Loxahatchee Group Florida Chapter
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Turtle Tracks Newsletter of the Sierra Club Loxahatchee Group Volume 26, No. 4 | August/September 2002 Table of Contents Call to Action Picnic Sierra Club Meetings From the Easy Chair Newsletter Party Public Meetings to Attend Summercamp Update Volunteer Site Stewards Needed Forum Outings

Back Issues June/July 2002 April/May 2002 February/March 2002 August/September 2001 June/July 2001 April/May 2001 October/November 2000 August/September 2000 Newsletter Editor Marcia Karasoff mkarasoff@adelphia.net

Call to Action

September 9 is "Call Your Commissioner Day."  Call (561) 355-3229 and tell your Commissioner to respect the Palm Beach County voters¹ decision to protect ESL, Environmentally Sensitive Land, in perpetuity and ask him or her to protect the ESL that have been or will be purchased with a conservation easement.  This way, the protected status will not be threatened by possible uses that are inconsistent with the intended status as an ESL, such as housing construction and road construction.  Come to the County Commissioners meeting (public comment) at 1:30 p.m. on Tues., September 10.  Visit http://pbcgov.com or call Nada (561) 416-9134, for info.

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All Welcome !!

What:    Our Summer Picnic
When:    August 17, 2002, 4:00-8:00 pm
Where:    Carlin Park in Jupiter.  400 South Highway A1A, Jupiter, FL
33477.  From theTurnpike, I95, or US1, go east on Indiantown Road (route 706) until it dead ends at A1A.  Go south on A1A about 1 mile.   We have reserved the covered Gumbo Limbo pavilion that is on the west
(non-oceanfront) side of the park.  Look for the Sierra Club banner.  (See map below.)
Who:     All members and their families are invited.
RSVP:     by August 14th to Linda Rickson, (772) 334-7743,
larickson@aol.com so we can order the proper food quantities.

Bring a dish to share and your eating & drinking utensils.  The Sierra Club will furnish hamburgers, turkey burgers, veggie burgers, hotdogs, soda, lemonade, water, and ice. Picnic starts at 4:00 pm, but you can get there early and enjoy the beach if you want. ...See you there !!!!

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Sierra Club Meetings

The General Meetings are on the third Tuesday of the month at 7:00 PM at Boynton Beach Fire station No. 3. Located the S.W. corner of Congress Ave. and Minor Rd. Just north of Gateway Blvd.

No general meeting is scheduled for August.

Our speaker for the September 17, 2002 general meeting will be Christopher Madden, PhD whose topic will be "Science Of Everglades - Florida Bay Restoration".  Dr. Madden is Senior Scientist, Everglades Systems Research for South Florida Water Management. He is also Adjunct Professor, Department Of Biology Florida Atlantic University.  This will be a very informative presentation on the Everglades restoration, and its influence on the Florida Bay.  The meeting opens 7:00PM for social fellowship and starts at 7:20 PM. Location is Boynton Beach fire station at Congress and Miner Rd.

- John Gates Program Chair

Directions to General Meeting
From North:  Take I-95 to Hypoluxo Road.  Go West on Hypoluxo to Congress; then South on Congress to the traffic light at Miner Road.  Go briefly West on Miner to the Fire Station entrance.
From South:  Take I-95 to Gateway Blvd.  Go West on Gateway to Congress, then North on Congress to the traffic light at Miner Road.  Go briefly West on Miner to the Fire Station Entrance.

Conservation Committee Meeting is on the 4th Tuesday of the month. Please contact JoAnn Miner for location information (561) 433-0685.

Next ExCom Meeting will be at the Gates house at 7:00 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 9.  Call John and Kay for directions if you plan to attend.

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From the Easy Chair . . .

First I want to thank everyone involved with the  ESL , or  Environmentally Sensitive Land Protection/ Road issue, which is gaining momentum. Thanks to all of you who took time out of your busy schedules and showed up at the County Commission Meeting on July 9th and spoke for your 3 allotted minutes to remind our Commissioners that the Pond Cypress area was bought with bond money (in 1992 and 1997, if I remember well) after a vote where Palm Beach County residents agreed in a vast majority to tax themselves in order to preserve a natural area called the Pond Cypress and some other areas, as natural areas in perpetuity.  The meaning of perpetuity seems to become a
twenty years deal for some people, and that is just not acceptable.

Thanks to Michael Yustin, naturalist and club member,  who did an excellent slide presentation about the same issue on July 3, at the Grassy Waters Preserve, in West Palm Beach. Thanks to Ed Tedmann who did a similar presentation recently at the Pack and Paddle Club in front of a very concerned and supportive crowd.

Loxahatchee conservation club members have taken pictures of that area and have assembled a slide show with written materials about talking points. The club has recently acquired a slide projector. If YOU want to get involved, one EASY way to participate "locally" would be to make a similar presentation to your Homeowners Association meeting, or any club you belong to. Call Kay Gates (742-9219) or Maryvonne Devensky
(369-3462) to get the material needed for your presentation. Have a great summer and see you at the picnic, August 17.

