EARTH ACTION IN THE NEWS - July 25, 2019

[Emerald]

​EARTH ACTION IN THE NEWS  

Welcome to the people who have joined recently.  This is a simple weekly newsletter.  Your participation is encouraged.  Please share information and actions about climate change, climate justice, GMOs, toxic chemicals, and Earth-related topics.
If you wish to reduce email volume switch your membership to the digest or abridged version.
Please refrain from posting petitions or donation requests without OSC approval.  Thank you for joining us.

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There will be no Earth Action meeting or any OSC meetings or events in August.

OSC is on summer break in August.  

We will continue the weekly newsletter.

BREAKTHROUGH!
Berkeley becomes first U.S. city to ban natural gas in new homes
https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Berkeley-becomes-first-U-S-city-to-ban-natural-14102242.php?utm_campaign=CMS%20Sharing%20Tools%20(Premium)&utm_source=t.co&utm_medium=referralhttps://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/renewable-energy-germany-electricity-coal-nuclear-power-a9017821.html?amp=1

GMOs & GLYPHOSATE

Hawai’i Agribusiness Development Corporation in Violation of Clean Water Act Due to Glyphosate Contamination

https://beyondpesticides.org/dailynewsblog/2019/07/hawaii-agribusiness-development-corporation-in-violation-of-clean-water-act-due-to-glyphosate-contamination/

FOSSIL FUELS

Renewable energy providing more electricity than coal and nuclear power combined in Germany

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/renewable-energy-germany-electricity-coal-nuclear-power-a9017821.html?amp=1

Why German coal power is falling fast in 2019

https://www.carbonbrief.org/guest-post-why-german-coal-power-is-falling-fast-in-2019

"The gap left by coal-fired electricity has been largely filled by renewables, with output from German windfarms up by 11TWh (19%) and solar up by 1TWh (6%) in the first half of 2019, while demand fell by 9TWh (3%) and gas generation only increased by 3TWh (16%). The shift means wind is on track to become the single largest source of electricity in Germany this year, overtaking lignite."

America’s Big Bet on Selling Fracked Gas to China and the World
https://www.desmogblog.com/2019/07/19/america-big-bet-export-fracked-gas-china

So You Think We're Reducing Fossil Fuel Use? Think Again.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesconca/2019/07/20/so-you-think-were-reducing-fossil-fuel-think-again/

"Until growth in renewables exceeds that of fossil fuels, and by a lot, we will make no headway against the environmental problems we need to solve in the next two decades."

POLLUTION

'Not a dustbin': Cambodia to send plastic waste back to the US and Canada
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jul/17/cambodia-plastic-waste-us-canada-send-back?fbclid=IwAR3WgyAm9CqAr44zhOMCUmNK2zJanaRdYk4UI3N8DZJLf_v62km3Rct5e-4

Cambodia to Return 1,700 Tons of Plastic Waste to U.S., Canada

https://www.ecowatch.com/cambodia-plastic-waste-2639228991.html?utm_campaign=RebelMouse&share_id=4748525&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_content=EcoWatch

"The waste (83 shipping containers) arrived a week after Prime Minister Hun Sen announced that Cambodia prohibits the import of plastic or other recyclable material.

Cambodia's decision follows similar moves by Asian countries in recent months, who have gotten fed up with the influx of foreign waste after China banned imports in 2018."

WAKE UP CALL

Greta Thunberg speech in Assemblée Nationale (video)

https://youtu.be/J1yimNdqhqE

French Parliament

Climate Change Is Impacting Every Aspect of Modern Life, But the Press Fails to “Connect the Dots” (video)

https://www.democracynow.org/2019/7/24/michael_mann_climate_crisis_media_coverage?utm_source=Democracy+Now%21&utm_campaign=a10c0ae633-Daily_Digest_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_fa2346a853-a10c0ae633-191276697

Juiced

https://www.bohemian.com/northbay/juiced/Content?oid=9026523

"PG&E poured $2 million into the Rebuild Northbay Foundation as the utility ramped up its political machine after 2017 wildfires."

Carbon calculator: how taking one flight emits as much as many people do in a year

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/ng-interactive/2019/jul/19/carbon-calculator-how-taking-one-flight-emits-as-much-as-many-people-do-in-a-year

Great Barrier Reef Authority Warns That Climate Action Is Needed Urgently
https://www.ecowatch.com/great-barrier-reef-authority-climate-action-2639277170.html

Bolsanaro Stands By as 20,000 Miners Invade the Yanomami Amazon Reserve

https://org2.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=QQWddP1Njkh5belj7LZzfx3dZc08Sn%2Fg

Louisiana’s Disappearing Coast

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/04/01/louisianas-disappearing-coast

"The state loses a football field’s worth of land every hour and a half. Now engineers are in a race to prevent it from sinking into oblivion."

