current actions we recommend
DEVELOPER PROPOSING LUXURY RESORT AND EVENT CENTER IN A VOTER-PROTECTED GREENBELT!
In Sonoma County District 4 an expansive interpretation of RRD (Rural resources and development) zoning would be especially damaging. This is a Community Greenbelt Separator protected by Measure K with an 81 % vote. Help us push back against this egregious development by making a public comment. PLEASE tell the County that you object to this intense, inappropriate development.
DEADLINE July 6 for Public Comment; Public Hearing July 9.
More information and sample comments here: Defend Community Separators
Sample comment: Dear Sonoma County Supervisors, BZA Commissioners and Permit Sonoma,
Please vote to deny or delay any action on the proposed luxury resort and event center referred to as “Sonoma Solstice” 3890 Old Redwood Hwy, in a community separator protected by Measure K with 81 percent of the vote. Now is not the time to move forward on a totally non-essential luxury resort and event center. This is a protected greenbelt in the middle of a burn zone. One public meeting while people are distracted by the worsening pandemic is not enough considering that approval would set a dangerous precedent for future developments.
Sincerely Yours,
Name, Title, Organization
Copy and paste to Emails to:
Board of Zoning Adjustments
“Todd Tamura-Chair District 2” <Todd.Tamura@gmail.com>, “Richard Fogg-District 1” <sonomafogg@aol.com>
“John Lowry, District 5” <JohnLowryCA@gmail.com>
“Cameron Mauritson – District 4” <cameron@mauritsonfarms.com>
“Paula Cook-District 3” <pcook@ch-sc.org>, <permitsonoma@sonomacounty.org>
“Permit Sonoma Deputy Director Scott Orr” <scott.orr@sonoma-county.org>
“Planner Tricia Stevens” <tstevens@migcom.com>
CC to:
“Supervisor James Gore James Gore”<District4@sonoma-county.org>
“Matt Callaway” <matt@conservationaction.org>
Plastic Free July
The Zero Waste Chef has a timely Plastic Free July blog post titled Plastic Free July: The Pandemic Year(s). Check out all 17 ideas here to help you reduce plastic this month. Here is idea #17 illustrating the intersection of environmentalism, health, greed,racism and climate & social justice.
17. Join grassroots organizations
Fossil fuel companies know that the end it near—demand for oil and gas will continue to fall. To keep the party going, they have made big plans to ramp up plastic production (plastic is made from fossil fuels). Such plants often operate in marginalized communities, such as St John’s Parish, Louisiana—one of the most polluted areas in the US and known as Cancer Alley—where residents are currently fighting the construction of what would be the biggest plastics facility in the country. This is what environmental racism looks like.
The proposed facility has license to spew 800 tons of toxic pollutants yearly into the already compromised air. Spell this out to anyone who tells you that quitting plastic is frivolous. Consuming less of the stuff will reduce demand. And while we consumers alone can’t turn off the plastic spigot, at least we can take a stand and do what we can to turn down that spigot. We can also join organizations fighting for climate justice, such as 350.org, and racial justice, such as Black Lives Matter.
Paid Sick Leave
Paid sick leave online petition
Ask Sonoma County of Supervisors to stand with workers and pass 14 days emergency paid sick leave for all. A ‘shelter-in-place’ policy to slow the spread of the virus by preventing new infections would be more efficient and effective with emergency paid sick leave. Most low-wage workers do not have paid sick leave. Workers employed by companies and agencies providing essential services who work while sick are certain to pass the virus to customers, patients, and their fellow workers. No one should be forced to choose between working when sick and providing for his or her family.
Stop oil drilling and fracking near schools, homes, and other sensitive sites.
Over 5 million Californians live less than a mile from an active oil well—with low-income communities and communities of color facing disproportionate health and safety impacts. Studies link proximity to oil and gas wells to a host of health impacts and environmental pollution, including asthma and other respiratory ailments. In the midst of the COVID-19 respiratory pandemic, these communities are more likely to experience severe outcomes.
Take Action!
- (By June 9th) Click here to send a letter to the California Geologic Energy Management Division (CalGEM), which has recklessly granted 24 fracking permits to expand operations during the pandemic. CalGEM is undertaking a process to update public health and safety protections for communities near oil drilling sites. Big Oil has been aggressively fighting against changes to oil drilling practices. This rulemaking process is our chance to urge the State of California to establish a 2,500-foot health-and-safety buffer zone between fossil-fuel infrastructure and homes, schools, and other sensitive sites.
- Email state Senator Mike McGuire today and urge him to vote YES on Assembly Bill 345.
AB 345 will require the agency that regulates oil drilling to establish a setback for oil and gas operations to protect people who live, play, work, or go to school nearby.
Zero Waste Tips for COVID Era
How can you avoid single use shopping bags?
- Instead of using single-use paper or plastic bags at check-out, load your paid-for groceries back into your shopping cart.
- When you wheel the cart to your car, transfer the items into the bags in your trunk.
- Or- if you walked to the store, transfer items into your bags outside the store.
Plant a garden and learn to compost
- how to compost and why its good for the climate
- Virtual workshops in English and Spanish on how to compost at home from the UC Master Gardeners
ZERO WASTE DURING S.I.P. TIMES
Many have been discouraged about zero waste during COVID times. No carry-in shopping bags, no bulk foods, no farmer’s markets. DON’T BE. These are transformative times and the will and ingenuity of the people will make lemonade of the lemon times. There still is plenty we can do to advance the movement. Here are suggestions for your consideration:
1) RETHINK – Many can’t print documents because they don’t have their work printer. Make a plan to continue to get by without as much of the ink and paper use.
