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COASTAL BEND SIERRA CLUB ARCHIVES
ARTICLES
KEMPS RIDLEY TURTLE PRESS RELEASE FROM
AUSTIN - 2/9/00
KEMPS RIDLEY TURTLE UPTDATE SPRING 2001
RIDLEY TURTLE UPDATE ABOUT 2004
RIDLEY TURTLE UPDATE 01/2005
Packery
Channel Issue
ENVIRONMENTALISTS ARE WORRIED BY BUSH
VXHYDROLYSATE
DISPOSAL IN CORPUS CHRISTI-
by Bill Alling Dec. 2001
Shrimping
Regulations-February 2002 by Pat Suter
CBBEP by Frank Hankins - see January 2000 newsletter
THE LEPC by Edith Cosgrove- see January
2000 newsletter
June 12, 1999
Nueces County Bond Election Comments
NEWSLETTERS AND MEETING MINUTES
March, 1999 Coastal Bend Newsletter
March, 1991 Coastal Bend Newsletter
April, 1999 Coastal Bend Newsletter
May, 1999 Coastal Bend Newsletter
Summer News, 1999 Coastal Bend
Newsletter
August 1999 Newsletter
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URGENT - Shrimping Regulations Meeting 7/2000
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COASTAL BEND SIERRA CLUB GROUP..BRIEF HISTORY
(Reprinted from article in Lone Star Sierran 1991)
The Coastal Bend Sierra Club Group was accredited in October 1975.
The first chairman was Dr. Paul Gray who presided over a small group of greatly
concerned people in this area. The Group has continued to have enviornmental
protection and enhancement as the primary focus for Group activity since the beginning.
The Group is small, only about 300 members. Their influence in the Coastal Bend area
is all out of proportion to their numbers. In addition to Dr. Gray, several
professional scientists have donated their time and expertise to the various causes which
the Group has embraced.
One of the earliest of these was the fight to prevent the Port (Nueces County Navigation
District then) from dumping dredged spoil into Nueces Bay. Historically, the Porthad
a patent from the State of Texas to use one-third of the original size of Nueces Bay for
spoil produced by maintenance dredging of the ship channel. But times have changed
and today the public sees the value of the bay in a different light. The material
which was to be dredged from the bottom of the channel in deeping to 45 feet was
contaminated with heavy metals. These contaminants had resulted from the run-offs of
several of the industries located along the harbor channel. The Corps of Engineers
called a meeting to which they brought their highly trained personnel and this Group also
had some very well qualified people there. We had a professor of biology, two
professors of chemistry, a head of the U.S. Geological Survey, and a couple of engineers.
When the Corps realized who they were up against, they backed down and today the
spoil is being placed on upland sites.
Another issue of the late seventies and early eighties was the proposal
to dredge a deep-draft inner harbor near Port Aransas at Harbor Island. This location is
where the ship channel joins the Gulf of Mexico. This channel would have been
72-feet deep and the spoil was to be placed in several areas around Port Aransas on the
back side of the barrier islands. Again our "experts" were very vocal in
their opposition and together with other interest groups, we succeeded in silencing the
project. THe commissioners of the Port later thanked us for saving them a lot of
money when the downturn in the price of oil cam in 1985-7. This permit request was
withdrawn, but a new version has recently surfaced under a new name, SAFEHARBOR. This time
the theme is that it is safer to have an inshore port than to offload from super tankers
out in the Gulf onto smaller tankers which can navigate this facility. (This project
is on hold but not expected to realize because of financing problems. They are now
looking at a monobuoy which we proposed first in 1977.)
A major environmental fight in Corpus Christi was the attempt to
construct a landfill site off the bayfront in Corpus Christi. This Group joined with
other enviornmental groups in the city to counter the usual propaganda put forth by the
proponents about all the jobs to be created and the tax base increase which would result.
The Corps of Engineers finally denied the permit request but the proponents sued
the city saying that they did not get all the help they needed. (They lost.)
Currently, (1991) the Group has joined with others to oppose the
dredging of Packery Channel at the juncture of Padre and Mustang Islands. We oppose
the venture for numerous reasons, not the least of which is that we believe that such an
open channel would increase hurricane danger.
...(So far, no dredging has occurred, but the possibility has come up again in 1999.)
**********
(The above article was reprinted in the Coastal Bend Sierra Club
Newsletter in February, 1999.) The article was shortened because the last paragraphs
no longer apply. Instead a few of the things we are currently working on will be
presented here.
