SAVE THE DATE – APRIL 11 AT 2 PM – WMD Film Series Continues

CAFO’s, GMO’s, food policy and production. What are these terms and how do they affect your choices at the grocery store? Join Women Making a Difference for the film “FOOD, INC” at the Amherst Town Library at 2:00 p.m. A discussion will follow, lead by WMD member and health coach, Katie Walsh. Join us for healthy snacks and food for thought.

View “Coal Country” – March 28, 2010 – Amherst Town Library

Women Making a Difference and NH Sierra Club are sponsoring a viewing of COAL COUNTRY, the truthful documentary about mountaintop removal coal mining in rural Appalachia, on March 28, 2010 at the Amherst Town Library, 14 Main Street, Amherst, NH. Doors to the Johnson Room downstairs in the library will be open at 1:30 pm with the DVD to be promptly shown at 2:00 with a discussion to follow.

COAL COUNTRY is the celebrated documentary about impacts of mountain top removal coal mining in Appalachia. Nan Stearns from Women Making a Difference and Catherine Corkery, the New Hampshire Sierra Club Director, will lead the discussion following the DVD which will feature the impacts of mountaintop removal mining and the ripple effects seen in NH. Mountaintop removal mining is the highly controversial practice of mining where large machinery is used to remove the layers of earth from the peaks of hills and mountains to expose and extract veins of coal deposits. Not only has the act of leveling mountains and hills caused alarm, but the act of filling valleys with the earth from the peaks has created many problems such as: contaminated drinking water; destroyed streams and rivers; endangered communities due to exposure to dangerous chemicals; degraded air quality; and ruined habitat for aquatic life.

Please join us for an exploration of this important issue. This program is free and open to the public. However, donations will be accepted at the door. Refreshments will be served. If you have questions, please contact Catherine Corkery at Catherine.corkery@sierraclub.org or 603-224-8222. Questions can also be directed to Nancy Iannuzzelli at niannuzzelli@hotmail.com or 603-672-2701, the Women Making a Difference contact.

“No Impact Man” – Sunday, December 6, 2009

WHAT: “No Impact Man” Screenings and Film Discussion

WHEN: Sunday, December 6th
1:30pm – 1st Showing
3:00 – Discussion
4:00 – 2nd Showing

WHERE: (the NEW) Amherst Yoga Studio (behind Walmart – call for directions)
10 Northern Blvd., Suite 15, Amherst, New Hampshire

Learn how you can simplify your life while helping the planet and discuss living simply with your friends, family, and neighbors.

Please call to reserve a spot as there is limited seating: 603 673-7661

Amherst, NH – With the hustle and bustle of the holiday season upon us, it is a great time to think of ways to simplify our lives. Amherst Yoga Studio would like to help Granite Staters find ways to do just that while helping the planet, too. The studio will host two showings of “No Impact Man,” a documentary of a New York man who decides to completely eliminate his personal impact on the environment for one year, on Sunday, December 6th.

“Amherst Yoga is thrilled to host this event to bring a new sense of awareness of how we all can simplify our lives at this hectic time of year,” said Ginny Jackson, of Amherst Yoga. “We hope to share ideas during a short discussion and we’ll l have a lovely basket filled with ‘earth-friendly’ products from Earthward, as well as the ‘No Impact Man’ book, to be raffled away,” she said.

Join others from the Souhegan Valley and beyond to watch and discuss the film and its theme of simplifying our lives. The first showing is at 1:30pm and will be followed by a discussion at 3:00pm. The second showing will be at 4:00pm, and attendees of both showings are invited to the community discussion. The cost is $5 per person, which will cover entrance to the showing and one chance for the raffle.

The showings are part of a larger campaign to increase awareness of sustainability and community health issues in the Souhegan Valley. Members of the campaign include members of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Milford and the Granite State Organizing Project.

Souhegan Valley 350 Day, a day of action against climate change

Friend,

You are invited to the Souhegan Valley 350 Day, a day of action against climate change. 

This is an invitation to build a movement—to take one day and use it to stop the climate crisis.


350.org is a group of people from around the planet—young and old, scientists and writers and activists—who have one thing in common. We know the most important number on earth: 350. And we know how to use that number to finally get global action on the worst crisis humans have ever faced. But we can only do it with your help.


A year ago, our greatest climatologist—NASA’s James Hansen—and his team produced a landmark series of studies. They showed that if we let the amount of carbon in the atmosphere top 350 parts per million, we can’t have a planet “similar to the one on which civilization developed and to which life on earth is adapted.”