2) REPLACE MATERIALS– We can use this time away from ziplocks to form a plan to replace them. Tupperware and reused plastic bread bags work well. You will like this project MUCH more if you get recycle ALL containers and lids you don’t like (do it), and buy matching sets of the right sizes
3) REPLACE/REDUCE – Running out of precious paper towels? Never been a better time to make a kitchen drawer filled with clean folded rags and begin using them for floor and counter clean ups. You’ll need a small “hamper” box under the sink for the clean ones. Pull out and add with any laundry load. Refold, reload drawer. Old, cut-up towels work well. Save money, save paper products.
4) REFUSE – Cut down on your junk mail. Contact orgs and publishers that are plugging up your mailbox.
5) REFUSE – We can refuse to buy or take drinks in plastic bottles. Choose glass or aluminum containers.
6) REDUCE – We can’t buy in bulk, but we can buy larger packages with less individual wrappings.
7) REDUCE – We can bake our own granola bars and not have to waste the individual wrappers (wax paper wrapping works).
8) REUSE – Have too much recycling? Two tin cans can be made into an old-fashioned telephone. A rinsed bleach or milk plastic bottle can become a bird feeder or child’s watering can. A wipe bottle and some dry rice inside becomes a shaker instrument. OR…just give your kids a huge box of all the (clean, safe) recycling and a roll of masking tape and they will make a fancy castle, or Recyclops monster, or fire station.
9) REUSE – No, we can’t bring our bags into stores, but we can reuse paper bags for garbage or spread them over areas of the garden to get rid of weeds. Paper bags make an awesome kid hat – roll it up from the end to fit the head. Let them decorate it.
Ask your mayor and city council of your city to sign Obama’s Mayoral pledge to commit to the following actions:
1. REVIEW your police use of force policies.
2. ENGAGE your communities by including a diverse range of input, experiences, and stories in your review.
3. REPORT the findings of your review to your community and seek feedback.
4. REFORM your community’s police use of force policies.
Sonoma County Board of Supervisors: bos@sonoma-county.org
Santa Rosa City Council: citycouncil@srcity.org
Sebastopol City Council: “Slayter, Patrick” <ps.sebcc@gmail.com>, Sarah Gurney <sarahgurney.seb@gmail.com>, “Una Glass” <una.glass.seb@sonic.net>, “Neysa Hinton” <neysacouncil@gmail.com>, “Michael Carnacchi “<mcarnacchi@cityofsebastopol.org>, mgourley@cityofsebastopol.org
Healdsburg council: dhagele@ci.healdsburg.ca.us, lgold@ci.healdsburg.ca.us, smccaffery@ci.healdsburg.ca.us , jnaujokas@ci.healdsburg.ca.us , emitchell@ci.healdsburg.ca.us,
Support our Sonoma County community members who are at risk of eviction and/ or do not have paid sick leave.
We are asking the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors to extend and strengthen the anti-eviction ordinance that they passed.
We are also asking the Board of Supervisors to pass a two-week (80 hours) emergency paid sick leave for all county residents affected by Corvid-19 (at their June 9th meeting)
Take Action Before 5pm Monday, 6/8!
- Use this email/ voicemail script to email or call the Board of Supervisors. Add in that you also want them to “extend and strengthen the anti-eviction ordinance”
- Email to bos@sonoma-county.org or call 707-691-0174 before 5 pm Monday, June 8th
- Sign the online petition in support emergency paid sick leave
The Sebastopol Farm Market has started an online order and curbside pick-up program
Support our local farmers by shopping at the Sebastopol Farmer’s Market via this online/ curbside program (order by 3pm Saturday each week) or in person on Sundays from 10am-1:30pm (the market has been carefully enforcing social-distancing measures).
order at
https://sebastopolfarmersmarket.localfoodmarketplace.com/Products
A Clean, Green, and Just Economic Recovery for California
A coalition of climate and environmental groups including 350 Bay Area Action and The Climate Center in Santa Rosa are calling on Governor Newsom. Support their efforts by sending your own letter to Governor Newsom.
Take action today for a clean, green, and just economic recovery in California.
On April 28, The Climate Center and many of its partners sent a letter to the California legislature asking them to use federal stimulus funds to support proven programs that improve health and resilience, and create jobs for a climate-safe future.
We asked that they secure ongoing revenue streams to increase the impact and longevity of those dollars. And we recommended using bonds to help power California’s recovery.
Despite the terrible toll, COVID-19 is presenting a unique opportunity to transform our economy into a healthy, equitable, and resilient one. The California legislature can funnel stimulus dollars to reverse some of the damage already done by the pandemic, including 100,000 clean energy jobs lost in March alone.
Crucial investments we need now include accelerating the equitable phase-out of fossil fuel development, production, and use by replacing it with clean energy, increasing sequestration through healthy soils initiatives on agricultural and working lands, and investing in community resilience measures including community energy resilience to help us weather unavoidable climate impacts.
These investments create a pathway to a resilient economic recovery for California with a secure transition for everyone. Let’s Make this recovery count
Support the Moratorium on Permits for Tree Cutting
The Sonoma County Democrats presented a resolution to the Board of Supervisors in Nov. 2019, to protect forest habitat by calling for a temporary “time out” on significant tree removal proposals until such time as the update of the Tree Protection Ordinance is completed. The Board has not acted on this resolution or updated the ordinance and native oak habitat is being cut down for vineyards. Read the resolution. https://sonomademocrats.org/resolution-on-the-tree-protection-ordinance-and-the-climate-emergency/
And write or call the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors to express your concerns. https://sonomacounty.ca.gov/Board-of-Supervisors/Contact-Board-of-Supervisors/
Please BCC your letters to Kimberly Burr at: kimlarry2@comcast.net