Join Us for Social Media Training! Have you been interested in joining the
social media revolution, but were unsure about how to get started? Are you familiar with some social media
channels, but are interested in exploring additional ones. Then this training is for you.
Bryan
Crenshaw, the social media lead with
the Philly Sierra Club, Pennsylvania Clean Air group, will introduce the social
media channels used by the group, including Twitter, Blogger, YouTube, Flickr, Facebook, etc. We will review these channels, how they are
used to communicate our message, the jargon associated with each of these
channels, and best practices for their use.
In addition, a brief introduction to the Hootsuite
software that we use to manage several of these channels will be
discussed. After the main discussion,
Bryan will be happy to help you with any questions about the setup and use of
your own social media channels.
When: Sunday, Sept. 21st at 2pm.
Where: 3232 W. Penn St in East Falls
Philadelphia PA 19129
Friday, September 13, 2013
Friday, July 5, 2013
Get The Lead Out: Activists Gather on July 5th to Advocate for Clean Water
[Philadelphia, PA] On Friday, July 5th the Sierra Club was joined by Delaware Riverkeeper Network and the Clean Air Council in a press conference to declare support for clean water standards recently proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and currently open for public comment.
The standards governing water pollution from power plants have not been updated in 30 years even though, according to the EPA, more than half of all toxic water pollution in the country comes from coal-fired power plants, making coal plants the number one source of toxic water pollution in the U.S.
Pennsylvania has 28 active coal-fired power plants and only 8 have permits that limit dumping of toxic metals, while only 4 plants have permits that limit selenium, mercury, and lead.
“National safeguards to limit toxic water pollution are well overdue. These new standards will not only clean up our rivers and streams, but require polluters for the first time to report dumping so that communities will know what’s going into their water and be empowered to take action to clean it up,” said Robin Mann of the Sierra Club.
More than 23,000 miles of U.S. rivers and streams are being damaged by steam electric plant discharges, which include arsenic, mercury, lead, boron, cadmium, selenium, chromium, thallium, vanadium, bromides and more. For example, each year nearly 65,000 pounds of lead, 3,000 pounds of mercury, and 80,000 pounds of arsenic are discharged into surface waters like rivers, streams and lakes where kids play, families fish and communities get their drinking water.
"The effects on human health and the health of our rivers, including the Delaware River, are well known" said Maya van Rossum, the Delaware Riverkeeper. "Limiting the amount of toxins in our water will save lives, prevent children from getting sick and ensure our water is safe to drink and fish are safe to eat."
“Clean water is as fundamental to life on this planet as clean air” said Joe Minott from the Clean Air Council. “All forms of coal power plant pollution must be addressed and we join with our colleagues in the Sierra Club and Delaware Riverkeepers in support of clean water, just as we will all combine our voices when the EPA publishes a rule on power plant carbon emissions, as called for by the President.”
Following the press conference, activists took to the streets with what they called a “living billboard” -- a series of posters that when joined together spelled out a clean water message on one side and formed a giant fish mosaic on the other. Volunteers handed out leaflets and collected supportive comments that will be sent to the EPA.
For More Information Contact:
Sue Edwards
Phone: 610-717-7202
E-mail: sueedwards79@gmail.com
Maya van Rossum, Delaware Riverkeeper Network
E-mail: keeper@delawareriverkeeper.org
Joe Minott, Clean Air Council
E-mail: joe_minott@cleanair.org
Press Coverage:
Sandy Bauer's Post on "Green Space" blog at Philly.com; Groups support EPA rule for coal plant discharges.
Take Action: Tell the EPA to keep our water clean and safe
The standards governing water pollution from power plants have not been updated in 30 years even though, according to the EPA, more than half of all toxic water pollution in the country comes from coal-fired power plants, making coal plants the number one source of toxic water pollution in the U.S.
Pennsylvania has 28 active coal-fired power plants and only 8 have permits that limit dumping of toxic metals, while only 4 plants have permits that limit selenium, mercury, and lead.
“National safeguards to limit toxic water pollution are well overdue. These new standards will not only clean up our rivers and streams, but require polluters for the first time to report dumping so that communities will know what’s going into their water and be empowered to take action to clean it up,” said Robin Mann of the Sierra Club.
