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Environmental News Update 2/1/02 CEC Annual Meeting February 5 Don't forget the CEC Annual Meeting on Tuesday February 5 at 6:30 pm at the Houston Environmental Center, 3015 Richmond. Jim Blackburn and Charles Tapley will speak on the region's "ecological capital." Attendees will vote in the new CEC board of directors, learn about CEC’s plans for 2002, and pick up their new Environmental Resource Guides. For more information, call Sarah at the office at 713-524-4232. Plant Trees in Memorial Park Houston Green Coalition is sponsoring a tree planting in Memorial Park on Saturday, February 23 from 8:30 am to noon. CEC and several member organizations will sponsor sections of the planting, all of which will lie in the esplanade on Memorial Drive between Crestwood and the railroad overpass. Participants are asked to bring shovels, picks, rakes, and hand sledges. The Gulf Coast Institute will contribute the trees; the City of Houston Forestry Department will maintain them. Marathon Oil Company will provide drinks and lunch. Please call Carlton Collier at 713-924-6058 for further information and to sign up to participate. COALITION NOTES Prowling for Owls Three types of owls are common in the city of Houston. The little screech owl is a common resident in wooded sections of Houston and surrounding counties; they feed their young primarily cockroaches and mice. Barn owls, which prefer open fields, also hunt in railroad yards and warehouse districts and specialize on rats. Until the last 15 to 20 years, the great horned owl was rare within the city. Its favorite food items are screech owls and skunks, but this species has adapted to prey on free roaming house cats. The Nature Discovery Center (NDC), 7112 Newcastle, is hosting several upcoming lectures on owls. On Wednesday, February 6 at 7 pm, Mary Ann Weber, Education Director for the Houston Audubon Society will speak on The Beauty and Biology of Owls, followed by a walk in the woods to see owls in the wild. On Saturday, February 9, NDC is organizing a field trip to Waller County to see a variety of owl species. Participants will leave the NDC at 4 pm and return around 9:30 pm. The lecture is free; the field trip costs $35 per person, students $20. For more information or to RSVP for the field trip, call 713-667-6550. Study Circle On Sustainable Living The Houston Sierra Club is starting a study circle on sustainable living on Thursday, February 14 at 7 pm at 5135 Kingfisher. The group will meet once or twice per month depending on interest. They will explore the ties between lifestyle choices and their impact on the earth, and steps that can be taken to move toward ecologically sustainable organizations, lifestyles, and communities. Participants will also learn what they can do to lighten their personal ecological footprints and lighten the impact of our systems, such as transportation, food, etc. For more information, contact Cathy Albrecht at 281-585-0856 or Nan Hildreth at 713-864-7108. River Bottom Festival and Canoe Race Scheduled The San Jacinto Conservation Coalition has scheduled its 2nd annual River Bottom Festival and East Fork/West Fork Challenge Night-Time Canoe Marathonfor the weekend of March 9 and 10. The Saturday festival is an all-day environmental expo at Sam Houston State Park for kids and adults. Many interactive activities are planned, including kid-fish trips to Peach Creek, live birds of prey, booths, hands-on exhibits, canoe rentals, food, and more. The 16-mile canoe race begins on Sunday morning at 4 am at Lake Houston State Park, 22031 Baptist Encampment Road, New Caney and ends in Kingwood. For details, visit http://www.sanjacinto.cc/challenge.htm. Green Architecture Lecture On Monday, February 11, at 7 pm at the Houston Museum of Natural Science, designer William McDonough will speak on Redesigning The Paradigm: Going Green In Architecture. McDonough is an internationally renowned designer and one of the primary proponents and shapers of what he and his partners call "The Next Industrial Revolution." These new "green" architects strive to produce "ecologically intelligent buildings" - for example, by using recycled and reclaimed materials, utilizing natural light and natural ventilation, incorporating principles of water and energy conservation, and using designs that enhance efficiency of the building and health of the inhabitants. McDonough will discuss how he and his firm have used these principles in several of the award-winning buildings as well as other products they have designed, and what it means to "honor nature as a guide to structure." Admission is $8 for museum members and $10 for non-members. KPC Annual Meeting February 12 The annual meeting of the Katy Prairie Conservancy (KPC) will be held on February 12, 2002 