Packery Channel was first an issue in 1970 before this Group was organized but some of the
earliest members worked on this issue then. The question at that time was the effort
of the developer to extend the seawall across the channel in order to build more condos
and hotels. His effort was defeated. It was much later that a new developer
tried to open the channel to boat traffic in the eighties and that effort went down as
well. The City of Corpus Christi tried to get into the fray, but they had to
withdraw when a petition against involvement was signed by 8300 residents in 1988.
The latest efforts are being led by the current owner of land behind the seawall and by
County Judge Richard Borchard and County Commissioner Joe McComb. In October 1998,
Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson placed a bill into the budget bill which would give $19.5
million toward the $30 million project. Her press release stated that the project
was needed for the sant to re-nourish the beach to prevent the massive damage to that area
from storms suring the summer of 1998. (There was no such damage.) She also
stated that opening the channel would greatly increase the circulation of water to Corpus
Christi and Nueces Bays. This would be exceedingly difficult with an average one
foot tide. But now in 1999 the pressure from the proponents is on again and we are
preparing to fight.
Raising the Kennedy Causeway onto pilings has been an ongoing effort
for many years. Now at least, it is only money whichstands in the way. Before
there was active opposition. So we will see.
Industrial pollution has been a focus of efforts by many of our members
for a long time. Now the state office has set their priorities in the same direction
and even some of the local plants are making noises to the tune of pollution clean-up.
We must keep up the pressure and make sure that the citizens rights to know what is
in their air and water are not abridged by the current legislature.
STAY TUNED. THIS IS AN ENVIRONMENTALLY CONCENRED AND ACTIVE GROUP.
PLEASE COME AND HELP CARRY ON THE EFFORTS. WE WANT YOU.
From January 2000
RIDLEY SEA TURTLE PROBLEM
by Mina Williams & Venice Scheurich
May 1996 Coastal Bend Sierra Club Newsletter
YOU'RE INVITED...Meeting Notice
Time: Lunch 11:30; Meeting 12 Noon in the Lounge
Place: Art Community Center, 100 Shoreline May 21
Agenda: Review of environmental issues.
This
is the last meeting until September unless there is a called meeting.
The Executive Committee will keep you informed.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
COMMENTS FROM THE CHAIR
By the time you read this TNRCC will have met and considered the
issue of the permit to transfer water the 110 miles from Lake Texana to Corpus Christi and
also the request of the City of Corpus Christi to declare "condition 2" of their
drought plan. Both of these issues will effect most of our members in one way or
another. You will need to come to the May 21 meeting to hear the latest and to
learn of any action Sierra will take.
Edie Cosgrove loaned me a book to read which she said made a strong
impression on her. It made such a strong impression on me that I went out and bought
my own copy. The book is OUR STOLEN FUTURE by Colburn, Dumanoske and
Meyers and published by Dutton. The authors report the recent discovery that
persistent chemicals, such as PCB's, dioxins, pesticides, plastics, and styrene are
attaching themselves to the endocrine cells in our bodies and those of mammals with
frightening results. I recommend that you get a copy from the library or borrow or
buy the book and read it.
One reviewer said this book may be another SILENT SPRING.
SIERRAN ALERT
The Stores of John Muir - Public Presentations May 1996
Friday, May 10 7:30 p.m. Warren
Theater, Texas A&M - CC
Saturday, May 11 10:30 a.m. Corpus Christi Public Library (In the park
around the McCracken
Memorial bird Bath)
Saturday, May 11 2:30 p.m. Museum of Science and History
(The Water Garden Room)
Listen! Learn! Enjoy! Stories of a naturalist by a naturalist. John Muir, celebrated and revered by ecologists, teachers, students, and scientists, lives. Experience adventures from his Scots boyhood to his legendary 1,000 mile walk across America. Recall his past through story, song, and drama.
Richard Shore transcends time and revisits a distant era as an American icon. He evokes the stillness of the forest, distills the principles of conservation, and exhorts us, with entertaining wit and gentle humility, to be stewards of the wilderness.
John Muir needs little introduction. He was the consummate environmentalist: father of Yosemite, Sierra club founder, inventor, architect of the National Park Service, geologist, inspired storyteller. His writings remain a model for contemporary authors; his hikes still challenge more ordinary "soles."
As the reincarnation of Muir, Dick Shore bewitches the mind's eye; he's entirely convincing as he dons the clothes, the mannerisms, the brogue. His credits include audiences at high schools, colleges, and universities. He's performed at Audubon, Sierra, and Nature Conservancy clubs. Elderhostelers, civic groups, religious congregations, and army troops have applauded him engaging over 35,000 at presentations nationwide.
