For a printable flier, Click Here
UPDATE: Please Note - The event will be held in the Sanctuary of the Church, not the 2nd Floor Alliance Room as stated above.
We'll be using the Ferry Street entrance.
Thursday, July 16, 2015
Buffalo River Revitalization: Shoreline Access and Habitat Restoration
By Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper and Great Lakes Commission
Buffalo, N.Y. - As the 10-year effort to remove toxic sediment from the Buffalo River nears completion this summer, the focus now shifts to shoreline access and habitat restoration along this once-dead river. After nearly five years of planning and design work, construction is beginning at RiverBend and seven other locations along the Buffalo River that are essential for removing the river from the federal list of Great Lakes Areas of Concern by 2016.
To celebrate this next phase in the river's restoration, New York's Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul and Congressman Brian Hig gins (D-NY, 26th District), together with other state officials and local leaders, met today across from the RiverBend site. Restoration work there will transform the shoreline into a healthy and viable ecosystem and enhance recent economic development activity at this former brownfield site.
"This revitalization effort is a product of a thoughtful and historic public-private partnership that is restoring habitats and strengthening our local economy," said Lt. Gov. Hochul. "It was almost unheard of decades ago to imagine this site attracting new outdoor recreational opportunities - like fishing and boating - to our beloved shorelines. Today, it is clear that this investment has finally brought this dream into a reality."
"Federal investments combined with community-based action are bringing the Buffalo River back to life and breathing new life into our city," said Congressman Brian Higgins. "This progress was made possible thanks to the great collaboration of federal partners committed to the Great Lakes, private partners committed to investing in western New York's future and community partners, including outstanding leadership by Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper whose commitment is truly transforming Buffalo for generations to come."
When fully implemented, the projects will restore nearly two miles of shoreline and 20 acres of habitat at eight sites on the lower Buffalo River: RiverBend (east and west shorelines), River Fest Park, Blue Tower Turning Basin, Old Bailey Woods, Ohio Street Boat Launch, Toe of Katherine Street Peninsula and Buffalo Color Peninsula.
Lt. Gov. Hochul, Congressman Higgins join Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper,
Great Lakes Commission and NOAA to celebrate start of construction
Buffalo, N.Y. - As the 10-year effort to remove toxic sediment from the Buffalo River nears completion this summer, the focus now shifts to shoreline access and habitat restoration along this once-dead river. After nearly five years of planning and design work, construction is beginning at RiverBend and seven other locations along the Buffalo River that are essential for removing the river from the federal list of Great Lakes Areas of Concern by 2016.
To celebrate this next phase in the river's restoration, New York's Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul and Congressman Brian Hig gins (D-NY, 26th District), together with other state officials and local leaders, met today across from the RiverBend site. Restoration work there will transform the shoreline into a healthy and viable ecosystem and enhance recent economic development activity at this former brownfield site.
"This revitalization effort is a product of a thoughtful and historic public-private partnership that is restoring habitats and strengthening our local economy," said Lt. Gov. Hochul. "It was almost unheard of decades ago to imagine this site attracting new outdoor recreational opportunities - like fishing and boating - to our beloved shorelines. Today, it is clear that this investment has finally brought this dream into a reality."
"Federal investments combined with community-based action are bringing the Buffalo River back to life and breathing new life into our city," said Congressman Brian Higgins. "This progress was made possible thanks to the great collaboration of federal partners committed to the Great Lakes, private partners committed to investing in western New York's future and community partners, including outstanding leadership by Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper whose commitment is truly transforming Buffalo for generations to come."
When fully implemented, the projects will restore nearly two miles of shoreline and 20 acres of habitat at eight sites on the lower Buffalo River: RiverBend (east and west shorelines), River Fest Park, Blue Tower Turning Basin, Old Bailey Woods, Ohio Street Boat Launch, Toe of Katherine Street Peninsula and Buffalo Color Peninsula.
Buffalo ‘City of Night’ Festival - Saturday, July 18th!
SATURDAY, July 18th, 6PM-12AM, along Republic Street in the Old First Ward (near Gene McCarthy's Pub), Buffalo.
City of Night has grown! Last year we had 15,000 attendees.
City of Night was started 3 years ago with the purpose of bringing the masses to what were historically, neglected and under utilized industrial grain elevators along the Buffalo River.
This year we're moving our energy to the up and coming residential community of the Old First Ward.
