REDWOOD NEEDLES

Presented by the Sierra Club Redwood Chapter Newsletter,
The REDWOOD NEEDLES

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Chapter Chair Report

by Margaret Pennington, Redwood Chapter Chair

Ah, Wilderness! That was part of the theme of the May 5-7 California Wilderness Conference held at Cal State Sacramento. The conference (the first CA Wild conference in over 10 years) was a very special gathering; jam packed with both information and inspiration. Topics covered ranged from The Wilderness Act: Past, Present and Future, to Conservation Science and Resource Economics, to Wilderness Spirituality. Chris Arthur of the Wilderness Society captured the variety with the introductory line to his Sunday presentation: "My function today, it seems, is to move us from the sublime that Gary Snyder shared with us to the ridiculous--politics." And so he did in an impressive and moving speech. (transcript available)

The conference was billed as a celebration of California's last wild places and those heroes who have worked tirelessly to preserve them. Saturday night's program honored many of those heroes, including Redwood Chapter's Lucille Vinyard. Lucille was recognized for her role in preserving Redwood National Park and other wild areas. Congratulations and thank you, Lucille!

The three days were interspersed with spectacular slide shows depicting what’s been saved and what’s at risk. There was even some time for the 800 attendees to sing and dance and . . . . .howl. Howl? Well, yes - a wilderness conference tradition it turns out.

This was my first wilderness conference. An incredible amount of work went into its planning for it to be the rousing success it was. I hope it will be sooner than 10 years before there's another one. I know I'll plan to be there, I hope many of you will as well. Some of the facts of California Wilderness are these: Most of our state's spectacular "rock and ice" regions have been set aside as Wilderness, making them off limits to logging, mining and motorized vehicles. But "the others" with whom we share our state (and the planet) need diverse habitats to survive, not just the awe inspiring "Range of Light" landscapes that we love. The next wave of wilderness additions needs to include lower elevation lands that connect with the high peaks--these are the areas richest in biodiversity.

Our Redwood Chapter region is home to many of these biologically important, connective areas. Numerous tracts of currently roadless public lands within our Chapter boundaries will be eligible for inclusion in the next California Wilderness bill. The spectacular King Range will be one of the "crown jewels" of the proposal. But there are also Cache Creek, Middle Eel, Six Rivers and Klamath &endash;Siskiyou wilderness additions to name a few. The North Group is working on a wilderness education campaign that will include a slide show showcasing these Redwood Chapter areas. They are also planning "show-me" tours and a hiking guide. We'll keep you posted in the Needles about the project as it progresses.

It was emphasized at the conference that although it is Congress that must approve any new Wilderness additions, ultimately the fate of any Wilderness Bill is decided by the people at large. So the job at hand is to educate our friends and neighbors about the value of wilderness. That includes those of us who live in urban areas but as importantly those who live in rural areas closest to the potential wilderness additions. This is a campaign perhaps closest to our Sierra Club roots. As John Muir said, "Do something for wilderness and make the mountains glad." If you’d like to get involved please contact Teri Tucker, our Wilderness Chair, or me.

Some related actions you can take right now:

- Attend a Forest Service Roadless hearing (see article in Needles) and voice your support for strong protection of roadless areas including a ban on roads and commercial logging.

- Call Senator Feinstein and urge her to vote no on S1608. No Clearcuts for Kids. Timber sales should be completely separated from School funding. (see article--this bill may go to a vote before the Needles is mailed)

- Call Senator Boxer and thank her for her strong and early support of Sequoia National Monument. It is rumored that Senator Feinstein is working on a Sequoia management plan that would mandate logging. Call her with the message "Don't mess with the Monument."

Close to home, our joint Sierra Club/Epic lawsuit to stop logging in the "Hole in the Headwaters" is proceeding, but needs financial support. If you're willling/able to work on fundraising please contact Kathy Bailey or me.

As Peter noted in the Sonoma Group report, we have a new office (404 Mendocino Ave., Santa Rosa) and we're planning an Open House on June 16th. Redwood Chapter and Sonoma Group share the office space with Sonoma County Conservation Council. Please join us and come take a look at our new home.

A final thought--I'd like to share Sierra Club's Philosophy of Service and Stewardship from the Club's National Bylaws and Standing Rules. Usually reading organizational bylaws is not all that motivational, but this passage is an exception. It was introduced by the Membership and Development Governance Committee (Sierra Club is filled with these great committee names!) in September '95 as an upbeat and positive way to address some communication difficulties between members. At that time Executive Director Carl Pope stated the resolution will only have meaning if each member takes responsibility for the statement and remains conscious of it as we conduct our business. Another board member noted that the way to implement a philosophical statement is to use it in everything we do until it becomes ingrained in us and we wear it like our skin.

I'm personally glad to be part of an organization that makes a commitment to this kind of statement and an organization mostly populated with members who walk this talk.

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