1 PEATDUSTER - sierraclub.org › sites › ...It is estimated that we know of 2 million species on our planet and have yet to discover perhaps 6 to 8 million more. For example there

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PEATDUSTER

Volume 47 Number 3 P-1 Printed on Recycled Electrons August—September 2016

Explore, enjoy and protect the planet.

Newsletter for the Delta-Sierra Group, Mother Lode Chapter

Visit us at www.sierraclub.org/mother-lode/delta-sierra

SOLAR COOKERS & HOT AUGUST NIGHTS

Bev Blum

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Explore, enjoy and protect the planet. Explore, enjoy and protect the planet. Explore, enjoy and protect the planet. Explore, enjoy and protect the planet. Explore, enjoy and protect the planet. Explore, enjoy and protect the planet.


MEETINGS and EVENTS All General Meetings are open to everyone whether you are a Sierra Club member or not. Meetings are held in the Fireside Room at the Central United Methodist Church, 3700 Pacific Avenue, Stockton, across from the UOP Tower. We’re off to a great start after this hot summer! Join us on Monday, August

22 at 7:00 pm - Off the Beaten Track in East Africa with Solar Cookers with Bev Blum.

The innovative Bev Blum will share her experiences to spread the use of solar cookers in 4 countries of Eastern Africa. Coming from Minnesota in 1962, Bev taught at Stagg High School in Stockton and Uiversity Of Pacific for several years, then transitioned to nurture women-focused nonprofits.

In 1987 she fostered a nonprofit solar cooker project that grew into Solar Cookers International. SCI drew correspondence from around the world describing the loss of trees and the resulting serious wood scarcities for vital daily cooking. SCI developed what is still the best internet source for anything and everything related to solar cookers and solar cooking, and continues to encourage networking among promoters worldwide.

In 1989, SCI needed broader experience from other cultures and started sponsoring several projects in Central America and Africa. Solar Cookers International now works with partners in 124 countries to bring solar cooking solutions to people whose need is greatest. See more at their

website at www.solarcookers.org/index.php

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(Meetings and Events continued from Page 2)

Coastal Cleanup Day

Saturday, September 17, 2016 9:00am-12 Noon Ocean trash is a serious pollution problem that affects the health of people, wildlife and local economies. Trash travels downstream via inland waterways, storm drains, sewers, and then, if not removed, this debris will end up in the ocean. Join the world’s largest volunteer effort for our ocean and waterways by participating in the International Coastal Cleanup event. Our local group will focus on the northwest corner of the Calaveras River and Pacific Avenue. If you'd like to participate, contact Margo Praus [email protected]

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(Meetings and Events continued from Page 2)

Monday, September 26 at 7:00 pm Dinosaurs and other Mesozoic Reptiles of California Presentation by Sierra College Paleontologist, Richard Hilton.

Join us for an exciting evening hearing about California’s ancient reptiles. Many people are not aware that there have been many discoveries of dinosaurs, pterosaurs, ichthyosaurs, mosasaurs, plesiosaurs and other sea going reptiles made in the Sierra Nevada mountains in California.

Richard made the first discovery of dinosaur bones in Northern California. This presentation will highlight Hilton's new book on these discoveries and highlight the scientists who brought them to light.

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Photographs will chronicle a century of discovery and the artwork of Ken Kirkland will flesh out the meat on the bones of these ancient reptiles and make these animals come alive!

Richard Hilton is a professor of geology and paleontology at Sierra College and is also a paleontological consultant. He is Chairman of the Sierra College Natural History Museum, and a board member of the California State University Chico, Geoscience Board.

He has published numerous scientific articles in the field of vertebrate paleontology and a book entitled, “Dinosaurs and other Mesozoic Reptiles of California,” published by the University of California Press. He has led natural history trips to South America, the Galapagos Islands, Baja California and Alaska.

He has led paleontological digs throughout the western United States. He has lived in Canada and South Africa and he and his

wife Kristin have led trips to Kenya, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Ireland, Iceland, Australia and Tasmania. He is an avid nature photographer.

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Earth Day 2016

On Sunday, April 17, 2016 the Delta-Sierra Group was again in Victory Park celebrating Earth Day in our community. The weather was lovely, the people interested and it was a good day for all.

In the photo, member Roy Hoggard is seated talking to people about the Sierra club, Executive Committee member Dick Abood standing on the left side of the booth is helping children with their project, and member Maggie Staffen in the back is helping people choose T-Shirts.

