Hello 2012 NAL delegates,

We hope you are recovering from the non-stop schedule of the Washington Con/NAL meeting. Wasn’t it just an amazing experience – so information and fun-filled? It certainly makes us once again appreciate our remarkable The Garden Club of America, with its 100 year old commitment to protecting the environment.

We have put together a quick rehash of some of the things we learned, for you to use for reports, articles or club presentations if you want to. The minutes and the Bulletin will be available later. This is only to help get your thoughts together, because certainly we all had different takeaways. If you decide to use it, do not worry about authorship and feel free to change in any way you wish – cut and paste, revise, rewrite.

Thanks for all you do,

Susan Caven – Vice-Chairman of the Conservation Committee

Sue Klein – Vice Chairman of Nation Affairs and Legislation Committee

What Happened in Washington Cannot Stay in Washington

What happens when 300 knowledgeable, motivated and energetic GCA delegates from all over the country meet in Washington D.C. for the 2012 Con/NAL meeting to learn how to advocate and be spokeswomen for plants?  When they want to be a caretaker of the natural world, realizing decisions being made now will have an effect on future generations’ ability to live healthy, safe lives? Well, they become the next “American Idols”. They are the stars who learn the best way to dance for plants trying to survive the changing climate, work for safe food, and sing out for clean water, healthy oceans and fragile lands.  They not only clearly give this message to their legislators on Capitol Hill, but bring the dedication to protect the precious gift of our earthly home, to their clubs and communities. What was learned in Washington cannot stay in Washington, but must be shared with GCA Club members and their community.

Among the dizzying number of things learned were:

A) The earth is changing

1. Extreme climate conditions negate the traditional “past is prologue” assumption, making future planning in every area more difficult.
2. The Defense Department’s strategy for our national security is based on concern about the warming climate conditions, and the dangers this will present worldwide.
3. We get our power from the sun, through the process of photosynthesis. Today’s energy comes from ancient sun power in the form of coal, oil and natural gas, but now we need to figure out how to get our energy from the contemporary sunshine.
4. The world is getting wetter and drier, causing both unusual flooding and drought, with rain more intense, yet more infrequent.
5. Once-in-a-century weather occurrences are becoming common place.
6. Glaciers, on which people worldwide depend on for water, are becoming smaller, producing less water for irrigation and consumptive use.
7. Snow is coming later in fall, stopping earlier in the spring.
8. Water levels in lakes worldwide continue to drop.
9. Each year is hotter than the hottest on record.
10. The 2012 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map readjusted the traditional zones positions 5 degree north, because of the warming shift.
11. Native plant species do not have time to adapt to the rapidly changing climatic conditions, leaving over 4000 species critically at risk.
12. Oceans levels are rising and the water is becoming more acidic, threatening to dissolve the shells of sea creatures, like plankton, shrimp, etc.
13.   Our National Parks System is more important than ever, and must be adequately supported as it nears its 100^th anniversary

B) Importance of fully funding the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF)

1. The LWCF was established by Congress in 1964, to use a small portion of the billions of dollars of the fees paid by companies drilling offshore for oil and gas – so the depletion of one natural resource, offshore oil and gas, supports the conservation of another precious resource, our land and water.
2. The money has been used in all 50 states to acquire land or easements on land for recreational use, protect fragile ecosystems and wetlands restoration, provide matching grants for state and local parks and recreation projects, pay farmers to conserve their land and provide other conservation tools.
3. But every year except one, Congress has taken money from this popular, vital program for other uses, rather than their intended conservation and recreation purposes, to the detriment of our outdoors.
4. Recent polling found that 86% of Americans support the LWCF and more than 77% support fully funding LWCF at its authorized level of $900 million a year.
5. Every dollar of LWCF investment has resulted in $4 of economic value, with 1 in 20 US jobs having to do with the outdoor recreation industry.

