Officers:

Chairman - John Ackerman, 361-4732
Vice-Chair - Vacant
Secretary - Fred Shaw, 277-3237
Treasurer - Lynn Shaw -277-3237
Outings Coordinator - Roger Wolczak, 361-7354
Conservation & Education - Joe Scanlon, 279-8318
Ex-Com Representative -Dick Short, 279-3188
Membership, Publicity, Newsletter - Mary Stephens, 272-9331

Next Meeting

Tuesday, March 9th at 7:00 pm
E. L. Lowder Library
2590 Bell Rd.
ph. 244-5717

Meetings are held on the 2nd Tuesday of each month. Visitors are always welcome.

For the March meeting we will have Ms. Mims, President of the Greater Montgomery Area Master Gardeners, as our guest speaker.

"In addition to the plant clinics, begun by the first group and now a basic activity of many others, Master Gardeners have undertaken a wide variety of other projects. They staff horticulture hotlines, coordinate environmental and planting projects, run demonstration gardens, do research, manage some existing public gardens, work with school groups and other special populations, publish newsletters, and broadcast radio and television programs as some of their many activities. Just as the projects of different groups vary, so do their training programs and organizations."

MESSAGE FROM SIERRA CLUB PRESIDENT LARRY FAHN On January 30, 2004, the Board voted to instruct me to insert the following notice in the 2004 Sierra Club Board of Directors' election ballot and to convey it to chapter and group newsletter editors:

URGENT ELECTION NOTICE

This year there is an unprecedented level of outside involvement and attention to the Sierra Club's Board of Directors' election. Outside, non-environmental organizations have endorsed candidates in the Club's Board elections. Several outside organizations have endorsed Club Board candidates and are urging their supporters to join the Club as a means to influence club policy in line with their non-environmental agendas.

Those outside groups that may be attempting to intervene in the Club's Board of Directors' elections include:

Center for American Unity - VirginiaDare/Vdare.com collective that includes "white nationalist writers."
Coloradans for American Immigration Reform People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)
Federation for American Immigration Reform Project USA
Fur Commission USA Social Contract Press
National Immigration Alert (NumbersUSA)

The Sierra Club has become an even more influential and effective voice in American society over the last decade. Now it appears that non-environmental groups are trying to take advantage of the Club's open and democratic nature to influence the composition of our Board of Directors and our policies.

Faced with this threat, the Board of Directors urges every member of the Club act to ensure that the Sierra Club remains faithful to its environmental mission and principles. Please cast your vote in this year's election as a means of demonstrating to outside groups that they cannot influence our organization. Vote for candidates whose positions reflect your values and vision for the future of the Sierra Club. Vote for candidates whose experience matches what you believe the Club needs. Vote for candidates endorsed by Club leaders whom you trust.

In addition to the information about candidates found in the ballot, some chapter and group newsletters will carry additional information. More can also be found on the Sierra Club candidate forum which you can reach from the Club's website.

Democracy really does work - but only if we all vote. Help maintain the Sierra Club's tradition as America's preeminent democratic and grass roots advocate for the environment.

Thank you.
Larry Fahn, President

Eco-report from David Suziki, a scientist and environmentalist from Canada.

People generally like simple answers. This happened, so this happened. Cause and effect. Simple.

But nature doesn't work that way. Just when we think we've got something figured out, another idea comes along that turns our preconceived notions upside down. In spite of all our scientific advances, we are only just beginning to understand how ecosystems work.

Consider invasive species. Plants and animals evolve to fill particular roles within a given ecosystem. The population of each of these species is usually held in check by other forces, such as climate, predators or food availability. When we take a species out of its native home and transport it elsewhere, it may face new challenges and die off, or it may find itself virtually unencumbered by constraining forces.

When the latter happens, the species can become "invasive." That is, it can flourish, become a pest to human beings and overwhelm native species. In fact, invasive species are believed to be a major cause of the loss of biodiversity worldwide. Biologists have long known that the lack of insect enemies is a key factor in determining if a plant species becomes invasive, but we are finding out that the situation is decidedly more complex. We now know that another, surprising agent may also be involved in the success of an invasive plant - soil organisms.

Most of us tend to think of soil as inert matter, but it is very much alive, replete with microscopic organisms that can either enhance a plant's capacity to grow and flourish, or hinder it. A recent study published in the journal Nature has found that spotted knapweed, which was introduced to North America through imported alfalfa seeds more than a century ago, has likely been able to spread so profusely, not because it lacked insect enemies, but because it lacked microscopic soil enemies. In Europe and Asia, specific soil organisms help keep the plant from becoming an invasive weed, but these microbes aren't found in North American soil.

Just as few people would have thought that soil microbes could have such a profound effect on the success of a plant species, few would likely think that reducing fishing to protect fish stocks would actually harm seabird populations. Yet that is exactly what has happened in Europe's North Sea.

One of the North Sea's top predators, the great skua, has greatly benefited from the leftovers of commercial fishing. Over the years, these birds have learned to scavenge fish guts and undersized fish tossed back by fishing boats. They've eaten well. As a result, the great skua population is now 200 times larger than it was a century ago.

However, fish stocks in the North Sea are in trouble from years of overfishing. New European Union policies have been designed to allow stocks to recover, but reduced fishing also means fewer discards for the skuas.

And rather than go hungry, the birds are preying on other seabirds like puffins and kittiwakes.

The impact on other seabird species is not insignificant. A recent study found that a five per cent increase of birds in the skua diet would result in an annual loss of thousands of other seabirds. In some areas, the level of predation by skuas is already unsustainable and the authors conclude that the situation "presents a potentially serious threat to some seabird communities."

We have to remember that nature does not behave in a simple, linear fashion. Our natural systems have, over millions of years, developed complex systems of checks and balances. Humanity is now powerful enough to meddle with those systems and the results are unpredictable. That's something to keep in mind when we consider climate change, genetically modified food and other emerging scientific issues. We have to be cautious.

And we can't assume we know how things will turn out, because with nature, the answer is rarely simple.

Source: David Suzuki Foundation

Montgomery Sierra Group Outings

All participants on Sierra Club outings are required to sign a standard liability waiver. If you would like to read the liability waiver before you chose to participate on an outing, please go to www.sierraclub.org/outings/chapter/forms/, or contact the Outings Department at (415) 977-5528 for a printed version.

March 13 (Sat) - Cheaha State Park, north of Birmingham. We'll be leisurely hiking approximately 2 miles of the famous Pinhoti Trail (4.2 miles round trip) on the mountain ridgeline with super views of the Talladega National Forest. Bring sturdy shoes, snacks, water and layered clothing. If there is enough time and interest, we can also make some short trips to Bald Rock, Pulpit Rock, or the Rock Garden, all of which also have great views. We'll meet at 8 am in the Winn Dixie parking lot just south of Wetumpka on Hwy 231. For further information, please call Roger Wolczak, 361-7354 or John Ackerman, 361-4732.

April 9-11 (Fri-Sun) - Bird Banding and Watching at Fort Morgan State Historical Site. More information will be provided at the meeting for this overnight trip, or call Roger Wolczak, 361-7354 or John Ackerman, 361-4732.

May 15 (Sat) - Visit the Nature Conservancy's Case Preserve in Autauga County to view the pitcher plants in bloom. Bob Hastings will lead this outing. Plan to meet at 8 am at the Prattville Cracker Barrel Restaurant just off the I-65 Exit 181 (Hwy 14 exit). For further information, please call Roger Wolczak, 361-7354 or John Ackerman, 361-4732.