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The Student Stewards

On Monday, April 25, 2016 The Student Stewards of the Lower Calaveras River from the fifth, sixth, and seventh grades at Kohl School, presented a dynamic overview of their work on the banks of the Calaveras River. The river is located right by the school giving them opportunities to go onto the levee to study the important ecosystems, learn about Stockton, and raise awareness about the Calaveras River.

They use the levee as a natural extension of their classrooms. Their presentation was well organized, scientific, artful, and included poetry. They brought fascinating displays. They collaborated together as a team for a very successful presentation and the audience was impressed with what they are accomplishing. The Delta-Sierra Group has been pleased to support this group in 2015 and 2016.

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HISTORIAN WANTED Delta-Sierra Group is searching for someone to be our club historian. We have two boxes of printed material dating back to the 1970’s of correspondence, Peatdusters, Executive Committee minutes and agendas. Did you know that in June of 1970 our group subvention monies from the chapter were a whopping $25 and our budget for 1971 was $435. These and other fun facts are stashed away in these two boxes waiting to be explored and shared with fellow Delta-Sierra Group Members in the Peatduster. Robert Evans our Peatduster editor has offered to assist someone willing to take on the role of Club Historian. If interested please email Paul Plathe at

[email protected] and use Delta-Sierra Group Historian in subject line.

My brother saw this rig in Yellowstone and said, “Those three 100 watt panels should provide all the power they would ever want, 50 - 70 Amp/Hours of power a day.” Sierra Club is a strong supporter of solar energy. Photo by C EVANS

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From the Editor: We are starting this season with some really great programs with more to come, thanks to Margo Praus. She is also running the Coastal Cleanup this year.

We play an essential role in this annual event because our Calaveras and Mokelumne Rivers connect to the delta and eventually the Pacific Ocean. If you participated last year, you were one of 791,336 volunteers. You helped pick up 18,062,911 pounds of trash covering 25,188 miles of shoreline and riverbanks. Maybe you helped rescue 1 of 39 toilets, 23 cell phones, 54 bicycles, 28 refrigerators, 149 shopping carts, 101 boat anchors, or 87 mattresses. And check out this list obtained from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration website at www.noaa.gov

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We are surrounded with biodiversity probably without realizing it. Your mouth may be home to 500 species of bacteria so… watch what you say! (Note: some bacteria are good bacteria.) I watched a program about Joshua Tree National Park that discussed the biodiversity of three unique species, the trees and a type of beetle and moth, and their symbiotic relationships and was compelled to research and write about it. It follows, but first this:

It is estimated that we know of 2 million species on our planet and have yet to discover perhaps 6 to 8 million more. For example there are about 10,000 species of birds, 30,000 species of fish, 300,000 species of plants and nearly 1 million species of

insects. This is my lead in to Half-Earth: Our Planet's Fight for Life by Edward O. Wilson.

Wikipedia says, “Edward O. Wilson is an American biologist, researcher (sociobiology, biodiversity, island biogeography), theorist (consilience, biophilia), naturalist (conservationist) and author. His biological specialty is myrmecology, the study of ants, on which he is considered to be the world's leading expert.”

After reading 10 pages of his book I though I should start over and use a yellow marker to emphasize the important stuff, but I didn’t. And after reading 40 pages, I realized if I had used the yellow marker, all the pages would be yellow.

Combined with global warming, we are populating and changing our planet so quickly that extinction of species is inevitable. As you might guess from the title, Edward Wilson proposes we spare part of planet for the sake of biodiversity.

This is not a new concept; The Nature Conservancy, although limited by funding, has been doing this for years. I recommend this book to all Sierra Club members, friends of the environment, and anyone concerned about the future of life on our planet Earth.

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Joshua trees are found only in California, Arizona, Nevada and Utah. They are temperamental and require a certain amount of water and an elevation (1300 to 5900 feet) where freezing temperatures occur. They are endangered due to global warming.

A month ago I watched an old TV episode of California Gold with Huell Howser who died in 2013. In that film he made an “amazing” discovery that by coincidence matches a famous quote by John Muir. He discovered the relationship of the Joshua tree to a lizard, a moth and a bug.

Photo by REE

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The Yucca Night Lizard lives its entire life under the protective bark of a decaying Joshua tree. Its narrow body fits in small crevices where it feeds on ants and termites attracted by the host tree’s shelter from predators and climate.

A Pronuba Moth or Yucca Moth is the only type of insect that is able to pollinate flowers of Joshua tree. Female moths collect pollen and at the same time lay eggs inside the ovaries. Larvae hatched from the eggs use seeds of Joshua tree as a source of food. The Joshua tree and Pronuba Moth are tightly associated and cannot survive one without another.

