, developing

an action plan, making changes, and evaluating suc-

cess. Cities across the country have found that they

can not only reduce their carbon footprint, but

reduce costs over the long term. Newark is a perfect

place to initiate these changes.

At the first meeting in Newark, we discussed the

overall program and future action to be taken. Cool

Cities was then presented to the Newark Conserva-tion Advisory Commission in March to discuss the

best route for accomplishing the goals of the group.

Although the CAC has previously discussed Cool

Cities, it is looking for leadership from the Sierra

Club and will act in an advisory capacity for the

Cool Cities Committee.

Interested in finding out more? Check out sierra-

club.org/coolcities or seattle.gov/mayor/climate for

the Mayors Climate Protection Agreement. More

help and support is needed! To become more

involved in the Newark effort, contact Ezra Temko

at [email protected].

Newark Explores Cool Cities Participation

reported by Ron Zink

Nick DiPasquale, club member and activist,

brought the Southern Delaware Group up to

date on environmental issues and what is happening

at the state level at the groups monthly meeting at

TGIF, Thursday, March 6, in Dover. Nick was filling

in for a member of Senator McDowells office who

canceled at the last moment and Dave Keifer, chair-man of the newly formed Land Use Committee, who

was unable to attend.

The group has grown through the year to 30 reg-

ulars attending, along with several members of other

environmental groups that share similar interests to

ours. Other visitors to this months meeting were

Joyce Henderson, Julie Price, Kathleen Kent-

Scholten, Thomas, Petra and Alica Myers.

Nicks briefing included the states position on

wind power development. He felt that a recommen-

dation should be coming out of the senate hearingssoon. He also tried to fill the club in on land use and

how it is being abused here in the state.

Members of the group discussed the many and

varied activities they are working on. New members

were invited to attend all meetings to learn more

about activities in which they might be interested in

participating.

Carol Taylor brought the club up to speed on the

activities of the Cool Cities program. After the meet-

ing, Carol Frietto, an almost-new member, when

asked if she had decided what she would like to do,

stated that Ms.Taylor has really inspired her and was

looking forward to becoming active in that group.

Ron Zink read an article from the Dover State

News, that quoted Tony DePrima, city manager, that

the citys challenge was to meet the Cool Cities

agreement Dover recently signed. He was in refer-ence to the building of a new library Green.

The article explained that Cool Cities is a

National Sierra Club-sponsored program in which

municipalities pledge to take steps for better envi-

ronmental and energy efficiency.

Dovers commitment spurred Mr. DePrima to

challenge all city department heads to come up with

ways to save energy and to be more environmentally

friendly. The city goal is to reduce air pollution by 7

percent .

A member of Senator Carpers office, Larry

Windley was scheduled to address the group at its

April 3rd meeting.

For more information on this active group, please

visit www.delaware.sierraclub.org for upcoming

event dates, meeting minutes and more.

Southern Delaware Group Recent Meeting Notes

Visit us on the Web!www.delaware.sierraclub.org


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ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING

You do not want to miss this one!

SATURDAY, APRIL 2612 PM to 3 PMFellowship Hall

Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Newark420 Willa Road, Newark

12 PM- POTLUCK!Bring something tasty to share!

PM Keynote Speakere Director of

tral

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s YOUR chapter - Review of past

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1Mary Anne Hitt, ExecutivAppalacian Voices , a nonprofit organization that brings people

together to solve the environmental problems having the greatest impact on the cen

and southern Appalachian Mountains. The organization works with communities across Appalachia to tackle twomajor causes of climate change: mountaintop removal coal mining and the construction of new coal-fired powerplants. Their online campaign iLoveMountains.org uses Google Earth to lift the cloak of secrecy that has allowecoal companies to flatten almost 1 million acres, destroy 474 mountains, and bury over 1,000 miles of streamsdevastating local communities in one of the world's biodiversity hotspots. Mary Anne is currently a fellow of theEnvironmental Leadership Program. Her previous experience includes working as executive director of both TEcology Center and the Southern Appalachian Biodiversity Project. She was a recipient of the Len and SandySargent Environmental Advocacy Award at the University of Montana, where she received her Master's of Sciencein environmental studies, and was a Whittle Scholar at the University of Tennessee and founder of the campuorganization Students Promoting Environmental Action in Knoxville. She grew up in the mountains of east

Tennessee, just outside Gatlinburg and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

2 PM General DiscussionThis iyear, Action Items, Discussion ofUpcoming Year, Delawares State othe Environment


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Earth Day Tuesday, April 22, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Volun-

teers are needed for a Tree & Shrub Reforestation

Planting Project. The project will be at Kent Countys

Big Oak Park is located South of Smyrna, Delaware,

just East of SR 1 (or Highway 13) on Big Oak Road.

