February 2020 Newsletter

Climate Crisis | Coastal Communities Working Group 

Marin County launched the Coastal Communities Working Group (CCWG) in early 2020 and invited representatives from West Marin Village Associations, and other stakeholders including environmental and youth representatives. Participants in the CCWG are tasked with reviewing, providing input, and sharing information about key adaptation planning efforts in West Marin. The work of the CCWG is to build off the County’s prior effort, Collaboration: Sea-Level Marin Adaptation Response Team (C-SMART), an effort to understand potential impacts of sea level rise on Marin's ocean coast and work together with communities to prepare for a more resilient future. In February, the CCWG met twice to review two projects that are underway in Marin County, the Stinson Beach Nature-Based Adaptation Feasibility Study, and Tomales Bay Nature-Based Adaptation Study.

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Climate Crisis | Drawdown Marin & Marin County's Climate Action Plan

EAC is currently engaged with Drawdown Marin, a project sponsored by the Marin County Sustainability Department that has launched a community-driven campaign to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and prepare for the impacts of climate change. Drawdown Marin focuses on implementing solutions in six focus areas: Renewable Energy, Transportation, Buildings & Infrastructure, Carbon Sequestration, Local Food & Food Waste, and Climate Resilient Communities.

In 2019, Ashley Eagle-Gibbs, EAC's Conservation Director, participated the Carbon Sequestration working group and made a presentation on the importance of Blue Carbon as a powerful tool to sequester 10x more carbon than terrestrial solutions.

This year, Morgan Patton, EAC's Executive Director, and Mairi Pileggi, EAC Board Member, are participating in the Climate Resilient Communities focus group and will collaborate on the development of a presentation on the importance of community freshwater resilience. Earlier this month, EAC attended a public workshop by the Marin County Sustainability Team to learn about the County's efforts to update the existing Climate Action Plan and provide input to help Marin identify a path forward with a vision towards 2030 and beyond.

Learn More: Drawdown Marin
Learn More: Marin County's Climate Action Plan

Climate Crisis | Moving Towards Zero Waste

At the close of 2019, Recology Sonoma Marin (Recology), West Marin’s waste hauler, proposed a 30% rate increase that once approved in 2020 increased the cost of a 32-gallon can in West Marin from $9 to $41/month. Recology, who took over the contract from the prior waste hauler, the Ratto Group, justified the increase to bring rates in West Marin up to standard market-rates. EAC took notice of the dramatic rate increase and submitted public comments to raise awareness of the implementation of the 2016 California Senate Bill 1383 (SB 1383). SB 1383 will dramatically change the way we sort and manage our trash. The goal of SB 1383 is to reduce short-lived climate pollutants or greenhouse gases (GHG), like methane, from entering our atmosphere from dairy, livestock, and organic waste in our landfills.

EAC supports SB 1383's ambitious goals to achieve a 75% reduction in organic waste by 2025, and we took the Recology rate increase as an opportunity to raise awareness about this key move towards zero waste and other concerns when it was considered and approved by the Board of Supervisors last month. 

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Climate Crisis | West Marin Climate Action 

EAC's partnership for community conversations on the climate crisis continues on March 28th. In February, the group updated our name to West Marin Climate Action to better reflect our overall goal to create community action on the climate crisis. The upcoming March event will focus on forging local action to respond the unique challenges our community faces and connecting people with existing projects. This meeting is the result of the more than 300 ideas we received at our November 2019 meeting. Our volunteer committee has reviewed and categorized the feedback into nine key topic areas including: Carbon Sequestration, Habitat Restoration, Civic Engagement, Local Food, Food Waste, Renewable Energy, Consumption, Transportation, and Resources for Youth.

Save the Date! March 28th as we bring local organizations, experts, and our community together to dive deep into the topic areas and commit to develop action plans to respond to the climate crisis. West Marin Climate Action is a collaboration of EAC, West Marin Standing Together, Point Reyes National Seashore Association, Heart of Compassion Sangha, and the Garden of Eden Apothecary.

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Land | Seashore Releases 7,600 Draft EIS Public Comments 

The Point Reyes National Seashore received more than 7,600 public comments during the 45-day review public review of the proposed General Management Plan Amendment Draft Environmental Impact Statement in September 2019. The National Park Service is currently preparing the Final Environmental Impact Statement which is expected to be released this spring with a 30-day waiting period prior to a record of decision. 

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Learn More: Read NPS Public Comments

Civic Engagement | YES on Measure C

Marin County is at risk for a catastrophic wildfire event that would have damaging consequences for wildlife habitat, fresh water reservoirs, and create lasting disturbances for biodiversity. Therefore, EAC encourages a YES vote on Measure C to protect wildlife habitat, allow for healthy fire and forest management practices, improve disaster preparedness and public alerts, and allows for environmental community engagement to ensure a implementation of a vegetation management plan that balances the needs for public safety and ecosystem services that include providing habitat for wildlife, improving water quality, creating Marin's microclimates, and sequestering carbon. 

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Learn More: Marin Wildfire Prevention & Mitigation Initiative | YES on Measure C Campaign

Civic Engagement | NO on Measure D

EAC strongly supports the conservation and restoration of the former golf course property and its transition into  open space that has a wide range of ecological and community benefits. We encourage you to vote NO on Measure D to permanently protect 157 acres of land from development, protect a vital habitat restoration project to benefit endangered Coho salmon and threatened Steelhead trout populations, protect local community planning, create an outdoor classroom for our children, remove herbicide and pesticide use that harms our human and natural communities, and save 50 million gallons of water annually that was being withdrawn from our creeks and reservoirs to keep the golf course green.

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Learn More: No on D Campaign | Reimagine San Geronimo

Photography and Art Credits: 
Rising Seas: Photo by TheDigitalArtist; Forest: Stocksnap; Compost: Grahamphoto23
Tule Elk: Carlos Porrata; Wildfire: Skeeze; Measure D: Carlos Porrata