Welcome!
The Centennial Group of the
Georgia Chapter of the Sierra Club was organized in 1992, the one hundredth
anniversary of the Sierra Club. Our members from Cobb, Cherokee, and North
Fulton counties volunteer to educate, help, and encourage our fellow citizens
to protect Georgia’s environment for our children, grandchildren, and
beyond.
We meet on the first
Thursday of each month at Life University. We host a variety
of programs relating to our goals or simply about Georgia's natural beauties.
We also hold free outings for members and nonmembers.
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Life University
Room 311 in Upper Gymnasium
1269 Barclay Circle SE
Marietta, GA 30060
Click
for Map to Monthly Meeting Site
7:00pm - Social time
and new member welcome
7:30pm - Program begins and lasts 1.5-2 hours
Join us after the meeting
for a Social time at a local restaurant.
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Cloudland
Canyon, GA
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Focus
Some of our current areas
of activity include:
- Clean
Water
- Smart
Energy
- Recycling
- Outings
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We have other areas of
interest just waiting for citizens like you to join and help lead.
You are invited to come to a monthly meeting to learn more about
us, email us at gacentexcom@gmail.com.
A group representative
will get back to you.
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Click
here to join the Centennial E-List to receive
meeting reminders and the latest Group news.
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The Centennial Group is now
on Facebook!!
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It's true! The Centennial
Group now has its own Facebook page.
Click the link below
to view our new page:
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http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=58197&id=207483912596681&saved#!/pages/Centennial-Sierra-Club/207483912596681
Then click the Like
button to become a friend and get updates and information.
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Rivers Alive Cleanup - 2011
Thanks to all of the people
who showed up on OCtober 15 for the River's Alive Clean-Up of Rottenwood
Creek, at Life University.
The majority of trash consisted
of the usual suspects: plastic bottles, cigarette butts (on a smoke-free
campus!), beer cans, and of course, lots of earth-friendly Syrofoam.
After three plus hours, Rottenwood
Creek looked a lot better than it did when we first arrived.
We finished with a cookout
in the middle 19th century farming village at Life. A fitting reward for
a job well done.
Click here
to view photos of the cleanup.
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Good News!!!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Sally Bethea, 404-352-9828
Roger Buerki, 678-429-0226
MARCH 6, 2012
Chattahoochee designation as America’s first national water trail
achieves 40-year goal
ATLANTA — Last week, Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar unveiled the
National Water Trails System, a network that will increase access to water-based
outdoor recreation, encourage community stewardship of local waterways,
and promote tourism to fuel local economies across America. (http://www.nps.gov/nts/)
Salazar also announced that the Chattahoochee River Water Trail, flowing
48 miles within Atlanta’s Chattahoochee River National Recreation
Area (CRNRA), is the first river to be designated as a National Water
Trail under the new system.
Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper’s Sally Bethea said, “This water
trail is a living monument to the memory of local conservation heroes
such as Jane Yarn, James Mackey, Roy Wood, Dan Sweat, Al Burruss and Paul
Coverdell, who fought to protect the river that supplies millions of Georgians
with drinking water, while also providing outstanding recreational opportunities.”
Bethea noted that the CRNRA was established in 1978 largely because of
the advocacy of a small group of self-described “river rats”
who undertook local sewer, zoning and development battles in the early
1970s, on the heels of the first Earth Day. The river that these activists
believed was a national treasure and fought to save today is heavily used
by anglers, tubers, kayakers, canoers and rafters.
One of the most ardent early river advocates, Roger Buerki, now 71, worked
tirelessly to protect his beloved Chattahoochee four decades ago, and
continues today. He helped form a group called Friends of the River from
whose ranks the Carter Administration would subsequently draw some of
its environmental officials.
Upon hearing of the river’s new recognition, Buerki said, “This
designation confirms the vision and ability of ordinary citizens to overcome
politically-powerful opposition to save the Chattahoochee River for the
future.
People love the rivers that flow through their communities and they want
to be able to access and enjoy these waterways for a wide variety of activities.”
Georgia Wildlife Federation president Jerry McCollum said, “The Georgia
Department of Natural Resources should be commended for supporting the
valuable trout fishery in the new Chattahoochee River Water Trail, one
of the 100 Best Trout Streams in America according to Trout Unlimited.”
The National Park Service is planning an event in the CRNRA later this
spring to celebrate America’s first water trail, according to Park
Service Superintendant Patty Wissinger.
UCR’s mission is to protect and preserve the Chattahoochee River,
its lakes and tributaries for the people, fish and wildlife that depend
upon it. The Chattahoochee is the most heavily used water resource in
Georgia. For more information, visit www.chattahoochee.org.
