AUGUST 6, HIGHWAY CLEAN UP Our summer highway cleanup will be on Wednesday, August 6 at 6 p.m. Meet at the pumping station near the intersection of River Valley Drive and Gillette. Gloves, bags, and vests provided. Please email CRSierraClub@gmail.com or call 608-315-2693 with questions.
AUGUST 22, ACTION GATHERING Join CRSC members and friends on Friday, August 22 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at 401 West Ave. S. for our monthly Action Gathering. Concerned about how critical programs, resources, and staff cope with the budget-cutting frenzy? Feel like you want to do something but you aren’t sure what? This gathering is for you! Each month, learn about a priority environmental issue and then take action with others like writing letters to the editor or calling the offices of elected officials. Bring your own beverage. We have pizza!
You don’t have to be a Sierra Club member or have any experience. Email CRSierraClub@gmail.com or call 608-315-2693 if you have questions.
Can you help put together the October newsletter? Copy provided - you put it together (be creative!) for online and printed distribution on October 1. Email CRSierraClub@gmail.com or call 608-315-2693.
AUGUST 4, SUSTAIN OUR RIVER On August 4 at 11:45 a.m., the grassroots group Sustain Our River, will hold a press event at the Black River Beach Center in La Crosse to draw attention to and facilitate discussion on the value of the Mississippi River and the federal and state agencies whose work supports the sustainability of this natural resource.
“We are part of the vast web of businesses, residents, and field experts who value: the health of the Mississippi River and Great Lakes; the economic impact of recreational and commercial fisheries; and the Mississippi River navigation channel administered by the US Army Corps of Engineers. “We recognize the critical importance of dedicating funding to control: invasive species, sediment and erosion, and improve water quality, nutrient reduction and habitat restoration.” Attend to support these programs and staff and to learn how to take meaningful action to protect and sustain the upper Mississippi.
LA CROSSE GROW SOLAR GROUP BUY - KEEP OUR PLANET GREEN AND SAVE SOME GREEN! Grow Solar is a solar group-buying and education program that makes going solar easier. It’s offered by the Midwest Renewable Energy Association (MREA), the cities of Onalaska and La Crosse, and La Crosse County. Business and home owners in La Crosse County can pool their buying power to secure significant discounts that make installing solar more affordable. Changes in renewable energy programs and incentives have made it even more important to act quickly if you have been considering solar. Credits for solar, battery storage, upgraded electrical systems, insulation, heat pumps, hybrid water heaters and more will go away at the end of the year. New and used EV credits will end on September 30. Event without these incentives, the climate and financial benefits are overwhelming, especially as energy costs are predicted to rise. And, the need for electrification and replacing fossil fuels with renewables is more urgent than ever. Learn more at the Grow Solar Power Hour on August 7 at 5:30 p.m. at the Nature Place, Myrick Park. Learn more and register for a Power Hour at https://www.growsolar.org/la-crosse/
JULY 12, YOUTH OUTDOOR FEST CRSC took a bit of a break in July, but our group did table at the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Youth Outdoor Fest on July 12 at Pettibone Park in La Crosse, where we helped kids fold origami fish and handed out Sierra Club coloring sheets. Organizers estimated 1,500 participants attended the event! Thank you to volunteers Beth Piggush, Nancy Hartje, and Kathy Allen for representing CRSC at this event!
MICROPLASTICS! On Tuesday, August 26 at 6:30 p.m., join the Sierra Club Grassroots Network (GN) Single-Use Plastic Plus (SUP+) team for an eye-opening Microplastics webinar featuring two national experts in environmental protection. Dr. Philip Landrigan, a leading scholar on pollution and public health, and Dr. Judith Weis, a distinguished marine biologist and a member of Sierra Club’s national Marine Team, will shed light on how microplastics affect our health and coastal ecosystems. Together, they’ll offer a comprehensive look at microplastics and discuss actionable solutions around single-use plastics.
Register for the link at https://tinyurl.com/sc-microp
CHAPTER AWARDS NOMINATIONS Every year the Sierra Club Wisconsin Chapter recognizes volunteers and organizations for outstanding service and accomplishments on behalf of Wisconsin's environment. Awards recognize new activists, long-time members, chapter supporters, non-club organizations, and more. Learn more about the awards and how to nominate someone at https://www.sierraclub.org/wisconsin/awards
SUPPORT SIERRA CLUB TEAMS Team Sierra is an annual fundraiser to support the important work of Sierra Club Teams. The Wisconsin Chapter has seven Issues Teams–Clean Water, Transportation Access and Equity, Moving Beyond Coal to Clean Energy, Public Lands and Forests, Wildlife, Tar Sands Pipelines, and Mining. Led by Chapter staff, these statewide groups of volunteer activists learn and educate about important club priorities. We can support these teams by joining and donating. This year’s fundraiser goes from August 12 through September 15. Learn more about teams and how to donate at https://SierraClub.org/Wisconsin.