Why isn't anyone talking about what is happening in Louisiana? Between water levels rising, earthquakes caused by fracking in northern LA, and frequent hurricanes, Louisiana is changing.

World Hunger Rises with Climate Shocks, Conflict and Economic Slumps

https://insideclimatenews.org/news/15072019/world-hunger-rising-climate-shocks-and-conflicts-and-economic-slumps-slow-recovery

"A UN report shows an estimated 2 billion people now face moderate or severe food insecurity as the planet warms."

Record warm water likely gave Kuskokwim salmon heart attacks

https://www.ktoo.org/2019/07/12/record-warm-water-likely-gave-kuskokwim-salmon-heart-attacks/

Alaska is having the hottest summer ever and it is killing the salmon.

With $32 Trillion In Assets, Investors Demand Immediate Action On Climate Change

https://www.forbes.com/sites/trevornace/2018/12/11/with-32-trillion-in-assets-investors-demand-immediate-action-on-climate-change/#127b25f42b48

THINK TANK & STRATEGY

Trees Alone Can’t Save Us From Climate Change

https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/trees-alone-can-t-save-us-climate-change#.XTdovrhNIgN.twitter

Could Public Banks Help California Fund Affordable Housing?
https://www.citylab.com/equity/2019/07/public-banks-local-financing-community-california-ab-857/593104/
"A coalition of bank activists in ten California cities is pushing for public banks. A bill to support them is working its way through the state legislature."

How empowering women and girls can help stop global warming (video)

https://www.ted.com/talks/katharine_wilkinson_how_empowering_women_and_girls_can_help_stop_global_warming#t-150458

"If we really want to address climate change, we need to make gender equity a reality, says writer and environmentalist Katharine Wilkinson. As part of Project Drawdown, Wilkinson has helped scour humanity's wisdom for solutions to draw down heat-trapping, climate-changing emissions: obvious things like renewable energy and sustainable diets and not so obvious ones, like the education and empowerment of women."

The US Is Responsible For 26% Of Global Warming Emissions & Is Morally Responsible To Help Solve It

https://cleantechnica.com/2019/03/07/the-us-is-responsible-for-26-of-global-warming-emissions-is-morally-responsible-to-help-solve-it/

DIRECT ACTIONS

Why We Just Blocked Boris Johnson on His Way to See the Queen

https://www.commondreams.org/views/2019/07/24/why-we-just-blocked-boris-johnson-his-way-see-queen

Six Extinction Rebellion activists arrested in London

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jul/16/extinction-rebellion-activists-target-east-london-concrete-plant

"Protesters chained themselves to concrete factory as part of five-day ‘summer uprising’"

Hundreds of Extinction Rebellion activists face court, in summer of prosecutions
https://www.climatechangenews.com/2019/07/15/hundreds-extinction-rebellion-activists-face-court-summer-prosecutions/

Until Emissions Drop, Nothing Has Been Accomplished: The Climate Resistance Handbook Is Here.

https://www.commondreams.org/views/2019/07/19/until-emissions-drop-nothing-has-been-accomplished-climate-resistance-handbook-here?cd-origin=rss&utm_term=AO&utm_campaign=Weekly%20Newsletter&utm_content=email&utm_source=Weekly%20Newsletter&utm_medium=Email
A new guide to activism aims to inform and inspire a new generation of global climate campaigners by Greta Thunberg, Daniel Hunter

Climate Litigation Has Become a Global Trend, New Report Shows
https://www.desmogblog.com/2019/07/15/climate-litigation-global-trend-grantham-report

SUSTAINABLE LIVING

Drones and Crawling Robots Will Soon Be Inspecting Wind Turbines

https://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/drones-and-crawling-robots-will-soon-be-inspecting-wind-turbines#gs.rdkkh9

Electric car models to triple in Europe by 2021

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-49022684

When I stopped buying plastic to go green, I ended up slicing my grocery bill in half
https://www.businessinsider.com/the-zero-waste-habits-that-halved-my-grocery-bill-2019-7

ENDING ON A POSITIVE

What most Americans are looking for in a new home: solar panels

https://www.fastcompany.com/90375536/what-most-americans-are-looking-for-in-a-new-home-solar-panels

Take Action - Get Involved!

 

July 1-31
Join Millions Of People Worldwide In Plastic Free July!  
We urge everyone to join the global challenge at http://PlasticFreeJuly.org where participants are counted and receive information on how to reduce plastic consumption.
Download our Plastic Challenge Action Picker and find local campaign information at: http://OccupySonomaCounty.org/PlasticFreeJuly.
Find our local Plastic Free July Campaign on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/events/2195179703937948/.

