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November 2, 2016

Sierra Happenings

Events and Activities

Sierra Nevada Alliance Holiday Giving Campaign, including Give Back Tuesday!

It’s that time of year again! The Alliance is hosting a Holiday Giving Campaign between now and the end of December, as well as participating in Give Back Tuesday on November 29th. Donate $250+ before the end of December and you will not only receive an insulated Sierra Nevada Alliance Kleen Kanteen and a copy of Tim Palmer’s book, Glaciers of California, but you will also be entered into a raffle to win a Sierra Adventure Pack.

Visit our website for additional details, and stay tuned for updates!


TERC Monthly Lecture: Imperiled Fish with Nann Fangue!

Join Dr. Nann Fangue to learn how we can conserve our imperiled fishes and find solutions by understanding physiological specializations that allow animals to survive and thrive in complex environments.

Date: Nov 03, 2016, 5:30-11:50pm
Location: Sierra Nevada College, 291 Country Club Drive, Incline Village NV
Details: Registration for this event is free but required. The program will begin at 6 p.m. with refreshments and no-host bar from 5:30-6pm. A $5 suggested donation will be collected at the door.

Please click here to register.


Sierra CAMP Fall Member Meeting and UCLA Climate Talk!

Register now to join Sierra CAMP members and interested parties at a biannual meeting on November 9th. This will be a chance to meet and reflect on Sierra CAMP's activities and successes in 2016, and discuss priorities for 2017, shaping Sierra CAMP's direction and policy advocacy. After the meeting, UCLA Climate Science Center Professor Professor Alex Hall will present key findings from the study and discuss what they mean for Sierra residents and resource managers about the fate of California's iconic Sierra Nevada ecosystems. Registration is free but space is limited so please register!

Date: Weds, Nov 9th | 4-5pm Meeting | 5:30-7:30pm UCLA Presentation
Location: Squaw Valley Ponderosa Room

To register, click here!
For more information on any of these events, contact Sierra CAMP Director Diana Madson.


Conservation Biology Institute Webinar: Cooperation and conflict resolution in groundwater and aquifer management!

Conflicts over water depend on the characteristics of the resource. Conflicts over groundwater and aquifers are very different from those posed by surface water resources. Surface water negotiations typically focus on allocations and flows; negotiations over groundwater typically focus on storage and water quality. Attend this free webinar to find out more!

Date: November 14, 2016 10-11am
Presenter: Dr. Todd Jarvis, Oregon State University, Institute for Water and Watersheds

For more information and to register, click here!


15th Annual Wild & Scenic Film Festival: At The Edge!

Join SYRCL for another fabulous weekend at the largest film festival of its kind. The Wild & Scenic Film Festival sits apart from the hundreds of festivals around the world by leaving you feeling INSPIRED and MOTIVATED to go out and make a difference in your community and the world.

Date: January 12-16, 2017
Location: Location TBD, likely by Nevada City, CA

Visit the festival website for more details! Or, review the tour calendar to find a tour date near you!


Job Announcements & Volunteer Opportunities

Environmental Incentives: Associate, Senior Associate, Marketing Specialist!

Environmental Incentives is seeking a marketing specialist, 1-2 full-time associates and 1-2 senior associates to join their South Lake Tahoe headquarters, and support wildlife and water programs.

Please review Associate, Senior Associate, and Marketing Specialist vacancy postings.

Botanist position, Tahoe National Forest!

The Tahoe National Forest is outreaching for a term seasonal (18/8) GS-0430-09 Botanist position. The position is seasonal (18 pay periods maximum per year) and is scheduled to last 13 months, but may be extended up to 4 years. This position reports to the West Zone Botanist and supports the botany program on both the American River & Yuba River Ranger Districts. Duty station may be either Nevada City, Foresthill or Camptonville, CA.

For more information about this vacancy, please email Patricia Krueger!

There are also several other USFS positions available in the Sierra Nevada region.

Putah Creek Council Job Opening: Executive Director!

Putah Creek Council's board is beginning the search for an experienced leader to usher their thriving organization into a fourth decade of advocacy, education, and community-based stewardship in Winters, CA. The Executive Director reports to the Board of Directors and leads the organization consistent with the mission, values, policies, and plans of the Council. Working with the Board of Directors, the Executive Director manages the Council’s programs and projects, supervises staff, and oversees the organization’s day-to-day operations. Deadline December 15.