More than 23,000 miles of U.S. rivers and streams are being damaged by steam electric plant discharges, which include arsenic, mercury, lead, boron, cadmium, selenium, chromium, thallium, vanadium, bromides and more. For example, each year nearly 65,000 pounds of lead, 3,000 pounds of mercury, and 80,000 pounds of arsenic are discharged into surface waters like rivers, streams and lakes where kids play, families fish and communities get their drinking water.
"The effects on human health and the health of our rivers, including the Delaware River, are well known" said Maya van Rossum, the Delaware Riverkeeper. "Limiting the amount of toxins in our water will save lives, prevent children from getting sick and ensure our water is safe to drink and fish are safe to eat."
“Clean water is as fundamental to life on this planet as clean air” said Joe Minott from the Clean Air Council. “All forms of coal power plant pollution must be addressed and we join with our colleagues in the Sierra Club and Delaware Riverkeepers in support of clean water, just as we will all combine our voices when the EPA publishes a rule on power plant carbon emissions, as called for by the President.”
Following the press conference, activists took to the streets with what they called a “living billboard” -- a series of posters that when joined together spelled out a clean water message on one side and formed a giant fish mosaic on the other. Volunteers handed out leaflets and collected supportive comments that will be sent to the EPA.
Take Action: Tell the EPA to keep our water clean and safe
For More Information Contact:
Sue Edwards
Phone: 610-717-7202
E-mail: sueedwards79@gmail.com
Maya van Rossum, Delaware Riverkeeper Network
E-mail: keeper@delawareriverkeeper.org
Joe Minott, Clean Air Council
E-mail: joe_minott@cleanair.org
Press Coverage:
Sandy Bauer's Post on "Green Space" blog at Philly.com; Groups support EPA rule for coal plant discharges.
Monday, July 1, 2013
Tell the EPA: Keep Coal Waste Out of Our Water!
Join us for a press conference and living mural demonstration on July 5th!
Coal-fired power plants across Pennsylvania and the rest of the country are allowed to dump millions of pounds of toxic heavy metals into our water every year -- but you can help change that!
The EPA is considering stronger limits on toxic coal waste in our water and we can help make sure the protections are put into place by showing strong public support.
Sierra Club volunteers will be at Penn's Landing in Philadelphia Friday the 5th to inform folks attending the Taste of Philadelphia event about the need for a strong EPA rule to keep toxic coal waste out of our water.
We'll be displaying a living mural to show how toxic coal waste affects our water, holding a press conference and collecting signatures in support of protections against toxic coal waste.
Join the fun -- help spread the word to keep toxic coal waste out of our water!
Here are the details:
WHO: You and other activists from Sierra Club and allied environmental groups
WHAT: Outreach and press conference at Taste of Philly festival to support limits on toxic coal waste pollution
WHEN: Friday, July 5, 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 pm
WHERE: Meet at Front Street & Chestnut Streets in Philadelphia, by Penn's Landing
RSVP with this link or e-mail Randy Francisco at randy.francisco@sierraclub.org.
Friday, June 21, 2013
Street Theater for the EPA: President Obama On Trial
Obama spoke strongly about the need to act on climate change during his inaugural and state of the union addresses, but he hasn't taken much action.
As a part of the rally, we presented the street theater production, "President Obama On Trial For Causing a Climate Catastrophe."
The script was as follows:
The script was as follows:
COURT CRYER: Hear Ye! Hear Ye! The case of The People of the United States vs. President Barack Obama is now in session.
JUDGE: Will the attorney for the prosecution please state your case?
