Sierra Club
Orange County Group
One Earth, One Chance.![[Dividing Line Image]](div.gif){kind=small}
The Orange County Group Conservation Committee meets at 7:15 pm on the
third Tuesday of each month. For more information call Gail Prothero at 949-347-1255.
The Orange County Group is one of numerous smaller regional groups within the Angeles
Chapter (L.A. and Orange Counties) of the Sierra Club. For more information on conservation
activities in L.A. and Orange Counties, check out the COAL
CANYON WILDLIFE CORRIDOR SECURED!
On June 29, 2001, The State Department of Parks and Recreation purchased a
32-acre parcel in Coal Canyon that is a
critical link in the wildlife corridor between the Santa Ana Mountains and Chino Hills State
Park. The State purchased the property from Mancha Industries, which had planned
development that would be bad news for the mountain lion and other creatures.
Wildlife biologists have said that the loss of this site to development would likely cause
a cascade of extinctions inside Chino Hills State park—including the mountain lion.
Claire Schlotterbeck, chair of Hills for Everyone, led a coalition of environmentalists and
state officials that raised over $2 million. Last year, the State bought 649 acres of open space
in Coal Canyon from the St. Clair Company, which owned this parcel that was approved for
residential development. The State must maintain these
properties in a natural state if the corridor is to be viable for wildlife.
Bill Corcoran, conservation coordinator for the Sierra Club, says,
"We should recognize the incredible work of Claire in doggedly pursuing
funds for this critical habitat acquisition."
However, wild open space is still threatened in north OC. To complete saving the Tecate
cypress, we need to save Gypsum and Fremont Canyons. Please call 714-879-3471 or email
Connie Spenger if you are interested in either
of these projects. Also, Coyote Hills in north Orange County is a current issue. The last
500 acres of coastal sage in these hills are now in danger of being destroyed by roads and
housing tracts. This is a great hiking area close to home.
Help save the Coyote Hills and their beautiful wildlife!
OPEN SPACE, DEVELOPMENT, THE IRVINE COMPANY AND THE CITY OF ORANGE
In October 2000, the Irvine Company received approval of its general plan to develop
“Santiago Hills-Phase Two.” Chris Koontz, then a 19-year-old college student, filed a
California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) lawsuit. The settlement agreement arising from
this lawsuit provided for a number of environmental protections.
The actual construction of this phase, 1746 homes on 496 acres, was delayed until further
approvals of tract maps and a runoff management plan (ROMP). The Irvine Company is now seeking
this approval, and hopes that construction permits will now be issued so that grading and
general construction activities can begin.
In addition, the Irvine Company is asking the Orange City Council to approve an additional
2400 homes on 1000 more acres, including areas directly contiguous to Irvine Lake. This is
referred to as the “East Orange Planned Community.” For a general description of the Irvine
Company’s proposal, visit their website at http://www.eastoforange.com/
The Sierra Club Orange Hills Task Force was established to participate in the planning
process, raise issues and provide alternatives to the sprawling, residential development that
is being proposed. As Chris Koontz has stated, “The Irvine Company gave us a wonderful gift
of open space, but now they want to ruin it by placing wasteful sprawl communities right in
the middle of it, near Irvine Lake. The result will include:
The Sierra Club Orange Hill Task Force will fight to protect quality of life for local
homeowners and residents. With your help, we can preserve the Orange Hills for our families,
for our future! Join us at meetings the fourth Saturday of each month at 9:00 a.m. in
Orange; for more information, contact the task force chairman, John Ufkes.
Angeles Chapter Conservation pages
Public Transit in Orange County
A well-run transit system could change the nature of traffic, land use,
and air quality in our county and the Southern California region. While there is substantial
bus service in many parts of the county, some sections remain unserved, and night and weekend
service are skeletal. There is very little coordination amongst the different transit
providers and accurate transit information is sometimes hard to get. Bus stops do not always
have amenities such as benches, shelters, phones and night lighting. On the positive side,
transit vehicles are clean, temperature-controlled, and most operators are pleasant and helpful.
The Orange County Transit Authority buses are generally on time. The prices are very reasonable.
Metrolink trains are generally on time. Metrolink serves more Orange County cities than Amtrak,
and prices are lower, but they only run at peak hours on weekdays. There is no weekend service.
Amtrak trains run seven days a week until approximately 10 p.m. Unfortunately, there is usually
a 20% chance that they will not be on time, so they are best to use when on-time performance
is not crucial.
There is a master transit routing service, similar to Mapquest, available at http://www.scag.ca.gov/transit/
Be forewarned that this service is the most useful for those who already know their way around a little bit,
because it can be inaccurate about 20% of the time. If you are unsure, check the results with an experienced transit user.