Saturday, July 27 (the last Saturday every month)
Community Seed Exchange
St. Stephen's Episcopal Church, 500 Robinson Rd., Sebastopol
9-10:30 Optional Work Party
11-12 Free Workshop

9-12:30 Seed Library
For more info: communityseedexchange@gmail.com

Monday, July 29, 7-9 PM
Sonoma County Climate Activist Network (SoCoCAN!)
Peace & Justice Center, 467 Sebastopol Ave., Santa Rosa 95401
Please submit campaign proposals in writing: SonomaC...@gmail.com or to the SoCoCAN listserv (preferred)
Facilitator for this meeting: June
Notetaker: Eve

Wednesday, July 31, 8 AM - 5 PM

North Bay Zero Waste Symposium

Presentations on how to achieve waste diversion goals, the inner workings of the resource recovery industry, and more
Keynote speakers: Recology CEO Mike Sangiacomo and international zero waste lifestyle extraordinaire Bea Johnson
SOMO Village Events Center, Rohnert Park

Space is limited, register here: https://zerowastenorthbay.org/

Monday, August 5, 6:30-8:30 pm, $12 suggested donation, No one turned away

Safe Ag Safe Schools (SASS) presents authors Mitchel Cohen and Robin Falk Esser on pesticides, herbicides, and toxins in our community

Sebastopol Grange. 6000 Sebastopol Ave. (Route 12), Sebastopol
To register: https://dailyacts.org/events-1/?eid=11836

Wednesday, August 7 (every first Wednesday) No Dogs
Sonoma County Permaculture Guild Monthly Potluck
Family Friendly & Fun. Swap seeds/plants, & explore the PSC
Permaculture Skills Center, 2185 Gravenstein Hwy S, Sebastopol, California 95472
For more info contact: permacultureskillscenter.org or 707-824-0836

Monday, September 16, 7-9 PM (There is NO Earth Action meeting in August)
Occupy Sonoma County Earth Action Campaign Meeting
OSC will be discussing our Earth Action campaigns and event plans for next year.  Bring your ideas and proposals to this meeting.
Peace & Justice Center, 467 Sebastopol Ave., Santa Rosa
For more information go to http://OccupySonomaCounty.org or call 707-877-6650 (website contact preferred)

Sept. 20-27

Millions of school strikers have shown us they’re serious about climate action. Adults, will you join our youth?
https://globalclimatestrike.net/

Volunteer

• Please adopt the bulletin boards where you already shop. 

   Download event flyers from our website or pick them up at the Peace & Justice Center Monday-Friday 1-4 PM. 

   Let us know what bulletin boards you can cover.  Thank you.
• Experienced builder to help us build raised bed garden boxes. 

• Research sustainable wood sources for our garden boxes.
• Help delivering them if you have a truck.

• Help editing our teach-in videos.

• We need an email list of bars and restaurants in Sonoma County.
• Make phone calls from home for 1-2 hours every other month. 

   No skill needed other than a pleasant phone demeanor.

Call To Action! 
We urge all groups including schools, neighborhood associations, organizations, clubs and groups of any kind to adopt a Climate Declaration.  Adopt ours or write your own.  Share your Climate Declaration with local governments, the media, write articles, and share information. 
Occupy Sonoma County Climate Declaration

Occupy Sonoma County, along with concerned, forward thinking people all over the world, declares that climate change has reached catastrophic proportions as evidenced by the current level of CO2 in the atmosphere, the melting of polar ice caps, and the continual rising of global temperatures.  This is a global emergency, and we must act immediately.​  We invite all forces of life to join together for our survival.  We stand up for life.

We recognize that the root of climate change is a capitalist system run by money greedy corporations and the governments that they control.  We actively oppose greenhouse gas producers, nuclear power investors, and fossil fuel companies by boycotting their products, developing alternatives, divesting from corporations that endorse them and insisting that governments at all levels take action.  We call on all governments and corporations to adopt life-sustaining practices immediately.

The people must act now to stop this destruction from continuing and reverse the damage this has caused​.  The future is in our hands.  We are the 99%!

What Earth Actions are you taking?

707-877-6650
http://OccupySonomaCounty.org
http://OccupySonomaCounty.org/es ​ (en español)
http://www.facebook.com/OccupySonomaCounty
https://twitter.com/OcSoCo
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmJoCP-ePUTPWNgHZwtBelg

Occupy Sonoma County embraces the egalitarian, deep democracy principles of the Occupy Movement with a regional strategy for effectively organizing countywide social justice campaigns that are globally relevant.