PROSECUTOR: Your honor and esteemed members of the jury, The People of the United States bring this action in light of the fact that their elected President, having made fine proclamations, both in his Second Inaugural and his State of the Union Address in 2013, about his intention to rein in Climate Change, has failed to act upon said promises. He has failed to meet the legal deadline required of him to promulgate a final Carbon Standard. In fact, he unceremoniously withdrew the Rule he had previously announced. Yes, yes, it is well known that he DID establish a Mercury Rule, a Mileage Standard Reduction, and recently his administration did state an increased Cost of Carbon Calculation. However, allowing coal and oil fired power plants to operate at their present level of carbon emissions is unconscionable. These plants, both existing and on the drawing boards, emit more carbon than even the filthy tar sands that Canadians want to pipe across America. Their power plant emissions literally make people sick—with lung disease, mercury poisoning, cancers, asthma, and more. And the carbon dioxide they put into the atmosphere is making our planet sick. The climate chaos that results from our fevered earth is starting to wreak economic devastation as governments here and around the world try to come up with the funds to pay for the excess wildfires, floods, and submerged subway tunnels as well as food shortages from droughts. Therefore, with great regret (for they hold out great hope for this President), the people are bringing this suit. The charges are: Reckless Endangerment and Risking & Causing a Catastrophe. I don't think I need to elaborate on the threat to civilization that will result from a failure to curb our carbon dioxide emissions. Suffice it to say that the “catastrophe” referred to includes droughts in Russia, in many countries in Africa, and in the Midwest breadbasket of the US; floods in Pakistan, Germany, and the Mississippi River vicinity of the US; record high temperatures in many locales; rising sea levels; melting glaciers and Antarctic ice shelves; the spread of malaria, West Nile virus, and dengue fever; and much more. A friend of the court brief is also hereby submitted by the People of Bangladesh and the People of the Maldive Islands charging untold millions of counts of Involuntary Manslaughter in the expected deaths of many of their citizens in the widely assumed rise in sea levels of up to several meters by the year 2100. That summarizes our case, Your Honor.
JUDGE: What say you in response to these charges, Mr. President?
PRES. OBAMA: Your Honor, inasmuch as I am a Professor of Constitutional Law, I would like to represent myself in this matter, with your indulgence.
JUDGE: Certainly, certainly. How do you plead, Mr. President?
PRES. OBAMA: I plead No Contest, Nolo Contendere. I am not guilty, nor am I innocent. I admit to using language to obfuscate the issue and hide my lack of action. I've been told that I have the gift of fine speech-making. That's how I got where I am. (charming smile) To expect me to be able to move mountains, though, that's asking a lot. The coal companies can do it, but I don't know how. Do you have any idea how obstinate those Republicans can be? And how persuasive the big money from the oil, coal and gas industries? How am I to move forward to stop climate change when those industries are busy persuading Congress and the American people that we don't have a problem? The American Legislative Exchange Council and the Koch brothers have a disinformation budget larger than, I don't know, the CIA and the National Security Administration put together, most likely. And their money is far, far more than the alternative energy budget, which is so small, I can't even find it in the spread-sheets. My hands are tied. Sir, I'm glad the People of the United States have brought this suit. If they win, it will force me to do what I know is right on this Carbon Standard.
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
EPA and NIH Announce the Winning Team in My Air, My Health Challenge
Winners developed a low cost, real time personal digital device that measures health effects of harmful air pollution
WASHINGTON — Today the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced the winner of the My Air, My Health Challenge. The Challenge called upon innovators nationwide to design a small, low-cost sensor that integrates air quality measurements with related health data, such as heart rate and breathing. Such innovations will help EPA and NIH as they continue their work together to better understand, in real time, the impacts of harmful air pollution on people’s health.
Judges for the EPA and NIH challenge selected the team of David Kuller, Gabrielle Savage Dockterman, and Dot Kelly from among finalist teams. The award will be presented today at Health Datapalooza IV in Washington, D.C.
The winning team will receive a $100,000 award for developing Conscious Clothing, a wearable, real-time breathing analysis tool that calculates the amount of polluted air a person inhales. Estimates of pollution exposure result from how deeply the person breathes and how much pollution is in the air. This data is transmitted to any Bluetooth-enabled device, such as a cellphone.
“This integration of technologies represents a growing area of interest for environmental and health scientists,” said Glenn Paulson, Ph.D., EPA science advisor. “We’re at the edge of a technology wave where anyone can use these sensors – these innovations will help EPA better understand air pollution’s impacts on people’s health. The potential impact on personal health care and local environmental quality is tremendous.”