For more info and job description, please click here!

Area CE Vegetable Production & Irrigation Advisor!

The University of California Cooperative Extension Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources announce a research-based vacancy in Modesto, CA, with a specific emphasis on irrigation water management, specifically low volume irrigation, to address these pressing water problems in the three-county, North San Joaquin Valley region of Merced, Stanislaus and San Joaquin Counties. Closing Date: December 9, 2016.

For more information, click here!

Resources

Help the Sierra Nevada Alliance, the Environment, and Yourself!

Have you ever wanted to switch to clean energy? Find out how from our clean energy concierge partner, MyDomino. MyDomino is offering Alliance supporters a free 1-month membership ($99 value), during which time they’ll help you figure out how to switch to clean energy. There is no commitment required to redeem your free membership, and as an added bonus, MyDomino will make a donation to the Alliance every time one of our supporters contacts them! Use our Partner Code “ALLIANCE” at www.MyDomino.comto redeem the offer and make the donation. It has never been easier to donate to the Alliance and work toward environmental conservation at the same time!!


The Max and Victoria Dreyfus Foundation!

The Foundation will consider requests to support museums, cultural, and performing arts programs; schools, hospitals, educational and skills training programs, programs for youth, seniors, and the handicapped; environmental and wildlife protection activities; and other community-based organizations and their programs. Grants are considered for IRS-qualified non-profit organizations located within the United States, and typically range from $1,000 to $20,000.

Please click here for more information! For the Spring round of grants, the postmark deadline is November 10.


Petition: Tell President Obama: Put Solar Panels On Federal Buildings!

Join the Center for Biological Diversity petition, asking President Obama to issue an Executive Order requiring the federal government to put solar panels on all federal buildings or, for incompatible buildings, to obtain energy from local distributed-solar energy.

Please click here to sign!


Host a Filmmaker or Guest During SYRCL’s Wild & Scenic Film Festival! Or show your artwork!

Are you interested in getting involved with Wild & Scenic Film Festival in a unique way while earning awesome perks? Volunteer to host an attending filmmaker or special guest in your household during the festival! From January 12-16, 2017 Nevada City and Grass Valley transform into a hub of art and activism. If you are interested in becoming a lodging host for the 2017 Wild & Scenic Film Festival, please complete the Lodging Host Information Survey.

Also, environmental art sumbissions for those interested in showing at the festival, are due Sunday 11/6.

Please click here to host a filmmaker, or click here for more information on art submissions!!


GRO1000 Garden & Green Spaces Grant Awards Program!

The U.S. Conference of Mayors and The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company's new grant program promotes and recognizes mayoral leadership in the development of greenscapes across the nation. Four winning cities will each receive $40,000 in cash and products to develop and expand gardens and green spaces that will transform their communities. Applications are due November 15, 2016.

More info here!


Publication: The Cost of Alternative Water Supply and Efficiency Options in California!

A new Pacific Institute study has found that seawater desalination is among the most expensive options for meeting current and future water needs in California, while large stormwater capture projects are among the least expensive. The Cost of Alternative Water Supply and Efficiency Options in California is the first comprehensive analysis to examine the cost of strategies to augment local water supplies and reduce demand in California. The report uses methods developed in the field of energy economics to provide comparable cost estimates for these options.

You can read more about the report and download a copy here!


Publication: It Takes a City - The Case for Collaborative Climate Action!

In 2016, 533 cities disclosed their climate-related data through CDP's cities program. This annual global report analyzes this data with a view to show cities, regional governments, companies, and investors that there is a case for collaborating on climate action.

You can read this new release here!


Nominate a Clean Air Hero for the 2016 Haagen-Smit Clean Air Awards!

Since 2001, the California Air Resources Board has annually bestowed the distinguished Haagen-Smit Clean Air Awards to extraordinary individuals for their significant career accomplishments in at least one of these air quality categories: research, environmental policy, science and technology, public education and community service. Nominations are due December 1, 2016.

More info here!


Highlights

Save the Date and Call For Abstracts:

The Sierra Fund Promotes Headwaters Resiliency for 2017 Conference!