HS ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP AWARD Congratulations, Aditi Muduganti, an Onalaska High School rising senior, who will receive the CRSC 2025 High School Environmental Stewardship Award! CRSC members and friends will meet on August 24 at 5 p.m. to present Aditi with her award certificate and check. Check our webpage or blog site (CR-sierra.blogspot.com) for location. More details about the award and Aditi’s outstanding environmental stewardship will be in our September newsletter!
CLEAN TRANSPORTATION EVENTS! La Crosse Area Transit Advocates will host a Transit Talk and Treats open house on Wednesday, August 13 from 4 to 6 p.m. at People’s Food Co-op, 315 Fifth Ave. S. Representatives from the MTU, Scenic Mississippi Regional Transit (SMRT) and La Crosse Area Planning Committee will attend. There will be food, music, and door prizes. Find more at http://LaCrosseTransitAdvocates.org.
The Wisconsin Chapter of the Electric Vehicle Association will host an EV Road Trip kickoff event on Friday, August 15 at 7 p.m. at the Radisson in La Crosse to celebrate EVs and help raise funds for an EV scholarship. Meet and greet Road Trip participants and local EV owners. Music provided by Dave Zolle and Brian Cooper. Learn more at https://lacrosseevs.blogspot.com/2025/07/august-15-celebrate-evs.html,
MORE AUGUST EVENTS:
- 8/ 1: Red Crosse Blood Drive at 401 West Ave S. 9 am to 1 pm https://tinyurl.com/8125UUBlood
- 8/ 2: Nature Saturday at The Nature Place 9:30 am https://tinyurl.com/8225natsat
- 8/ 2: Rolling to the Refuge Bike Ride on Great River State Trail from Perrot State Park campground. 1 p.m. https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/events/111761
- 8/ 2: River Valley Raptors at Goose Island County Camp-ground at 2 pm https://tinyurl.com/gi-raptors
- 8/ 2: Who Really Gives a Hoot? 7 p.m. at Perrot State Park. https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/events/111756
- 8/ 4: International Owl Awareness Open House 9:30 to 5 pm. Houston, MN https://tinyurl.com/84owls
- 8/ 6: Hiroshima Remembrance Day - 80th Anniversary
- 8/ 6: Enviro Wednesday at The Nature Place 7 pm https://tinyurl.com/tnp86envwed
- 8/ 6: Pave the Way Fundraiser for Renew the Block 5 pm 1450 Avon St. https://tinyurl.com/86pavefr
- 8/ 8-10: Paddles & Premiers film fest at the Rivoli in La Crosse. https://tinyurl.com/paddlefilms
- 8/ 8: The Marvel of the Monarch Butterflies and their Amazing Journey at Trempealeau National Wildlife Refuge, 6:00-7:30 pm https://tinyurl.com/twr-monarchs
- 8/ 9: Hemlock Trail Plant Walk at 9 am at Wildcat Mtn State Park. https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/events/105651
- 8/ 9: Fabulous Fungi at The Nature Place 10 am https://natureplacelacrosse.org/calendar/driftless-area-bioblitz-4/
- 8/ 9: La Crosse Area Astronomical Society program and observing starting at 8 pm at Perrot State Park. http://www.lcaas.org/
- 8/11-13: Night of the Living at The Nature Place. 7 pm https://tinyurl.com/tnp-niteo
- 8/12-13: Perseid meteor shower peak (overnight). https://www.space.com/32868-perseid-meteor-shower-guide.html
- 8/13: Driftless Dialogue: Canoe Conundrum 5 pm Kicka-poo Valley Reserve https://tinyurl.com/kvrcanoetalk
- 8/16: River Valley Raptors at Vets Memorial County Campground at 2 pm https://tinyurl.com/vetsraptors
- 8/16: Raptor 101 at Perrot State Park 7 p.m. https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/events/109551
- 8/16: Night Sky at Wildcat Mtn State Park at 8 pm https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/events/109281
- 8/17: Solar Viewing from 1 to 5 p.m. at Wildcat Mtn State Park. https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/events/109236
- 8/30: Wildlife in Your Backyard at 5 p.m. at Perrot State Park. https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/events/109776
- 8/30-9/ 1: Ho-Chunk Labor Day Pow-Wow in Black River Falls https://tinyurl.com/hochunkpw825