Volunteer Opportunities available through Krystal Sondel - ksondel@hotmail.com
Volunteer Opportunities available through Krystal Sondel - ksondel@hotmail.com
Buffalo Spree voted us this year as the 'Best Summer Festival'.
Email Melanie Shorey at mshorey107@gmail.com if you're interested in coming on Saturday!
See the Facebook Event Page:
https://www.facebook.com/events/1421529211480634/
Check out some of the articles here for pictures and coverage from last year:
- http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/buffalo/plenty-of-art-offerings-at-city-of-night-party-20140629
- http://www.buffalonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?date=20140629&category=photogalleries&artno=629009999&ref=ph
- http://www.wgrz.com/story/news/local/buffalo/2014/06/28/buffalo-city-of-night/11691855/
- http://www.buffalospree.com/Blogs/Be-There/Annual-2014/City-of-Night-Shines-this-Weekend/
- http://artvoice.com/issues/v11n36/arts_city_of_night
- http://929jackfm.com/buffalo-comes-alive-at-city-of-night-pictures/
Wednesday, July 8, 2015
ADK Niagara Frontier Chapter: Conservationist of the Year Award
Conservationist of the Year - Art Klein
Adirondack Mountain Club - Niagara Frontier Chapter (ADK-NFC)
The ADK-NFC Conservation Committee honored Art Klein with the “Conservationist of the Year” Award at the Chapter's Annual Meeting and Picnic on Sunday, June 14, 2015.
Art Klein (holding the plaque) accompanied by the Conservation Committee.
[Click image to enlarge]
[Click image to enlarge]
It is with great pleasure that the award was presented to Art Klein. Art has been an ADK member since the 1980’s and has been a Chapter and Conservation Committee chairperson.
His work at the Army Corp of Engineers provided him with special insight into preserving wetlands and waterways.
He actively investigates environmental issues in Western New York and formulates letters and articles to inform and alert the politicians about what needs to be done to preserve the environment.
His advice is that we all can make a difference. Art Klein says, "just get out there and let your voice be heard."
Monday, July 6, 2015
Environmental NEWS
Why solar panels won’t solve climate change
Interview: The environmental movement should shift its emphasis from personal responsibility to political change, says activist Bill McKibben, founder of 350.org
Economists and engineers are ahead in terms of finding solutions, according to McKibben. “Economists – left, right and centre – have been saying we need to put a price on carbon to reflect the damage it does. And engineers have said we need government effort to take advantage of new renewable technologies. Up to now we can’t have these things, because of the power of the fossil-fuel industry.”
McKibben says that the most important thing people can do is join together with others to fight against large fossil-fuel infrastructure projects and encourage investors to stop giving money to the fossil-fuel industry.
Described by Time magazine as the planet’s best green journalist, and by the Boston Globe as the United States’ most distinguished environmentalist, McKibben made his first visit to Ireland, to speak at Meeting the Challenge of Climate Justice: From Evidence to Action.
Read more at IrishTimes.com
Pope Francis, science and government are reframing climate change
The long-anticipated encyclical by Pope Francis to the world on the environment was released mid-June. The Lancet Commission, a distinguished United Kingdom-based health body, the following week released its report on health and climate change.
Pope Francis has already changed the conversation in the Catholic Church by prioritizing issues of justice and mercy. He holds a unique status today as a moral leader not only of Christians but of all peoples of the world. He has used that moral authority to call for a needed moral conversion about what he considers the interconnected issues of the environment, the poor, humanity, global development and peace.
Health professionals and scientists are also changing the conversation by calling attention to the ways in which environmental destruction, such as climate change, threatens human health and well-being. We feel the effects through more severe storms, risks of infectious diseases, food scarcity and more. There is strong evidence that the world’s poor are among the most vulnerable — a common-sense, but often overlooked, fact that Lancet and the encyclical spotlight. The Lancet report shows that combating climate change is an unprecedented opportunity to advance health, equitable development and sustainability.
Read more at SeattleTimes.com
Two Years After Oil Train Disaster, Profound Scars Remain in Lac-Mégantic
Activists prepare for demonstrations across Canada and US this week to 'Stop Oil Trains'
A week of direct actions across Canada and the U.S. to stop so-called "bomb trains" began on Monday, the two-year anniversary of the Lac-Mégantic rail disaster, when an unmanned train with 72 tankers carrying 30,000 gallons of crude oil careened into a small town in the Canadian province of Quebec, where it derailed, exploded, and killed 47 people.
