Houston Earth Day event one month away

CEC is happy to announce that Earth Day plans are final. This year’s event is scheduled for Saturday, April 24, in Hermann Park. CEC is working in collaboration with Friensd of Hermann Park, the Houston Zoo, and Houston Museum of Natural Science to bring a community environmental event to the park. All non-profit groups, small businesses and individuals interested in participating are encouraged to contact CEC right away. Booth space is still available; the more groups represented the better! We also need volunteers to make sure this year’s event runs as smoothly as last year. Please email earthday@cechouston.org or cal (713) 524-4232 if you or your group would like to be a part of the festivities.

Buffalo Bayou Partnership creates new conservation division

When the Buffalo Bayou Partnership released its "Buffalo Bayou and Beyond" master plan last year, the plan recommended restructuring the nonprofit organization into three divisions: conservation, design, and land development. Now the Partnership has announced that the conservation division has been formally organized, funded, and staffed. The Partnership reports that several conservation programs are underway, including a vegetation management program for the bayou’s western sector from Shepherd to I-45 and the restoration of the Charles Tapley site.

MfCA hosts next film in anti-sprawl video series

The CEC, Mothers for Clean Air, and the Houston Sierra Club anti-sprawl campaign will co-host a screening of the environmental film The Air We Breathe The film is the third in a series of videos focusing on urban sprawl, quality of life, and their effects on our health. The Air We Breathe will be shown Friday, March 26, 7 pm, at the Upper Kirby District Building, 3015 Richmond, which houses the Houston Environmental Center. The film will be preceded by refreshments and networking at 6:15 pm.

Annual event boasts wide variety of plants

Once again, it’s time for March Mart, the Gulf Coast’s largest horticultural event and plant sale. March Mart offers a wide selection of plants rarely found at local retail nurseries. Choices range from familiar
plants and hardy Texas natives to tropicals and specialty species. March Mart also features difficult-to-find plants, reasonable prices, and knowledgeable sales people. There will be gardening booths, exhibits, and a new author's booth, where garden books can be purchased and signed. The event, a fundraiser for Mercer Arboretum & Botanic Gardens, will be held Friday and Saturday, March 26-27, 8 am-4 pm, at Mercer. Previews of the event featuring slide shows of native plants are scheduled for Wednesday, March 10, 12-1 pm, and Saturday, March 20, 9-11am. For more information, call (281) 443-8731, or visit www.cp4.hctx.net/mercer/index.htm.

Mothers mad about mercury to march on EPA’s Dallas office

A protest is scheduled in response to the US Environmental Protection Agency’s plans to roll back regulations on mercury emissions. To allow for the trading of mercury credits by coal-burning power plants, the agency will reclassify the heavy metal as a less toxic substance.
Opponents of the plan will march on the Region 6 EPA office in Dallas on Thursday, March 13, at 11 am. The focus of the march will be pregnant women and children. Women of child-bearing age are encouraged to be "pregnant" for a day to make a statement about the impacts of toxic mercury on babies and young children. However, men and women of all ages are encouraged to attend.
For more information about car pooling from Houston, or to help organize the event, contact Karen Hadden, executive director, Sustainable Energy and Economic Development Coalition, at karen@seedcoalition.org or (512) 479-7744.

Symposium to focus on childrens’ health

Environmental health hazards and their effects on children will be the focus of the upcoming Gulf Coast Pediatric Environmental Health Symposium.
Co-hosted by Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Children's Hospital, and the Southwest Center for Pediatric Environmental Health in Tyler, the symposium will feature nationally and internationally renowned experts on pediatric environmental health. Continuing education credits are available for physicians, nurses, and social workers, but all interested individuals are invited to attend. The event will be held Friday, March 19, 8 am-5:15 pm, Crowne Plaza Houston Medical Center Hotel. For more information, visit http://www.envirohealthhouston.org/symposium04