But who is he? A zoologist, (Ph.D., Duke, 1963), Operations Analyst (MBA, 1974), and Quality Engineer, he works in both public and private sectors. Indulging a life-long passion for theater, he has honed the skills requisite to create an impassioned, artful portrait. Born in the shadow of Muir's beloved Sierra Nevada, Shore has hiked, camped, and explored half the United States, particularly Yosemite and the West Coast. His uncanny resemblance to Muir and his own personal experiences inform a timeless message - perhaps more important today than it was a century earlier.
SPONSORS: THe Friends of the Corpus Christi Public Library, Corpus Christi Museum of Science and History, Corpus Christi Independent School District, Blucher Nature Center, and Texas A&M Department of Continuing Education.
CLOSING THE CIRCLE
We are all familiar with the slogan of the three "R's." Reduce, reuse, and recycle have become part of the mix here in Corpus Christi. We have just completed four years of curbside pick-up of materials which can be recycled here in the city.
Think about what happens to paper and plastic bags, milk and drink bottles. They must be trucked back, sorted, washed, groud up or pulped, and remanufactured. All of these steps use resources.
CLOSING THE CIRCLE is still very important. Reynolds Metals Company from Ingleside is helping the Corpus Christi Botanical Gardens build "ECO-PARKING." A new parking lot is being built next to the new entrance building which is made of recycled milkjugs. The parking lot is full of holes, produces no run-off. The material being used is 20 percent high-density plastic--mainly milkjugs; and 80 percent low-density plastic--post-use stretch film and packaging materials.
The parking lot is constructed using 3' by 1' by 2" recycled black plastic units laid over sand. After the units are installed, the open "cells" are backfilled with good soil and seeded with Bermuda grass. Once the turf is establishe,d only the black surface grid is visible. The lot will be able to handle cars, vans, pickups, as well as most utility and delivery trucks. Very little mowing will be required.
The "Eco-Parking" lot at the Botanical Gardens is one way to close the circle. The Recycling and Waste Reduction Advisory Committee will hold its monthly meeting on May 1i6 at the Botanical Gardens to observe this latest addition to the recycling possibilities. At that meeting the Committee will present a Certificate of Appreciation to Reynolds Metals for their help in the creation of this parking lot. The meeting is at 5:30 p.m. and the presentation is at 6:30 p.m. The public is invited.
HELP WANTED - OUTINGS CHAIRMAN
LET US KNOW YOUR WISHES
NEWSLETTER EDITOR
How about a few letters to the editor
expressing your wishes or views. We
will print them as space permits.
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Pat Suter
852-7938 Chairman
Randy Berryhill
883-0586 V. Chairman
Judy Tor
241-2605 Treasurer
Dorothy McLaren 853-9049
Secretary
COMMITTEE CHAIRMEN
Henry Berryhill
883-0586 Conservation
Elaine Giessel
512-578-5291
Randy Berryhill
883-0586 Membership
Dorothy McLaren 853-9049
Labels
Marie Speer
937-4584 Newsletter
Ken Jobe
993-3737 Recycling
Wetlands
Edith Cosgrove
241-2960 Air Quality
Elnora Trott
241-1556 Parks
Henry Berryhill
883-0586 Population
Sheril Smith
853-2478 Population
Roy E. Bazire
993-2148 Coastal
Pluto's Edge Design Website and Graphic
Design
SIERRA PROFILES...
John Muir
"Anywhere that is wild!"
In 1868, John Muir, a Sccottish immigrant from Wisconsin stepped onto a
bustling wharf in San Francisco and stopped a passerby to ask the fastest way out of town.
When asked where he wanted to go, he responded, "Anywhere that is wild!" Then
just thirty, he found the wild - and his life's vocation - in Yosemite. On May 28,
1892, John Muir, with 182 charter members, founded the Sierra Club "to explore, enjoy
and render accessible the mountain regions of the Pacific coast."
The years sojourning in Yosemite were the wellspring of Muir's influential
writings, which instilled the idea of preserving nature deep into the fabric of American
life and political thought.
Each member of the Sierra Club is part of a proud tradition of people united
by their love of natural world and their determination to defend it. Won't you join today?
Help continue the tradition...Join the Club!
Coastal Bend
Sierra Club E-Mail
Protect America's
Environment.
For our families, for our future.
A Philosophy of Stewardship
The Sierra Club's statement of Purpose
is: To explore, enjoy and protect the wild places of the earth; to practice and
promote the responsible use of the earth's ecosystems and resources; to educate and enlist
humanity to protect and restore the quality of the natural and human environment; and to
use all lawful means to carry out these objectives.
Coastal Bend Sierra Club E-Mail