Decontamination work continues to this day at the crash site, but was suspended at noon for a moment of silence. Later in the day, church bells will ring out 47 times at Lac-Mégantic's St. Agnes Church.
On every level, recovery in the small community has been challenging.
Read more at CommonDreams.org
Thousands March in Toronto, Urge Canada to Turn Away From a Fossil Fuel Economy
Labor unions, student groups, indigenous communities, and environmentalists joined forces for the Jobs, Justice and Climate march, which activists called the most diverse climate mobilization in Canadian history.
The rally was timed to bring attention to the cause ahead of this week's Climate Summit of the Americas in Toronto, this fall's Canadian federal election, and the highly-anticipated UN Paris climate talks in November, which aim to bring together world leaders in legally-binding climate change solutions.
Read more at VICE News
The EPA Just Banned the Chemicals That Helped Save the Ozone Layer
Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) can be as much as 10,000 times as powerful as carbon dioxide when it comes to trapping heat in the atmosphere.
"This rule will not only reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions, but also encourage greater use and development of the next generation of safer HFC alternatives," EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy said.
"Tackling HFCs is a no-brainer," said Jason Kowalski, the US policy director of 350.org, which advocates for action on climate change. To restrict them is to go after "low-hanging fruit," he told VICE News, adding that the real issue in the climate change fight is the degree to which the Obama administration is willing to battle the fossil fuel industry.
Read more at VICE News
Letter: How we heat, cool our homes matters
The recently adopted New York State Energy Plan recognizes that in New York, we generate more greenhouse gases heating our buildings than by generating electricity. Heating and cooling our buildings efficiently with renewable energy will become increasingly more urgent as we address the challenge of climate change.
Read more at BuffaloNews.com
NY State Tax Incentives to Heat and Cool Homes Efficiently using Heat Pumps
The potential for widespread adoption of heat pumps (shallow ground-source, aka 'geothermal') in New York was recently boosted by the passage of bills in the State Senate and Assembly. Final approval of these important pieces of legislation is now in the hands of Governor Andrew Cuomo.
Urge Governor Cuomo to cut both energy bills and fossil fuel pollution by signing an online petition. Click Here to go to the petition.
State adds funds to budget in case of coal plant shutdown
The allocation of $19 million in the state budget that’s designed to help communities affected by retiring coal plants was hailed Monday by the local Just Transition coalition. The coalition has been planning for the possibility of the retirement of the Huntley Generating Plant in the Town of Tonawanda.
Reduced operations at the Huntley plant have resulted in decreased tax revenue received by the town, Erie County and the Kenmore-Town of Tonawanda Schools. While environmental advocates urge the transition from coal-powered electrical generation to clean energy, it’s also anticipated that a full shutdown of that plant could have devastating economic impacts on labor and the community.
Read more at BuffaloNews.com
Interview: The environmental movement should shift its emphasis from personal responsibility to political change, says activist Bill McKibben, founder of 350.org
Economists and engineers are ahead in terms of finding solutions, according to McKibben. “Economists – left, right and centre – have been saying we need to put a price on carbon to reflect the damage it does. And engineers have said we need government effort to take advantage of new renewable technologies. Up to now we can’t have these things, because of the power of the fossil-fuel industry.”
McKibben says that the most important thing people can do is join together with others to fight against large fossil-fuel infrastructure projects and encourage investors to stop giving money to the fossil-fuel industry.
Described by Time magazine as the planet’s best green journalist, and by the Boston Globe as the United States’ most distinguished environmentalist, McKibben made his first visit to Ireland, to speak at Meeting the Challenge of Climate Justice: From Evidence to Action.
Read more at IrishTimes.com
Pope Francis, science and government are reframing climate change
The long-anticipated encyclical by Pope Francis to the world on the environment was released mid-June. The Lancet Commission, a distinguished United Kingdom-based health body, the following week released its report on health and climate change.
Pope Francis has already changed the conversation in the Catholic Church by prioritizing issues of justice and mercy. He holds a unique status today as a moral leader not only of Christians but of all peoples of the world. He has used that moral authority to call for a needed moral conversion about what he considers the interconnected issues of the environment, the poor, humanity, global development and peace.