To register as a volunteer and for more information,please call Glenn Wayne McCarty, Kent County

Division of Parks, 302-744-2489 or e-mail

[email protected]. Volunteers may also

register on the day of the event at the Project Site.

Delaware Nature Societys Environmental Perspec-

tives of Gubernatorial Candidates Tuesday, April

22, 6 p.m.-9 p.m. At the Ashland Nature Center, Barley

Mill and Brackenville Roads, Hockessin, DE 19707.

Pre-Registration required: $15 ($10 for DNS mem-

bers). Beverages provided. Send in your questions and

join us at a candidates debate. Please reserve early

since attendance is limited to 200. Mail reservations tothe above address and endorse your enclosed check to

Delaware Nature Society - Candidates Debate.

Questions for candidates must be in written form. They

may be submitted to DSN prior to the beginning of the

program. DNS moderators will organize the questions

and present them to candidates. We encourage you toenclose questions with your reservation. More informa-

tion at www.delawarenaturesociety.org/locations.html.

If you have questions, contact DNS at 302-239-2334

and [email protected]

Annual Membership Meeting April 26, 12 p.m.-3p.m. At Fellowship Hall, Unitarian Universalist Fel-

lowship of Newark, 420 Willa Road, Newark. If there

is one meeting of the Sierra Club you attend all year,

make it this one! The Sierra Club will be having a

potluck, a keynote speaker Mary Anne Hitt execu-

tive director of Appalachian Voices, and then an updateon what weve been doing this past year and what our

plans are for the future. Join the discussion and the

fun! Mark your calendars now. For more information,

contact Ezra at [email protected] or 302-

981-3007.

Dover Social Thursday, May 1, 6:30 p.m.. At TGIF

at Route 13 at Lockerman Street. On the first Thurs-

day of every month, there is a social in Dover. These

have been great events for socializing with fellow Sier-

rans as well as educational. Last month in March we

had Sean Finnegan, assistant to Senator McDowell,

speak with us. We have lots more great programmingplanned. For updates and more information, contact

Ron Zink at [email protected] or 302-735-

8896.

Political Committee Meeting Thursday, May 8, 7

p.m. General meeting of the Political Committee Meet-

ing. Meet at the Corbit Calloway Library in Odessa.

For further information contact the chapter office at

302-351-2776 and leave a message or email

[email protected].

Trussum Pond Outing Sunday, May 11, 11 a.m.

Rated easy. Join our Anne Arundel Maryland Group fora paddle through the northernmost cypress forest in theUSA on this small pond near Laurel, Delaware. View

massive, old-growth cypress trees, waterfowl, beaver

and other swamp critters. Participants must supply

their own kayak or canoe; Sierra Club requires all par-

ticipants to wear a PFD while on the water. Launch

boats at 11 AM; trip should take an hour or two.

Heavy/steady rain or high wind cancels; rain date isMay 17. Leader: Dan Soeder, [email protected],

410-969-9465.

Executive Committee Meeting May 19. General

meeting of the Executive Committee. Meet at theWestminster Community Center in Dover. Carpooling

is available. For further information contact Jay Coop-

erson at [email protected] or 302-571-0660.

Horseshoe Crab / Shorebird Festival Saturday,May 24. This event is hosted by the Town of Milton &

Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge. Visit www.his-

toricmilton.com/events.html or call 302-684-1101 for

more information.

Dover Social Thursday, June 5, 6:30 p.m. At TGIF at

Route 13 at Lockerman Street. On the first Thursday

of every month, there is a social in Dover. These have

been great events for socializing with fellow Sierransas well as educational. Last month in March we had

Sean Finnegan, assistant to Senator McDowell, speak

with us. We have lots more great programming

planned. For updates and more information, contact

Ron Zink at [email protected] or 302-735-

8896.