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Centennial Group Provides
Input to the NPS For Willeo Road Project
The following is a letter sent
to Ms. Patty Wissinger, Superintendent, Chattahoochee River National Recreation
Area, regarding the Willeo Road Multi-Use Trail Alignment:
SIERRA CLUB CENTENNIAL GROUP
Cobb, Cherokee and North Fulton Counties
January 13, 2011
Ms. Patty Wissinger, Superintendent
Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area
1978 Island Ford Parkway
Sandy Springs, GA 30350
Re.: Willeo Road Multi-Use Trail Alignment Alternatives
Madam:
Thank you for inviting us to
submit our opinion regarding the proposed alignment of the Willeo Road
Multi-Use trail as part of the required environmental assessment. The
issue was extensively discussed during our monthly meeting on January
6 and I think I can speak for all the 1200 members of our area in that
the Bull Sluice Lake Option is unacceptable for us. This goes for a multi
use boardwalk as well as for pedestrians only. Here are the arguments
why:
Construction of a10' wide boardwalk
including a 65' bridge would require at least a 20' wide clearing through
the vegetation on this narrow strip of land which in some parts is not
even that wide. Effectively, this would kill the vegetation which now
holds the river bank together and once the root system begins to weaken
the river will very quickly claim the wetlands by washing away the narrow
barrier. This is the obvious damage the boardwalk will do.
Environmentally, it should
not be overlooked that these very few remaining wetlands serve as habitat
to many local species of plants and animals. The wetlands are providing
estuaries for fish and also resting places for migrating birds including
sand hill cranes which already suffer from loss of suitable habitat. For
the benefit of a few bikers and pedestrians this is an unacceptable price
to pay especially in view of the fact that the trail will not really lead
to anywhere and even when the MU trail along Lower Roswell Road is finished
it will end at Mt. Bethel in Cobb County. People might walk to the Fulton
county line but few probably up the long steep hill into Cobb County.
They will use the car and park at points of interest in Cobb such as Hyde
Farm and Gold Branch.
A word to bike use of Azalea
and Willeo roads: The city of Roswell built a very nice trail along Azalea
road a few years ago. It was intended to be shared by pedestrians and
bikers. The reality, however, looks quite different. The trail is primarily
used by pedestrians and very slow bikers, including children. The much
more numerous sports bikers (incl. the mayor of Roswell) do still use
the roads because pedestrians and bikers do not mix. In fact, Roswell
has done a good job marking the roads with bike lanes and the boardwalk
will not remove bikers from the road. For this very reason both Roswell
and Cobb County would still have to mark bike lanes on their public roads
next to the new trails.
The plans for the Willeo Road
Alignment do already provide for some boardwalks along the existing road.
Why then is this not good enough for the short remainder to the intersection
at Azalea drive? Building the proposed shortcut through Bull Sluice Lake
would render this part of the newly built trail along Azalea useless.
There are much better places to observe wildlife from the boardwalks of
the Chattahoochee Nature Center. The City of Roswell has some say in reducing
or dropping admission for this section of the nature center thereby making
it more attractive. The vegetation along Willeo road is not unique as
it has been clear-cut every so often by the city of Roswell. Here is a
good opportunity to make lasting improvements.
We at the Sierra Club are definitely
in favor of biking be it for transportation or recreation. Of course,
hiking is another one of our primary activities. But we do not think that
destruction of this vital embankment at Bull Sluice Lake will make anyone
any happier. In fact it would be a loss to hikers and bikers alike. Last,
but not least, the integrity of the fragile river bank has also to be
considered because of frequent natural floods and especially frequent
and high releases at Buford Dam. All this takes a toll at the river bank
which has to be protected from erosion as much as possible. The precarious
state of the river bank can best be seen from the river side.
In conclusion, we hope that
you will call a public meeting on this project if the differences cannot
be settled through the EA.
Sincerely,
Wolfgang Tiedtke
Chair Centennial Group Sierra Club
404-697-8960
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IMPORTANT!
Centennial Group Position
Statement - Please Read:
The following is the Centennial
Group's Position Statement for the preservation of the Johnson Ferry North
Unit, including Hyde Farm of the Chattahoochee National Recreation Area,
as a limited access area.
Members of the Centennial Group
of the Georgia Sierra Club have been very actively involved for over four
years in procuring and funding Hyde Farm and preserving it as a living
exhibit of farming and for the environmental protection of the surrounding
park land. The intent is to use it heavily as a 'hands on' teaching tool
for school children throughout the metro area. The farm also has the potential
to become a farm cooperative to help defray operating costs. It is currently
being farmed by a caretaker retained by Cobb County who had already worked
with Mr. Hyde.
Please click
here to read the entire Position Statement regarding this very
important topic!
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