- Kay Gates, Chairperson

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Loxahatchee Group Newsletter Folding Party -  Sept. 29, 4:00 pm, please join your fellow Sierrans for an hour or two sticking labels on our group newsletter,Turtle Tracks. Come join the fun and help with this important volunteer effort. call Sabrina at (561) 732-4486  for directions (west Boynton). Everyone is welcome.

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Public Meetings to Attend

CLASC -  Conservation Land Acquisition Selection Committee Meets on the 1st Monday of each month at 1:30 p.m. ERM Building #509 off Belvedere Rd, West Palm Beach. (561) 233-2400.

ERM - Environmental Resource Management Constituency Meeting Meets on last Wednesday of every 2 month at 1:30 p.m. ERM Building #502 off Belvedere Road, West Palm Beach.  (561) 233-2400.

NAMAC - Natural Area Management Advisory Committee to Board of County Commissioners.  Meets on 3rd Thursday of each month at 1:30 p.m.  ERM Building  #509 off Belvedere Road, West Palm Beach. (561) 355-3229.

CTF -  Citizen Task Force Meeting date varies.  Meets at Planning and Zoning (on 4th floor) at I-95 and Southern Blvd. (561) 233-5000.

SFWMD - South Florida Water Management District Governing Board: Workshop 2nd Wednesday 9AM, business 2nd Thursday 8:30AM, at 3301 Gun Club Rd. WPB. Call John Koch re. parking, etc. Workshops occasionally move out of town. (561) 686-8800.

WRAC Water Resources Advisory Commission:  Advisory body to SFWMD.  Usually 1st Thursday 8:30 AM at SFWMD, but dates and locations occasionally change. (561) 686-8800.

ENVIRONMENTAL ACTION COMMITTEE - A group of environmentalists meeting informally, usually at a SFWMD conference room usually during 1st week of the month.  Contact John Marshall at the Marshall Foundation,  (561) 805-TREE (8733).  Not a government meeting, but good for learning issues.

PALM BEACH COUNTY COMMISSION - First and Third Tuesdays, 9:30 AM.  Televised on Cable TV Ch. 20.  We really need someone to monitor the PB County Commissioners, either on TV or in person.  For information, visit http://www.pbcgov.com/Agenda, or call (561) 355-3229.

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Summercamp Update

We all look to summer for some travel, fun and relaxation.  Kids look to
summer camps as "their" time to do new activities and have fun. The Lox. group has started to sponsor children (who wanted such experience but whose families did  not have the financial means) to environmental education summer camps last year.This year we have sent  9 children in all (two cancelled for valid reasons) to the Everglades Conservation Camp in WPB, the Pine Jog Environmental Education Center in WPB and the Sandoway Nature Center in Delray Beach. The feedback I received is that the children had a wonderful experience and that the Lox group is doing a great thing by providing this opportunity to them.

Any financial contribution, small or large, to our Elaine Usherson Education Scholarship Fund will be appreciated.

- Maryvonne Devensky

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Volunteer Site Stewards Needed on County-Managed Natural Areas

Volunteer site stewards are needed on a weekly or bi-weekly basis to conduct Natural Area site inspections and to assist ERM staff with monitoring, wildlife inventories, and enhance the photograph database.  If you would like to commit yourself to working one day every two weeks (or more), and are willing to serve as an ongoing volunteer, please contact Dawn Althoff at Palm Beach County's Department of Environmental Resources Management at (561) 233-2455 or dalthoff@co.palm-beach.fl.

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Join Our E-Mail Forum

Get on board with the Loxahatchee Group's  very own e-mail forum.  This is a general e-mail discussion and announcement list for members of the Loxahatchee Group of the Florida Chapter of the Sierra Club.  Our forum is a strong network for communications, announcements, action alerts and just plain fun for members of the Loxahatchee Group.   To sign onto the list, go to the following website.  Please have your Membership Number handy: http://www.sierraclub.org/memberlists
listname=FL-LOXAHATCHEE-FORUM
Questions? e-mail me at: rhaines999@aol.com.

- Ron Haines

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For Outings and Other Activities, Please Visit Events

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Map to Picnic

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Turtle Tracks is published bi-monthly by Sierra Club Loxahatchee Group, 619 SW 2nd Avenue, Boynton Beach, FL 33426. The purpose of this newsletter is to inform members about environmental issues and events. Members subscribe through their annual dues. Nonmember subscriptions are available for $12 per year.

Newsletter submissions are welcome. The deadline is the third Tuesday of each month. Email articles to Marcia Karasoff at mkarasoff@adelphia.net (phone 561/278-5240), or deliver Macintosh format 3.5" disc or Zip disc copy to general membership meeting. (Typed hardcopies are also acceptable, but not preferred).