January - March 2005

Settlement Reached on Holcim Cement Plant
by Carla Klein, Ozark Chapter Director
The Ozark Chapter settled its litigation challenging the proposed Holcim cement plant, a 4,000-acre industrial development planned for construction near St. Louis, Missouri. The final agreement was reached on October 5, 2004 between Holcim U.S. Inc., Ozark Chapter Sierra Club, American Bottoms Conservancy, Missouri Coalition for the Environment, and Webster Groves Nature Society.

Our Strength is in Our Members
by Carla Klein, Ozark Chapter Director
and Melissa Hope Blakley, Legislative Coordinator/Development Associate
It is a fact, legislators respond to constituent contacts. Contacts, whether by e-mail, phone, letter or personal visit can either thank a legislator for their vote or leadership on specific legislation or hold them accountable. Constituent contacts can also help to educate a legislator on an issue.

Sierra Club Donor Appreciation Outing
by Carla Klein, Ozark Chapter Director
When John Muir founded the Sierra Club in 1892, he realized the importance of taking elected officials and club members out to the special places that he wanted to protect. Allowing individuals to experience the wonder of nature first hand was so critical to the foundation of the Sierra Club that it is imbedded in our mission statement:
To explore, enjoy and protect the wild places of the Earth; to practice and promote the responsible use of the Earth’s ecosystem 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.

Columbia says Yes to renewable energy
by Chris Hayday
Advocates for renewable energy scored a major victory on Election Day. That's because over 78% of Columbia voters passed a ballot initiative requiring the city to use renewable energy.

Plain Talk about Protein Plants
by Albert A. Midoux, USDA FSIS, retired
Have you had your protein today?
In order to understand the impact of a commercial rendering facility on health, food safety and the environment, one must know its purpose which I will do my best to clarify.

Siege of the Missouri River
by Leslie Lihou
Last September in St. Louis the Missouri Department of Natural Resources hosted the Transboundary Water Issues Group.  Representatives from Canada, Minnesota, Native American tribes, and conservation groups formulated a defense against North Dakota’s new push to divert the Missouri River across the continental divide to a different watershed.

Energy Notes
by Wallace McMullen
Missouri Electric Utility Buys Into Wind Power
Empire District Electric Company in Joplin has signed a 20–year contract to purchase wind energy generated at the new 150–megawatt Elk River wind farm project in Butler County, Kansas being developed by PPM Energy. Empire expects to buy about 550,000 megawatt hours of wind-generated electricity per year from the wind power project, enough to meet the annual needs of approximately 42,000 homes. The project is expected to provide about ten percent of Empire's electricity load. This is quite significant.

Peabody Coal Tries to Lure Missouri Municipal Utilities
by Jill Miller, Conservation Organizer
Should Missouri’s municipal public utilities risk buying electricity from a controversial, high-polluting, non-union coal-fired power plant in Illinois that threatens a National Wildlife Refuge—when far better options abound?

Mark Twain National Forest Plan Draft Released Soon
by Caroline Pufalt
Call for Citizen Input
Most of us visit the Mark Twain National Forest in Missouri and enjoy its benefits, such as wooded hiking trails, Ozark streams and wildlife, and sometimes curse its drawbacks, such as clear-cuts and illegal off-road vehicle traffic. Few of us contemplate the series of decisions that led to the conditions we see in the forest. But there is a process behind the management of our National Forests and there is a role for citizens to speak up for the good management of our public lands. The Mark Twain National Forest (MTNF) is in the process of preparing an overall plan for the forest, which will be the guiding document for the next 10–15 years. It is important that you participate in that process. Just as your vote was important in the last election, your input is vital to this process.

Sierra Student Coalition
Summer Training – July 8-15, 2005
Hey, all you Midwest eco-activists, this one's for you!

Archived Sierrans