The bad news is we’re already past that number—we’re at 390 parts per million, which is why the Arctic is melting, why drought is spreading across the planet, why people are already dying from diseases like dengue fever and malaria occurring in places where they’ve never been seen before.


The good news: that number gives us a target to aim for. When the world’s leaders meet in Copenhagen in December to reach agreement on a new climate treaty, we need them to go farther than they’ve planned to go: we need to make sure they’ll pay attention to the latest science and put forward a plan that gets us back to safety.


So here’s the plan. On October 24, join us in Milford, NH, to celebrate 350 Day.  People in more than 1750 communities around the globe have already announced plans—they’ll be school children planting 350 trees in Bangladesh, scientists hanging banners saying 350 on the statues on Easter Island, 350 scuba divers diving underwater at the Great Barrier Reef, and a thousand more creative actions like these. 

So far more than 140 nations are taking part—it’s shaping up to be to be the biggest day of grassroots action on global warming ever.  Don’t miss out on this international day of action!

Join us on Saturday, October 24th, from 10:00am to 1:00pm at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Milford to celebrate the Souhegan Valley’s 350 Day! 

WHAT:  Souhegan Valley 350 Day – multi-faith service,  with clergy & congregations from area churches/temples, music provided by local musicians, singing, a procession, information tables, children’s activities, a community harvest lunch.  The entire community is encouraged to join in – church/temple goers and non.

WHEN:  Saturday, October 24^th, 2009    10:00am – 1:00pm

WHERE:  Unitarian Universalist Church of Milford, 20 Elm Street, Milford, NH

WHY:  To learn about climate change and sustainable living, to celebrate community and enjoy local food, and to take action to stop climate change

            For more information, please contact the Unitarian Universalist Church of Milford at (603) 673-1870, x5.

Please forward this to friends and family and encourage them to join us!

If you play an instrument or sing, and would like to play in our community rendition of the 350 Anthem* contact Gail for details.  (* Click here to listen to English audiofile and here for Download the lyrics and chords)  

If you would like to volunteer to help us get this off the ground, let me know as well! 

 Look forward to seeing you on the 24! Gail Denemark  672-1747

ACTION FOR COAL POWER PLANT

On THURSDAY JANUARY 15, 2009, The New Hampshire
Department of Environmental Services (DES) will hold a
public hearing in Concord. We should all circle our
calendars and PLAN TO ATTEND, bringing as many family,
friends and cohorts as possible. Having a large
showing will make an important statement to DES, PSNH,
the media and all of us fellow ratepayers – the
public.

2) The DES will be taking written public input until
JANUARY 23rd into it’s issue of a pending construction
permit for the 40 year old Coal power plant.
For more info
https://secure2.convio.net/sierra/site/SPageServer?pagename=FLDNH_BackgroundonBowPlant

Merrimack Station Coal Plant- Should coal be in our future???Jim Reubens – Union of Concerned Scientists- update

Thanks to the efforts of WMD’ers Gail Denemark and hostess organizer Nan Stearns a large concerned group met , Sunday Dec. 7 to learn the pressing issues regarding the Merrimack Station Coal Plant status in Bow NH.

The featured speaker, Jim Rubens (former NH state senator) of the Union of Concerned Scientists is working on national policy for a strong climate bill.

A few quick facts and background that call for citizen action

• 30% of NH carbon emissions come from the Bow coal plant, a dirty source of energy production
• NH has 3rd highest asthma rate in US (and you thought it was from air currents in Midwest)
• NH legislature passed a bill 2006 requiring PSNH to install a scrubber by 2013 to reduce mercury emissions
• August 2008 report – the cost of the scrubber increased from projected $250 million to $457 million
• NH PUC (Public Utilities Commission) ruled Nov. 12 that scrubber law requires construction must go forward
• the more expensive scrubber will not bring the plant into compliance with current Mercury , clean water and likely CO2 emission standards

NEEDED ACTION !

Currently there is not the information about how this project will impact rate payers as well as the environmental outcomes. The key item is that information is needed before action is taken that may have a 30-40 year commitment. A law is needed to require the PUC to obtain information..

PLEASE CALL YOUR STATE SENATOR and ask them to co-sponsor and support Senator Harold Janeway’s bill to require the PUC to obatin this information: (the bill number is not yet known)

(1) the full cost of reconstruction and operating Merrimack Station in compliance with present and expected anti-pollution requirements; and

(2) the cost and environmental benefits of the viable alternatives.

go to http://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/ns.whosmyleg/default.asp to find your legislator