Sierra Club USA in Ireland

international | environment | news report Sunday November 19, 2006 11:08 by m.m.mccarron - o.s.i.

Environmental Solidarity

The Sierra Club USA is the largest grassroots environmental movement in the United States. It is divided into Chapters and has also an active presence in Canada where Dr. Owens Wiwa was attached to its directotrate for a time.

At the invitation of the Eleventh Ken Saro-Wiwa Memorial Seminar held in UCC, Cork on the 11 Nov. 2006, the Sierra Club sent its director of international programmes, Steve Mills to participate in the Solidarity Forum of the Seminar.

A visitor to the State of California would find engraved on its quarter coin, the portrait of John Muir who founded the Sierra Club in 1892. This was in recognition of John Muir's work and concern for the Sierrra Nevada Mountains of California 150 years ago.
Sierra Club boasts about 750,000 members and is active on several issues.

Steve Mills took the opportunity to include a visit to Rossport where he stayed two nights. He attended the weekly community meeting, met the Rossport Five and several other community activists. He did a fact finding tour of the area and was especially interested in Carrowmore Lake and its closeness to the proposed refinery. He paid a visit to the Shell office in Bangor Erris where he left his card. Susan Shannon of Shell phoned him in the US on the day after his return. He was able to express environmental concerns.

In the coming weeks the Sierra Club will decide if the Rossport issue can be presented to its extensive membership as an issue of international concern.