Photo by REE

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Branching of tree limbs generally begins 3 to 10 feet above the ground and is often caused by the yucca-boring weevil, which destroys the growing tips. Huell Howser, to his amazement and in his jovial way, found that everything is connected!

“When one tugs at a single thing in nature, he finds it attached to the rest of the world.” John Muir.

Photo by REE

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GO SOLAR NOW Through an innovative partnership with Sungevity, a leading national solar company, the Motherlode Chapter is able to offer members and supporters like you an affordable and easy way to go solar. When you go solar with the Sierra Club and Sungevity, you will receive a special $750 discount and Sungevity will send the Mother Lode Chapter $750 that can be used to protect local wildlife and wild lands, keep our air and water clean, and move us toward a clean energy future. “In order to end our dependence on dirty energy, we need as many Americans as possible to switch to clean energy like rooftop solar. This is a high priority for the Sierra Club. We are urging all of our members and supporters in California to work with Sungevity to find out if solar is right for them. Every home that goes solar gets us one step closer to our goal of a clean energy economy,” said Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune. Clean energy is winning. Are you going to be a part of the victory? Getting started with solar is quick and easy. It takes less than three minutes. Get started today by calling 415-977-5668 to speak with the Sierra Club Solar Homes Coordinator for more information. Or go online to:

http://content.sierraclub.org/solar/sungevity?ref=138

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Federation of Western Outdoor Clubs "As the American frontier closed in the late 19th century, people throughout the west began to gather in local out-door clubs. They sought to enjoy nature rather to exploit it. They longed for a different relationship to the land — one of respect that was rooted in a new ethic.

As their numbers grew, they felt the need to cooperate and coordinate their work to preserve and enjoy nature. In 1932, they banded together to form the Federation of Western Outdoor Clubs. It has carried this work forward ever since, representing nearly four dozen clubs in eight states."

About FWOC:

http://federationofwesternoutdoorclubs.org/fwoc_about.html

Annually, delegates from FWOC's member clubs gather at a convention to decide the Federation’s positions on issues of concern. Member clubs submit resolutions for consideration by the delegates. Accepted resolutions often provide an early warning of new threats and spotlight the issues that concern conservationists.

This year the FWOC is hosting their annual Convention in Washington State on the topic Climate Change, Water Uncertainty and Resilience Through Conservation.

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Because Mother Lode Chapter of the Sierra Club is an affiliate member of FWOC, individuals from our Delta-Sierra Group are also invited to participate in the 2016 gathering.

IslandWood Educational Learning Center Bainbridge Island near Seattle, WA September 16–18, 2016

List of Clubs: http://federationofwesternoutdoorclubs.org/index.html

This is a chance to enjoy the last weekend of summer for $150 registration including lodging and meals. For students who might be interested, there are scholarship monies available to cover the $150 registration costs.

Delta-Sierra Group is providing our copy of the Restore the Delta movie Over Troubled

Waters for the program and discussion at the conference. Many people have not yet even heard of the Twin Tunnels! Bringing attention to our endangered Delta waterways to a larger, more widespread audience is critical at this time.

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Stockton, Modesto and Sonora Sierra Club Find us at: http://www.meetup.com/S-M-S-SierraClub

We have been in operation for over 4 years and we have 1065 members. You can find our local Sierra Club activities posted there.

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Executive Committee with Email Addresses Chair: Dale Stocking [email protected] Vice Chair & Membership Chair: Paul Plathe [email protected] Secretary & Program Chair: Margo Praus [email protected] Conservation Chair & Treasurer: Dale Stocking [email protected] Chapter Delegate & Assistant Treasurer: Richard R Abood [email protected] Alternate Chapter Delegate & Genetic Engineering: Margo Praus [email protected] Executive Member: Knute Momberg [email protected] Newsletter: Robert Evans [email protected] Your name could be here! We need your help! You can see some of us are filling too many spots! Contact any one of us to learn more.



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DELTA-SIERRA GROUP P.O. BOX 9258 STOCKTON, CA 95208


It's obvious that the key problem facing humanity in the coming century is how to bring a better quality of life for 8 billion or more people without wrecking the environment entirely in the attempt. Edward O. Wilson

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1 PEATDUSTER - sierraclub.org › sites › ...It is estimated that we know of 2 million species on our planet and have yet to discover perhaps 6 to 8 million more. For example there