 

C)  The Power of Women on a Mission:

1. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand reminded us that women tend to take long term views, looking for the best ideas, so when woman’s voices are heard in the boardroom and at political discussions, better solutions result. For instance, GCA members should ask for full disclosure on the effects of fracking, including chemicals used, and question why this activity is exempt from the Clean Air and Water Act, so we can figure out a way to safely extract natural gas
2. GCA member, Ellen Rouse Conrad told about how the Bedford Garden Club realized that “nature is not waiting for us” and sponsored an environmental conference which changed their community. They developed a public-private partnership which created a city-wide program, Bedford 2020.org, to reduce energy use, recycle waste, plant trees, preserve their natural resources and create a healthier and more sustainable place to live. The “Summit in a Box” was developed as a template for every community to use to plan for a smarter future.
3. GCA member, Pat Wall, described the successes of the Portland Garden Club’s amazing efforts to protect the beauty of the Columbia River Gorge against development and Indian casinos, and the ongoing vigilance required to preserve this scenic vista
4. Senator Mary Landrieu described the Gulf coast “Women of the Storm” movement formed to encourage Congress to pass the RESTORE Act (S.1400), and send 80% of BP fine dollars that may be assessed following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill under the Clean Water Act, back to Gulf Coast states for sustainable housing, safe levees, coastal restoration and to encourage long-range planning along the Gulf Coast.
5. Kathryn Sullivan, assistant secretary of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reminded us that the entire world depends on NOAA’s very sophisticated and accurate system of scientific climate modeling and weather monitoring, and that our changing climate is the world’s greatest challenge. There is an 86% increase in usage of NOAA’s climate data for budgeting and future planning by such diverse groups as farmers, home builders, state governments, electrical plants, national military strategists and firefighters. Water and food management depends on understanding what is happening in the atmosphere.
6. GCA member Kathryn Kennedy, Executive Director of the Center for Plant Conservation, has collected and preserved 750 of America’s most imperiled native plant species and works to replant them in appropriate places, before they become extinct. She supports full funding for the Endangered Species Act, especially in the face of the changing climate conditions.

D)The importance of the Farm Bill, which is voted on every five years:

1.   The 2012 Farm Bill is the most important law determining what America eats, because its many sections dictate how we grow food, how we support farmers, how we sell food, and what food assistance programs are available to all Americans.
2.    Agriculture is the largest human activity, using 70% of the earth’s water, and although less than 1% of the U S our population is involved in farming, more people are now getting into sustainable farming.
3.    It is hoped that “Specialty Crops” (all fruits and vegetables) will receive more governmental support – as compared to the agri-business crops corn, wheat, sugar cotton and soy, which have historically received large subsidies.
4.    Concern over the rapid growth of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) – 85% soy beans and 70% corn are genetically engineered, which are not sufficiently tested or even labeled by the FDA, although many other countries require GMO labeling.
5.   Tax Incentive for Conservation Easements, allowing private landowners to permanently retire development rights to protect significant natural resources, is in danger of being eliminated from the 2012 Farm Bill.
6.    “The Local Farms, Food, and Jobs Act” is a USDA package of reforms which strengthen local and regional food systems from farm to table.
7.    “Know your Food, Know your Farmer” is an innovative USDA mapping tool that is on line and will be continually updated.

E) Highways BEE Act should be included in the House Transportation and Infrastructure Bill:

1. Seventy-four out of 100 different crop types, or one in every three bites of food we eat, are pollinated.
2. Pollinator have decline has become a major environmental issue today. Beehive colony collapse has resulted in an up to 85% decline in bumble bees.
3. Humans don’t share very well with plants and animals – we just take their landscape, create a monoculture (yards or agriculture) with few native plants and then cover our plants with pollinator-killing pesticides.
4. The Highways BEE Act (H.R.2381 Highways Bettering the Economy and Environment Act) requires no money, but encourages reduced mowing and native plantings on rights-of-way and adjacent to federal-aid highways, allowing wildflowers and native plants to grow, providing habitat for pollinators, ground nesting birds and other small wildlife – saving money on mowing.