News Blog

The Angeles Chapter Welcomes New Communications Coordinator Megan Spatz!

William Mulholland, mastermind behind the now 110 year old Los Angeles Aqueduct, spoke these words as water first surged down through the channel and began to make its way towards Southern California. Now over a century later, the region has heeded Mulholland’s order, demanding water at alarming rates and leaving a slew of ecological problems in its wake.

Southern California Cities are moving towards independence from imported water from faraway watersheds and the Bay Delta Estuary. Given the extremes of dry and wet weather with climate change, forward thinking Southern California cities are relying more on local water supplies including fully treating wastewater or sewage to the point that it is cleaner than what comes out of your faucet. These programs are called PURE Water and after extensive research and testing, state issued guidelines finally came out this year.

WeTap and the Sierra Club are the perfect ‘water partners.’ Collaboration and communication are the keys to healthy communities and a clean environment.

Mulch, mulch, mulch! And add compost
This is a key to making every drop of water stretch. Use mulch in your garden! Mulch is a layer of organic material used in the garden to cover bare soil. Mulch is extremely effective in helping the soil to retain moisture, keeping plants cool, and suppressing weeds (which take water from your desired plants). Mulch comes in various forms including wood chips, straw, leaves, compost, etc. In the fall, instead of throwing away your leaves, save them for your garden. Similarly, you can call your local arborist and ask them to deliver wood chips to your property (free resources).

Angeles Chapter’s Water Committee’s newer member Shirley Nixon, a former public interest environmental lawyer from WA state, ponders her continuing discoveries of differences between Washington & California’s approaches to water management.

The Whittier Narrows Dam is an earthen dam constructed in 1957 by the United States Army Corps of Engineers. The dam stretches across a narrow gap between the Montebello Hills and the Whittier Hills at the confluence of the Rio Hondo and San Gabriel Rivers. Rosemead Boulevard (California State Route 19) crosses over the top of the dam and passes through the flood plain bordered by both rivers. The main purpose of the dam is to provide flood protection to more than 1.2 million people living in communities below the dam while also capturing  storm water for groundwater recharge.

Bringing awareness to public fountains, the safety of tap water and the issues with single use plastic bottles is a key to a healthy and environmentally sound future. The City of Los Angeles is proud to host the 2028 Olympics. WeTap’s project, 2028 for 2028, identifies 2000+ cites using scientific analysis and mapping, as well as common sense to improve access to public drinking fountains in Los Angeles, focusing on outdoor public locations with high value to communities.

For decades, raw sewage from Tijuana, Mexico has, and continues, to flow across the border into San Diego, California.  This discharge flows into the Tijuana River Valley, and ultimately to the Pacific Ocean.  This pollution has negatively impacted the Tijuana River Valley and the Tijuana River Estuary, one of the last remaining estuaries in California, and the beaches.  Unhealthy concentrations of fecal indicator bacteria has forced the County of San Diego to close 10 miles of beach access from the US-Mexico Border all the way to the beaches of Coronado.

The 2024 California legislative session brings a variety of plastic bills. It's pivotal to bolster our efforts in Irvine with statewide energy. Join us on March 16 for a hybrid Plastic Waste Reduction Town Hall co-hosted by Councilmember Treseder and the Sierra Club. 

Over the past year, Swell Energy has installed 36 home energy systems for Sierra Club members, marking a significant step towards reducing carbon footprints and promoting renewable energy solutions.

The Los Angeles Aerial Rapid Transit (LA ART) project, also known as the Dodger Stadium Gondola or The McCourt Gondola, continues to be a viable project; however, multiple entities must approve the project in order for it to come to fruition. This is useful news as the project continues to face opposition from community members and organizations due to the lack of community input and transparency throughout the planning process and its harmful environmental impact on the area, particularly the Los Angeles State Historic Park.

Elizabeth Neat Shares Sensory Strategies and Safety Insights from the ICO Retreat at Harwood Lodge!