“With people wearing these new data-collecting devices, researchers will be able to see and understand the relationships between varying levels of chemical exposures and individual health responses—in real time,” said Linda Birnbaum, Ph.D., director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, part of the NIH. “This is a big step forward toward treating, and more importantly, preventing disease and illness. This is an exciting time in research.”
These types of low-cost, portable, easy-to-use sensors have the potential to produce a more complete picture of air quality and individual health in communities across the country.
More information on the My Air, My Health Challenge: http://epa.gov/research/challenges
Also, see the EPA blog.
Cross-posted from: http://epa.gov/
WASHINGTON — Today the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced the winner of the My Air, My Health Challenge. The Challenge called upon innovators nationwide to design a small, low-cost sensor that integrates air quality measurements with related health data, such as heart rate and breathing. Such innovations will help EPA and NIH as they continue their work together to better understand, in real time, the impacts of harmful air pollution on people’s health.
Judges for the EPA and NIH challenge selected the team of David Kuller, Gabrielle Savage Dockterman, and Dot Kelly from among finalist teams. The award will be presented today at Health Datapalooza IV in Washington, D.C.
The winning team will receive a $100,000 award for developing Conscious Clothing, a wearable, real-time breathing analysis tool that calculates the amount of polluted air a person inhales. Estimates of pollution exposure result from how deeply the person breathes and how much pollution is in the air. This data is transmitted to any Bluetooth-enabled device, such as a cellphone.
“This integration of technologies represents a growing area of interest for environmental and health scientists,” said Glenn Paulson, Ph.D., EPA science advisor. “We’re at the edge of a technology wave where anyone can use these sensors – these innovations will help EPA better understand air pollution’s impacts on people’s health. The potential impact on personal health care and local environmental quality is tremendous.”
“With people wearing these new data-collecting devices, researchers will be able to see and understand the relationships between varying levels of chemical exposures and individual health responses—in real time,” said Linda Birnbaum, Ph.D., director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, part of the NIH. “This is a big step forward toward treating, and more importantly, preventing disease and illness. This is an exciting time in research.”
These types of low-cost, portable, easy-to-use sensors have the potential to produce a more complete picture of air quality and individual health in communities across the country.
More information on the My Air, My Health Challenge: http://epa.gov/research/challenges
Also, see the EPA blog.
Cross-posted from: http://epa.gov/
Thursday, June 13, 2013
On June 19th, Rally at the EPA In Support of the Carbon Rules
Obama spoke strongly about the need to act on climate change during his inaugural and state of the union addresses, but he hasn't taken much action.
Join us Wednesday June 19th at 3 pm at 1650 Arch St #2, Philadelphia, PA 19103 as we ask Obama to issue new rules to limit carbon emissions from new and existing coal fired power plants. A strong rule for existing coal fired power plants to take more CO2 out of the atmosphere than the Tar Sands would put in.
Join us Wednesday June 19th at 3 pm at 1650 Arch St #2, Philadelphia, PA 19103 as we ask Obama to issue new rules to limit carbon emissions from new and existing coal fired power plants. A strong rule for existing coal fired power plants to take more CO2 out of the atmosphere than the Tar Sands would put in.
Thursday, June 6, 2013
Lecture Series: The Keystone XL Pipeline from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico and Pipelines in Southeastern Pennsylvania
The Sierra Club of Southeastern PA and
CCP Coalition for a Sustainable Future
Present
The Keystone XL Pipeline from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico and
Pipelines in Southeastern Pennsylvania
Monday June 10 at 6:45 PM
Center for Business and Industry, NE corner of 18th/Callowhill
Streets, enter off 18th, on the campus of the Community
College of Philadelphia.
Contact wbrainerd3@gmail.com
The controversial KXL tar sands pipeline continues to make headlines, but rapidly proliferating shale gas pipelines carry many of the same risks. Karen Feridun, founder of Berks Gas Truth and 350 Berks & Lehigh Valley Climate Action, will discuss these extreme energy pipelines, what they have in common, and what you need to know if one's coming to your community.
Call Casey’s Office and Tell Him That You Oppose Keystone XL:
- District - (215) 405-9660
- DC - (202) 224-6324
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