Contact information for the major transit providers in Orange County:
Orange County Transit Authority Here are the 4 public groups we know of working specifically on transit-related issues in Orange County:
Transit Advocates of Orange County (TAOC)
Rail Advocates of Orange County
Auto-Free Orange County
Santa Ana Pedestrian Safety Task Force
TEACH YOUR OLD BERMUDA LAWN NEW TRICKS TO CONSERVE! Southern Californians love their Bermuda grass lawns. We lavish much attention on them or
pay someone else to do it for us. But our lawns often are an environmental liability in this
semiarid climate. We water them frequently. We fertilize them frequently. We pollute as we
mow and blow them frequently. And all those clippings frequently go straight to the landfills!
Does it have to be this way? Is the only Green alternative to pull out the lawn and plant
drought-resistant native plants?
As I tried to 'decommission' a large patch of hybrid Bermuda grass by hand, I discovered
vital clues that led to an alternative approach to Bermuda grass management. This grass has
really deep roots and is actually quite drought resistant! I recalled seeing Bermuda grass
along the side of roads in rural southern Arizona, where it survived only on pavement runoff
from very infrequent rains. This discovery led me to practice alternative management
techniques that save water, time, money, and reduce air and water pollution. The lawn still
looks like a smooth green plush carpet that will preserve neighborhood peace and property values!
Keeping It Green (in more ways than one!)
Getting It Green (in more ways than one!)
Plant roots proliferate in zones with water. Many plants, including Bermuda grass, can be
trained to send their roots deep to capture long-lasting soil moisture after heavy, infrequent
watering. This training process takes time, often up to a year. Pampered poodles are not
turned into self-reliant coyotes overnight. Reduce your watering frequency slowly as you
increase the duration when you do water. Spring is the best time to start training your lawn.
You'll be glad when the process is complete. You lawn will need care less often, saving time
and money. It will consume fewer natural resources. It will generate less fertilizer-laden
runoff. And you'll be left wondering what our traditional horticultural experts and the
legions of professional lawn maintenance crews are doing. Intensive lawn management is in
their business interest, not yours.
Buying and driving the Toyota Prius: My personal experience What's it like, taking the technological leap forward and buying a new hybrid-engine car? Is the Toyota Prius the right car for you? My observations may help if you're thinking about a new car in the near future.
Back when I was in high school around 1970, I never imagined that our cars would still have piston-driven, internal-combustion engines in the 21st Century. There was already talk of a variety of alternatives back then, such as batteries, fuel cells, hybrid engines, turbines, flywheels, and rotary engines. As the 1990s closed out, I was appalled at the lack of fundamental progress in automotive technology. When I became aware in early 1999 that Toyota was readying the hybrid-engine Prius for the U.S. market, I was interested.
In Fall 1999, I made contact with the automotive technology department at my workplace, Cypress College. They have a cooperative training program with Toyota, and I thought they would have more information. In December, they had a car on campus, and I was able to look it over and take a test ride. It was a model for the Japanese market, where they drive on the left side, so the steering wheel was on the right side of the car. But it was a very attractive small car, with maximimized space for passengers inside the car. With Toyota's excellent reliability record in mind, I decided to replace my 1985 Camry sedan with a new Prius.
In early July 2000, Toyota started taking U.S. orders for Prius on their website (prius.toyota.com). These cars come in one model, with four color options. Beyond that, the only options were a CD player and floor mats. None of the local dealers had any cars on their lot or in the showroom. After ordering on-line, I completed the deal at my local dealer, Toyota of Orange. They took a deposit of $1000 towards a $20,450 car (price excluding taxes, title, registration fee, etc.), and told me to expect a wait of at least a month. I ended up waiting two and a half months before my car showed up. (I understand that the wait is about four months now, and Toyota is adding two new color options.) When the car arrived, the local dealer got it ready quickly, and there were no hidden charges, add-on packages, or price changes.
The Prius has received numerous write-ups in general-interest and auto industry magazines, so I'm not going to go over all its technological innovations here. Consumer Reports magazine recently (December 2000) had a detailed review, which was very well done except that their city mileage figure of 38 MPG is too low! I agree with their assessment that Prius is a very well-designed car. It has ample room for four large adults, with excellent visibility. The instruments and controls are clearly arranged and follow standard expectations. The small video touchscreen mounted in the center dashboard console does take some getting used to; it displays audio system information, as well as engine power source and fuel consumption information. It became less distracting after a couple months of driving. The radio displays sideband information (station ID, market category) for strong stations that supply it. For example, the FM stations are automatically organized into several categories (classical-jazz, easy listening, country, talk etc.) and you can scroll among and select them using the touchscreen. A security system is standard, as is a transponder embedded in the key. All in all, I've been happy and favorably impressed with my Prius so far. It's a great commuter car, and deserves serious consideration by anyone who is concerned about local and global air pollution and global warming issues. Also, Prius is an automotive value: Toyota's selling price is apparently far under the manufacturing costs (just the opposite of the deal on large SUVs, where the manufacturer and dealer may pocket $10000 profit on each one sold!).