Conservation Committee Meeting Monday, June

16, 7 p.m. General meeting of the Conservation Com-

mittee. Meet at the Westminster Community Center inDover. Carpooling is available. For further information

contact Tim OConnor at [email protected] or 302-

697-746.

Gubernatorial Candidates Forum Tuesday, August

19, 6:30 p.m.-9 p.m. At the Jewish Community Center

in Wilmington (101 Garden of Eden, off Rt 202). The

Sierra Club of Delawares Political Committee is host-

ing a gubernatorial debate on environmental issues. All

filed candidates have told us they are planning onbeing there! Save the date! For further information

contact the chapter office at 302-351-2776 and leave a

message or email [email protected]

Delaware Chapter Sierra Club Events Calendar


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Political Committee Updates

Dont forget to check our website regularly for updates, links, and political commentary from

Sierra Club. http://delaware.sierraclub.org/PoliticalComm

Gubernatorial Debate: Hold This Date

We have received confirmation from John Carney, Jack Markell, and Mike Protack that they will

participate in the Gubernatorial Candidate Debate sponsored by the Sierra Clubs Political Committee.

This debate will be hosted on Tuesday August 19th

, 2008 at 7pm at the Jewish Community Center of

Wilmington. Doors open at 6:30. Please see the bottom of this page for a reminder that you can tear

off and put on your refrigerator so you wont miss the event.

Questions for the candidates can be submitted through email ([email protected]), calling

the chapters office (302-425-4911), and will also be collected at the debate.

More details to follow in the next chapter newsletter.

Voter Score Card Team is looking for Interviewers

The Political Committee is seeking volunteers to help interview candidates seeking a position in the

General Assembly. The results of this process will be used on our website to inform Delaware voters

about the environmental positions of the candidates. Volunteers from each county are needed, with the

interviewing taking place over the summer. If you would like to find out more, please email

[email protected].

Get Involved Future Political Committee Meetings

All meetings start at 7pm

Wednesday April 16th, 2008Borders (Churchmans Crossing)

Thursday May 8th, 2008 Odessa Library

Wednesday June 4th, 2008 - Borders (Churchmans Crossing)

Thursday July 10th, 2008 Odessa Library

Wednesday August 6th, 2008 - Borders (Churchmans Crossing) CUT HERE

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SAVE THIS DATE: TUESDAY AUGUST 19TH

, 2008 @ 7PM

DELAWARE SIERRA CLUB PRESENTS:

GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATES DEBATE ON THE ENVIRONMENT

John Carney (D) Jack Markell (D) Mike Protack(R)

JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER

101 Garden of Eden Rd # 102

http://delaware.sierraclub.org/PoliticalCommhttp://delaware.sierraclub.org/PoliticalCommmailto:[email protected]:[email protected]://delaware.sierraclub.org/PoliticalComm


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Sierra Club Membership

Application Coupon

New Member Name(s)

Address 1

Address 2

City

State Zip

Phone

E-mail

Membership Categories (circle one)INDIVIDUAL JOINT

Introductory $25 NA

Regular $35 $43

Supporting $50 $58

Contributing $100 $108

Life $1000 $1250

Senior $15 $23

Student $15 $23

All dues include subscription to Sierra ($7.50) and chapter

publications ($1). Dues are not tax deductible.

Mail to: Sierra Club, P.O. Box 52968,

Boulder, CO 80321-2968FrepNo: F94QW58001

Introducing Caitlin Reese,Spring Semester Intern

University of Delaware student Caitlin Reese

has joined the Sierra Club-Delaware Chapter

as an intern this spring. Caitlins major is resource

economics with a minor in political science. Her

interests lie in energy and environmental policy.

She reports that she is passionate about the environ-

ment. Her knowledge and skills will be an asset to

our Chapter.

by the Sierra Club Responsible Trade Committee

Globalization is the frame in which to address

climate change. It is the source of the problem,

now trying to present itself as the solution.