Health professionals and scientists are also changing the conversation by calling attention to the ways in which environmental destruction, such as climate change, threatens human health and well-being. We feel the effects through more severe storms, risks of infectious diseases, food scarcity and more. There is strong evidence that the world’s poor are among the most vulnerable — a common-sense, but often overlooked, fact that Lancet and the encyclical spotlight. The Lancet report shows that combating climate change is an unprecedented opportunity to advance health, equitable development and sustainability.
Read more at SeattleTimes.com
Two Years After Oil Train Disaster, Profound Scars Remain in Lac-Mégantic
Activists prepare for demonstrations across Canada and US this week to 'Stop Oil Trains'
A week of direct actions across Canada and the U.S. to stop so-called "bomb trains" began on Monday, the two-year anniversary of the Lac-Mégantic rail disaster, when an unmanned train with 72 tankers carrying 30,000 gallons of crude oil careened into a small town in the Canadian province of Quebec, where it derailed, exploded, and killed 47 people.
Decontamination work continues to this day at the crash site, but was suspended at noon for a moment of silence. Later in the day, church bells will ring out 47 times at Lac-Mégantic's St. Agnes Church.
On every level, recovery in the small community has been challenging.
Read more at CommonDreams.org
Thousands March in Toronto, Urge Canada to Turn Away From a Fossil Fuel Economy
Labor unions, student groups, indigenous communities, and environmentalists joined forces for the Jobs, Justice and Climate march, which activists called the most diverse climate mobilization in Canadian history.
The rally was timed to bring attention to the cause ahead of this week's Climate Summit of the Americas in Toronto, this fall's Canadian federal election, and the highly-anticipated UN Paris climate talks in November, which aim to bring together world leaders in legally-binding climate change solutions.
Read more at VICE News
The EPA Just Banned the Chemicals That Helped Save the Ozone Layer
Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) can be as much as 10,000 times as powerful as carbon dioxide when it comes to trapping heat in the atmosphere.
"This rule will not only reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions, but also encourage greater use and development of the next generation of safer HFC alternatives," EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy said.
"Tackling HFCs is a no-brainer," said Jason Kowalski, the US policy director of 350.org, which advocates for action on climate change. To restrict them is to go after "low-hanging fruit," he told VICE News, adding that the real issue in the climate change fight is the degree to which the Obama administration is willing to battle the fossil fuel industry.
Read more at VICE News
Letter: How we heat, cool our homes matters
The recently adopted New York State Energy Plan recognizes that in New York, we generate more greenhouse gases heating our buildings than by generating electricity. Heating and cooling our buildings efficiently with renewable energy will become increasingly more urgent as we address the challenge of climate change.
Read more at BuffaloNews.com
NY State Tax Incentives to Heat and Cool Homes Efficiently using Heat Pumps
The potential for widespread adoption of heat pumps (shallow ground-source, aka 'geothermal') in New York was recently boosted by the passage of bills in the State Senate and Assembly. Final approval of these important pieces of legislation is now in the hands of Governor Andrew Cuomo.
Urge Governor Cuomo to cut both energy bills and fossil fuel pollution by signing an online petition. Click Here to go to the petition.
State adds funds to budget in case of coal plant shutdown
The allocation of $19 million in the state budget that’s designed to help communities affected by retiring coal plants was hailed Monday by the local Just Transition coalition. The coalition has been planning for the possibility of the retirement of the Huntley Generating Plant in the Town of Tonawanda.
Reduced operations at the Huntley plant have resulted in decreased tax revenue received by the town, Erie County and the Kenmore-Town of Tonawanda Schools. While environmental advocates urge the transition from coal-powered electrical generation to clean energy, it’s also anticipated that a full shutdown of that plant could have devastating economic impacts on labor and the community.
Read more at BuffaloNews.com
Thursday, July 2, 2015
TALK: Pope's Climate Encyclical 'On The Care of Our Common Home'
The Sierra Club
Climate and Clean Energy Writers Group
Monday, July 6th, 2015 Session:
Haven't had time to read the
Pope’s Climate Encyclical?
Come hear what Sister Eileen O'Connor has to say.
The Pope’s Encyclical is drawing worldwide attention to the climate crisis. Here in Buffalo, writers have been busy adding their voices and calling for action. Thank you to these writers and to the Buffalo News for publishing their work.
Find links to these inspiring published writings on Sierra Club's
Writer’s Group – In the News page.
~ ~ ~
NiagaraSierraClub.com
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