It's about where your money goes
Do you know where your power comes from? Legislation
recently passed with support of the Sierra Club requires that all electricity providers
disclose to consumers the fuels with which "their" electricity is generated. In
1995, electricity generated in California came from:
(Renewables include geothermal, biomass, wind, and solar
power resources.) In addition, approximately one-sixth of the state's electricity was
imported from outside California, the sources of which are difficult to identify.
Whatever happened to public policy?
The Sierra Club has labored to persuade Congress, state
legislators and regulators to insist that utilities build cleaner, more environmentally
friendly power plants. Have we now given up? Are we now at the mercy of the
"free" market? No. Sierra Club activists and staff continue to push for laws and
regulations which would reduce the threat of global warming, air pollution, fish kills and
other environmental ills related to energy. We promote public policies advancing energy
conservation at every opportunity. For better or worse, the electricity industry is
changing. Each of us can do our small part for the Earth by making sure that when we pay our electric bill, our money goes where it does the least damage.
The Orange County Conservation Committee and the Angeles Chapter support retention of the current nighttime (11 PM- 7 AM) curfew on flight operations at John Wayne Airport after 2005. The number of daily takeoff/landing operations should not be increased after 2005.
Annual limits on passenger capacity should not be increased in any way that
would increase the daily number of flights to/from John Wayne Airport after 2005.
Additionally, the Orange County Conservation Committee and the Angeles Chapter support the efforts of local communities around El Toro Marine Air Base to create a large Central Park as one of the best nonairport uses. Airports should only be built in communities that want and support them. Public tax money should not be used against residents' wishes for public relations activities, where the consequences would bring more air, water, and ocean pollution. Also, public officials involved in the planning process should hold open forums that maximize public
participation.
For more information on El Toro Airport, see the El Toro Airport Info Site.
(714) 636-RIDE ext. 10,1 or (800) COMMUTE ext. 1,1,2, then 10,1
Metrolink (800) COMMUTE ext. 1,4
Amtrak (800) USA-RAIL
Airport Bus (800) 772-5299
Greyhound (800) 231-2222
Laguna Beach Transit (949) 497-0746
TAOC is an advocate for convenient, reliable, and attractive bus and rail service that
better serves the needs of the county’s transit-dependent population, and also attracts
a substantial portion of the current motoring public. TAOC would like to see buses, rail,
bikes and walking become a normal part of everyday life and feels that improved transit services
can help remove the stigma sometimes associated with transit use in Orange County. They have
monthly meetings, public forums, a newsletter, an e-mail discussion group, study excursions,
transit updates, and regular meetings with OCTA.
Contact info: (866) 476-2282, ext. 4
RAOC is a committee of the Transit Advocates of Orange County that supports the creation
of a modern rail transit system in Orange County. They are providing an arena to focus public
support for rail projects and are gathering endorsements for CenterLine from individuals and
organizations. RAOC is producing written materials, an e-mail newsletter, a website, and
will be giving public presentations.
Contact info: (866) 476-2282, ext. 4
Auto-Free Orange County’s mission is to attract people to lifestyles with reduced
dependency on cars. They have projects to enhance the image of the auto-free lifestyle,
and provide an auto-free counseling service for members to assist with all matters related
to living without a car.
Contact info: (949) 452-1393
This group addresses citywide solutions for pedestrian safety through engineering, education
and enforcement. They offer pedestrian safety presentations, a neighborhood pedestrian safety
survey, and monthly meetings.
Contact info: (949) 824-5371
by Alex Mintzer
by Alex Mintzer
This is required to activate the starter circuit. There is a single thermostat dial that controls the inside temperature.
The Prius provides a very quiet, smooth ride for a small car. The engine noise is muted. The acceleration is comparable to that in my old Camry- certainly adequate to accelerate and merge on the freeway from an on-ramp meter stoplight. Obviously, this isn't Porsche, BMW, or Corvette initiative, but it's comparable to other small cars like the Corolla, Dodge Neon, or Honda Civic. The EPA fuel economy figures are 52 (city) and 45 (highway). I have averaged about 48 MPG, primarily using the car for a 19-mile, 30-minute commute (one-way) that is about two-thirds freeway mileage. The gas tank is 11.9 gallons, and I have already had one 500-mile tankful (though I usually fill it after 480 miles, when the fuel gauge starts blinking at me!). The fuel economy drops a bit if you use it for brief short trips of only 5-20 minutes. Although I am closing in on 3000 miles, I have not taken it over the Grapevine or Cajon Summit yet, so I can't report on mountain driving.
Energy Chair, Sierra Club California
Natural Gas
37.5%
Hydroelectric
24.7%
Nuclear
17.3%
Renewables
11.8%
Coal
8.6%
Oil
0.2%