The World Bank, World Trade Organization and

other multinational proselytizers of free trade areseeking to use the climate crisis as a way to bring

new life to their decades-old agendas. Their priori-

ties subsidies, market access and export-oriented

development will continue to be at the top of the

list as they push to classify remediation of climate

impacts as a service under the General Agreement

on Trade in Services (GATS), making environmental

regulations subsidiary to trade regulations. More-

over, clean energy policies will be seen as barriers to

trade, subject to WTO rules. The outcome will

remain the same the rich North will benefit themost and give lip service to the global South, which

will continue to suffer under new globalization/cli-

mate policies. And the planet will suffer increasing

environmental degradation due to policies that put

corporations and profit first, this time in the name of

fighting climate change.

This is why the WTO is precisely the wrong

venue in which to make climate change policy,

handing down exactly the policy decisions we dont

need on the planet-saving technology that countries

need access to.

Already, the U.S. and EU are calling to eliminatetariffs and other non-tariff trade barriers for goods

and services that help protect the environment and

fight climate change. It is a lucrative market the

EU states that trade in green goods and services is

growing twice as fast as global merchandise trade as

a whole and scrapping tariffs on solar panels and

wind turbines may sound like a good idea, but most

of these items will still be made in a low-wage

country and need to be shipped thousands of miles

via cargo ships using tons of bunker fuel. Unless

WTO investment and patent rules that limit technol-ogy transfer are changed, developing countries will

get no assist in developing such capacity them-

selves.

As the WTO and other multilateral institutions

grab for a piece of the climate pie, the Responsible

Trade Committee will include corporate globaliza-

tions aggravation of global warming as part of our

educational campaign on trade and the environment.

We will also build on the Blue Green Alliance and

The Free-Trade Fly in the Green Ointmentwork more with groups such as the Apollo Alliance.

These organizations are calling for climate solutions

that create jobs, and these should be jobs that go

beyond just installing solar panels but foster the

development of domestic green manufacturing tech-

nologies.


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Sierra Club Delaware Chapter Change Of Address FormAttach old address mailing label:

New Address

City State Zip

Phone E-mail

Mail to: Sierra Club, P.O. Box 52968, Boulder, CO 80321-2968

Chapter Office

100 West 10th Street, Suite 1107


351-2776

Chapter StaffMember & Community Engagement Coordinator:

Ezra Temko 981-3007

[email protected]

Chapter Appointed OfficersChair: Jay Cooperson [email protected]

Vice Chair: Tim OConnor 697-7466

[email protected]

Secretary: Matt Urban 661-2050

[email protected]

Treasurer: Lorri Fencer [email protected]: Tim OConnor 697-7466

[email protected]

Cool Cities: Ron Zink 735-8996

[email protected]

Energy: Chad Tolman 478-3516

[email protected]

Land Use: David Keifer [email protected]

Litigation: David Keifer [email protected]

Membership: June Satterfield 653-6596

[email protected]

Outings: Jennifer Egan 453-0827

[email protected]: Debbie Heaton

[email protected]

Pollution: Al Denio 455-0389

[email protected]

Web Master: Mike Casale [email protected]

Additional Chapter ExCom MembersRich Anthony 645-1732

[email protected]

Dick Bewick 736-1670

[email protected]

Southern Delaware Group (SDG)

Appointed OfficersVice Chair: Harry Haon 656-4582

[email protected]

Conservation: Harry Haon 656-4582

[email protected]

Secretary: Carrie Bennett 732-3358

Additional Southern Delaware Group (SDG)ExCom Members

Dick Bewick 736-1670

[email protected]

Steve Callanen 539-0635

Mable Granke

David Keifer [email protected]

Barbara Murray [email protected]

Rich Anthony 645-1732

[email protected]

Terri Usuki 436-2296

[email protected]

Delaware Chapter and Southern DelawareGroup Leaders

8

All phone numbers are Area Code 302

This paper contains 30% post-

consumer recycled content

The Delaware Chapter of the Sierra Club publishes theDelaware Sierra Newsquarterly. This publication is writ-ten and produced entirely by volunteers. Ideas expressed

in the Delaware Sierra Newsare those of the columnistsand may not necessarily reflect the position of the Sierra

Club. Limited time constraints of an all-volunteer staff donot always allow for full data corroboration. Send materi-

als for submission to the Sierra Club, 100 W 10th St, Ste.1107, Wilmington, DE 19801 or by e-mail to our editor.Summer Issue Deadline: June 30

Editor: Jay LaCorte [email protected]

Production: Susan Oldenburg [email protected]

spring 2008 delaware sierra club newsletter

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