TSF


The Sierra Nevada Alliance, in support of incredible local environmental organization The Sierra Fund, would like to extend their invitation to researchers from multiple disciplines to submit abstracts to their fourth biennial conference, Reclaiming the Sierra 2017: Headwaters Resiliency, May 8-9, 2017 at California State University, Sacramento. The deadline to submit an abstract is January 31, 2017. We encourage you to submit your research, and pass this call along to your network.


Reclaiming the Sierra 2017 will focus on strategies to promote headwaters resiliency at the nexus of cutting edge science, forward thinking policy and state of the art technology. The event will showcase innovative perspectives related to the following conference themes:


TSF


Assessment and Abatement Strategies for Environmental Toxins:
This conference theme will examine the degree and extent of contaminated fish, air, soil and water from pollutants including mercury, arsenic and lead, and the implications for sensitive populations, Native peoples, and disadvantaged communities (DACs). Keywords: mercury in fish; airborne particulate matter; severe fire; public health; disadvantaged and underserved communities; reducing involuntary exposure; fish consumption advisories; community outreach and education; environmental justice; mercury exposure pathways; beneficial use; Bay/Delta.


Ecosystem Function and Resiliency:
This conference theme will explore options for resource management in a changing climate, including restoring healthy forests and meadows, reservoir water storage capacity and longitudinal connectivity to support ecosystem function and resiliency in headwaters. Keywords: reservoir management; volitional fish passage; healthy forests; meadow restoration; ecosystem services; species resiliency; integrated regional watershed management (IRWM) groups; multiple benefits; cost-benefit analysis; environmental flow regimes; dedicated instream flows.


Policies to Promote Responsible Land Use and Management:
This conference theme will explore policy opportunities to promote responsible land use and management through the adoption and implementation of practices that protect and restore headwaters resiliency in the environment and in the communities of the Sierra Nevada. Keywords: forest management, SMARA implementation; mine reclamation; environmental policy; responsible land use; Brownfields; assessment & due diligence.




Deadline to submit an abstract: January 31, 2017



TSF


Please visit the conference website (www.reclaimingthesierra.org) for specific details, including abstract submission guidelines and submission procedure. If you have any questions, please contact Kelsey Westfall, (530) 265-8454 x217.



About The Sierra Fund: Since 2006, nonprofit organization The Sierra Fund has worked to address the ongoing environmental, cultural and human health impacts of historic mining in the Sierra Nevada. We support organizations and communities by increasing public and private funding, advocating for policy changes and bringing intellectual resources that build capacity to restore and protect the resiliency of California’s headwaters. Visit our website at www.sierrafund.org.





If you would like to support the Sierra Nevada Alliance Initiatives,
please click here to contribute to our funding.




The policy of the Resource is to include articles that appear in local or major media outlets relevant to Sierra conservation. We also include news releases, event notices, funding opportunities and job announcements sent to us from our Member Groups and friends. If you as a reader disagree with the content of a submission we encourage you to submit a letter to the editor of the issuing publication to reach the broader audience who read the article. You are welcome to forward your letter to the editor to the Alliance for inclusion in our new "Letters to the Resource" section. We also invite Letters to the Resource to be directly submitted on any article with which you're concerned.

Newsletter contents prepared by Kate Gladstein.
If you have articles, events or announcements that you would like included in this newsletter or if you have feedback,
please email Kate!.





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Recent News

Climate Change

Reservoirs are a major source of greenhouse gases
YubaNet News, American Institute of Biological Sciences, 10/5/2016

Sierra Link: Over 1 million dams exist worldwide. These structures have numerous environmental effects, and there is no shortage of research on various ecological consequences. However, the bulk of the research effort has been narrowly focused on river ecosystems. In a recent BioScience publication, Bridget R. Deemer of Washington State University and an international team of researchers elucidate that dam-created reservoirs significantly contribute to climate change.

4 bold collaborations tackling California's drought
GreenBiz Group Inc., Anya Khalamayzer, 10/19/2016

Sierra Link: This month, 20 organizations, including Fortune 500 companies, investors and NGOs, announced their support for four projects protecting California’s water resources as part of the California Water Action Collaborative. How will this affect our efforts in the Sierra?

Forestry

How a beer maker and a bottled water company want to save Sierra forests
Sacramento Bee, Jonah Smith and Nelson Switzer, 10/27/16

Sierra Link: A new Nature Conservancy project in the Sierra Nevada, one of the most important sources of water for drought-stricken California, is using more than 10,000 acres at the American River headwaters to test methods to reduce megafires and increase the water supply.