from 6-8 pm at the Houston Environmental Center, 3015 Richmond Avenue. Attendees will meet and greet their fellow KPC supporters, Board and Advisory Board members, and learn about KPC’s 2001 accomplishments and future plans. P.D. Hulce of the Houston Audubon Society will present a talk, "Katy Prairie: Its Past and Its Promise." Wine and hors d'oeuvres served. Please call 713-523-6135 to RSVP. LOCAL Transportation Scoping Meetings Scheduled In February, Carter-Burgess, on behalf of METRO, the Texas Department of Transportation, and the Houston-Galveston Area Council will conduct a series of scoping meetings to collect public input on three transportation corridors: the North-Hardy Corridor, the Uptown-West Loop Corridor, and the Southeast-Universities-Hobby Corridor. For a schedule, visit http://www.ridemetro.org/scoping02.htm. STATE Promise and Problems in Perry’s Transportation Plan On Monday, January 28, Texas Governor Rick Perry released plans to create the Trans Texas Corridor, a network of corridors, each about 1,000 feet wide, that contain a six-lane divided roadway, six railroad tracks for high-speed passenger and freight trains, and easements for underground pipelines and communications cable. Constructing the entire system would take about 50 years. Perry says the 4,000-mile network is necessitated by expected population growth and increased traffic due to passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Environmental groups see both opportunity and problems with the plan. It has the possibility of transferring both people and freight from cars and trucks to rail, and could move dangerous and polluting trucks off the busiest highways and out of urban areas, says Glenn Gadbois of Just Transportation Alliances (JTA). It is also conceivable that keeping major pipelines within the corridor could enhance safety and improve accessibility for monitoring. However, says Gadbois, the downside is that the network and subsequent development will wipe out thousands of acres of open space and contribute to urban sprawl;the current plan mostly calls for developing new roads instead of expanding existing highways. Spending approximately $175 billion could also take money away from other valuable transportation projects, adds David Crossley of the Gulf Coast Institute – those that better meet the needs of average Texans. As with many transportation projects, the "devil will be in the details," says Gadbois. The plan is currently very vague. How the network is designed and linked, how best available technology is applied, and how the environmental impact statement process is run will all have their effect. JTA is currently working with other state environmental organizations to mold the process. For more information, email Gadbois at glenn@justtransportation.org. Without Question, Texas Embraces Biotechnology On January 18, 2002, Governor Rick Perry announced the creation of Governor's Council of Science and Biotechnology Development. While Texas public officials work to "create a seamless system of innovation from the laboratory to the marketplace," other states are taking a more cautious approach. Although quite a few biotech advocates sit on California’s Food Biotechnology Advisory Committee, environmental groups, such as Greenpeace, are also well represented. Massachusetts and Maine are considering state legislation to put a moratorium on planting genetically engineered crops. And activists in Oregon are currently gathering signatures to create a state ballot initiative that would make labeling of genetically engineered food mandatory. For more information:
GREEN JOBS Katy Prairie Conservancy (KPC) – Accounting Assistant KPC is seeking a part-time Accounting Assistant to work approximately 40 hours per month, more if available. Working knowledge of Windows Operating Systems, Excel Software, PC Accounting System (QuickBooks, etc.) as well as intermediate accounting college courses required. Preference will be given to candidates who have experience with CYMA Accounting Software. Salary is commensurate with experience and qualifications with a maximum of $15/hour. If interested in applying, please call Alesha Herrera, Information and Outreach Coordinator, at 713-523-6135 to set up an interview. For a more detailed job description, visit http://www.cechouston.org/jobs.html. ABOUT THIS PUBLICATION CEC Environmental News Update is a weekly publication by the Citizens' Environmental Coalition, a 501(c)3 dedicated to fostering dialogue, education and collaboration about environmental issues in the Houston-Gulf Coast Region. Visit the CEC online at www.cechouston.org. To subscribe or unsubscribe, or to suggest items for inclusion, send your request via e-mail to Sarah Doss at sarah@cechouston.org. |
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