40-year experiment in Yosemite: Managing fire, rather than suppressing it, benefits forest and watershed
YubaNet News, Robert Sanders, UC Berkeley, 10/26/16

Sierra Link: An unprecedented 40-year experiment in a 40,000-acre valley of Yosemite National Park strongly supports the idea that managing fire, rather than suppressing it, makes wilderness areas more resilient to fire, with the added benefit of increased water availability and resistance to drought.

Recreation

Secretary Jewell Issues Secretarial Order to Encourage Tribal Role in Managing Interior Lands with Native American Connections
Department of the Interior, Office of the Secretary, 10/21/16

Sierra Link: U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell today announced a Secretarial Order encouraging cooperative management opportunities between the Department’s land and water managers and federally-recognized tribes. This is a major triumph for tribal communities everywhere, including our Sierra Nevada communities.

Which way? A new approach to navigating the Pacific Crest Trail
High Country News, Caroline Benner, 10/26/16

Sierra Link: Thru-hikers can stay on the hugely popular trail with a cellphone app. This should be interesting for us in the Sierra, as the trail passes right through us!

Water

Conservation Groups Protest Water Rights for Centennial Dam
South Yuba River Citizens League (SYRCL) News, Staff Report, 10/27/16

Sierra Link: On Tuesday, Foothills Water Network, a coalition of conservation and recreation organizations, submitted a joint water rights protest to the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) demanding that Nevada Irrigation District’s (NID) water rights application for the proposed Centennial Dam be denied based on environmental, public interest and legal grounds.

New California Law Recognizes Meadows, Streams As “Green Infrastructure”, Eligible For Public Works Funding
The Ecosystem Marketplace, Kelli Barrett, 10/20/16

Sierra Link: Last month, Governor Jerry Brown signed landmark Assembly Bill 2480 into law, declaring that “source watersheds are recognized and defined as integral components of California’s water infrastructure.” This law may allow billions of infrastructure funds towards the maintenance and restoration of meadows, streams and rivers. This is great news to our often underfunded Sierra Nevada region.

Wildlife

Latest: Wildlife Services to revisit predator removal effects
High Country News, Anna V. Smith, 10/31/16

Sierra Link: In October, a federal court approved a settlement between the Santa Fe-based nonprofit WildEarth Guardians and Wildlife Services in Nevada, stating that the Federal Wildlife Services can no longer rely on its 22-year-old, nationwide baseline assessment and must perform a new analysis of how native wildlife removal cumulatively impacts the environment.

Species may be listed as threatened based on climate change projections, court says
Los Angeles Times, Maura Dolan, 10/24/16

Sierra Link: Federal authorities may list a species as “threatened” based on climate models that show habitat loss in the coming decades, an appeals court decided Monday. The ruling would allow government protection of all sorts of wildlife likely to be affected by climate change in the decades ahead.

Other Articles

Two Dangerous Fault Lines Under San Francisco Are Connected, Study Finds
Popular Mechanics, William Herkewitz, 10/19/16

Sierra Link: A team of geologists led by Janet Watt at the U.S. Geological Survey just made the unfortunate discovery underneath the murky waters of the San Francisco Bay: a hidden connection between two earthquake fault zones. With our close proximity to the San Francisco Bay, we may very well feel the effects here in the Sierra Nevada!

Cawelo Study Fails to Test for Dozens of Oilfield Chemicals in Wastewater Used to Irrigate California Food Crops
YubaNet News, Protect California Food, 10/28/16

Sierra Link: A study presented today to the Central Valley Water Board’s Food Safety Expert Panel by the Cawelo Irrigation District fails to address major concerns about potential food contamination from using oil waste fluid to irrigate crops, according to the Protect California Food coalition. This is outrageous to our entire state, as our food is supplied from this region.





Sierra Nevada Alliance

P.O. Box 7989
South Lake Tahoe, CA 96158

phone: 530.542.4546
fax:530.542.4546

www.sierranevadaalliance.org

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Since 1993 the Sierra Nevada Alliance has been protecting and restoring Sierra lands, water, wildlife and communities. The regional climate change program shapes and implements county and regional resource plans that promote smart land use, incorporate sustainable water management practices, aggressively reduce greenhouse gases and adapt to climate change.