Triple Divide: Free Fracking Film

Drill sites in fracked landscapes

Carolina Nature Coalition in conjunction with Frack Free NC and the River Guardian Foundation are presenting the critically acclaimed documentary, Triple Divide on the subject of hydraulic fracturing or fracking. The showing is scheduled for 6:30PM on Thursday, July 10th, 2014, at Trent River Coffee Company, located at 208 Craven St., New Bern, NC.

Following the film, local expert George C. Matthis, Jr. from the River Guardian Foundation will lead a discussion about what fracking means for North Carolina and our water quality

About the Film

Triple Divide is Public Herald's first investigations into inevitable, negative impacts from shale gas industrial development and how those impacts are handled by the state, specifically the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).

Post-drill local drinking water

Triple Divide is said to be the only documentary of its kind capable of speaking to all sides on the controversial subject of hydraulic fracturing, with exclusive interviews from the industry, experts, and Americans suffering in the wake of shale-gas developement. The film is built on cradle-to-grave investigations that attempt to answer the question, "How are state regulations and industry handling impacts from fracking?" The film reveals how water contamination is being covered up by the industry and by the state of Pennsylvania, essentially rewriting water quality history in the United States by dismissing predrill tests. Meanwhile, state regulators are abandoning the public in the wake of shale-gas development.

Through extraction of shale has will one day end, taking many "boom and bust" jobs with it, contaminated groundwater aquifers, polluted land, and stories of victimization will remain. Pennsylvanians, fed up with corruption and destruction, won't "go down" without a fight and are learning how to protect themselves.

Basic diagram of hydraulic fracturing

About George Matthis, Jr.

Mr. Matthis holds a BS degree in Marine Biology from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington and a MS degree in General Administration from Central Michigan University. As a Certified Public Manager, he served 33 years in numerous technical and managerial positions with the North Carolina Department of Environmental and Natural Resources and represented the State of North Carolina on various national environmental committees. He held the executive director position for the Neuse Riverkeeper Foundation before co-founding the River Guardian Foundation. He was appointed to Wake County Open Space and  Parks Advisory Commission and is currently chair of the Water Quality Subcommittee. Mr. Matthis is the recipient of the Old North State Award for his dedication and service beyond expectation and excellence to the State of North Carolina.

Years of Living Dangerously: The Biggest Story of Our Time

Our third showing in our Environmental Film Series is actually the first episode from the critically-acclaimed television series, Years of Living Dangerously.

Years of Living Dangerously: Episode 1, The Dry Season

Harrison Ford and endangered orangutan baby.

The showing is scheduled for Thursday, June 5th, 2014 at 6:30pm  at Trent River Coffee Company, 208 Craven Street, New Bern.

This groundbreaking documentary event series explores the human impact of climate change. Years of Living Dangerously combines the blockbuster storytelling styles of top Hollywood movemakers with the reporting expertise of Hollywood's brightest starts and today's most respected journalist.

Don Cheadle meets with residents of Planview, TX.

In Episode One: The Dry Season, Harrison Ford, Don Cheadle, and Thomas Friedman travel the globe to explore the issues of climate change and cover intimate stories of human triumph and tragedy. Beginning in Plainview, Texas where the town's meat-packing plant closes due to drought reducing the number of available cattle. Then traveling around the world to the rainforest of Indonesia where the demand for palm oil has resulted in massive deforestation, turning that country into one of the world's largest emitters of greenhouse gases. Finally ending with an exploration of the wars in Syria and the Middle East, where the Pentagon has long seen climate change as a "threat multiplier," a "stressor" that can take a volatile political situation and push it over the edge.

Pulitzer prize winning journalist, Thomas Friedman discussing the war in Syria.

Following the film, will be a short presentation on the effects of climate change in the southeastern United States and specially eastern North Carolina based on the latest scientific data presented in the National Climate Assessment. The event will conclude with a forum, discussing what can be done locally to combat the effects of climate change both in the political arena and on the ground.


Included in this post are the trailer for the series, Years of Living Dangerously  airing on Showtime, as well as information on the most recent National Climate Assessment.

Carolina Nature Coalition's General Interest Meeting

Our next General Interest Meeting on Sunday, June 1st at 4:00pm in the Starbucks at Target located at 3410 Martin Luther King Blvd, New Bern. Check out our map below!

Please join us for our second informational session about joining and volunteering with Carolina Nature Coalition. We have all of 3 passionate volunteers and we need YOU to assist us in our community-based projects that raise public awareness of environmental issues and result in meaningful public action.

Add your opinion and your voice. We are open to new ideas and projects, so please come to our meeting and tell us about it!



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Sincerely,

Stella Smith
Member of Carolina Nature Coalition

Facebook: Carolina Nature Coalition
Email: carolinanaturecoalition@gmail.com

Sharing Your Story: Letter Writing Tips

One of the number one things affecting our environments from our coastal shorelines, to our Mid-Western ranch lands, to our national parks is legislation that is passed by our political representatives both at the state and federal levels.

As seen in our recent film screening of Shored Up, our General Assembly here in North Carolina effectively passed a bill so as to outlaw the use of scientific data on sea level rise in planning our coastal communities. This particular bill and many others at the state and federal level are harming our ecosystems by encouraging construction in some of the most ecologically vulnerable areas and sometimes the most dangerous areas. I think Stephen Colbert explains it best:

The Colbert Report
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Indecision Political Humor,The Colbert Report on Facebook

But once you have voted, how can you influence the political arena; especially considering you might not have the money to throw at politicians the way lobbyist do?

WRITE THEM A LETTER! 

As one of the most basic form of advocacy, personal hand-written letters that share your story, experiences, and opinions on the topic of concern still remains the best way to communicate your needs to your representative. As any politician knows, the way to continuously get elected is to take care of the needs and concerns of your constituents.

Tips for Letter Writing

1. Say why you are writing and who you are. Include your name and your address, this ensure that you get a response (politicians only read the letters from their own constituents).
2. Be factual rather than emotional and provide specific examples on how this topic affects you and others in your same voting district. If a certain bill is involved, cite the correct title or number.
3. Close by requesting the action you want taken: a vote for or against a bill, or change in general policy.

The best letters are courteous, to the point, and include specific supporting examples that make your letter personal. Tell your story, say how this piece of legislation will or is affecting you, and always make it hand-written!

Helpful Links

Bill Lookups for you to find the specific title of the bill to reference in your letter and so you can read the piece of legislation for yourself (or at least a summary):

NC General Assembly Legislation 
US Congress Legislation

Find out who your political representative is and their mailing address:
NC General Assembly Districts
US House Districts

Shored Up: When Human Nature and the Force of Nature Collide

Carolina Nature Coalition is a community organization founded in February 2014 and whose mission is to raise public awareness of environmental issues and engage citizens in meaningful community action.

We are comprised of just a handful of dedicated members who work on a volunteer-basis. We hope to feature in this blog ways in which citizens of New Bern, Craven County, and the surrounding region can influence environmental issues by giving their time to better the environment; by being conscious of the consequences of their purchases and actions; and by taking political actions to influence environmental policies and regulations.

Currently, Carolina Nature Coalition is hosting an Environmental Film Series that features a free documentary film showing on the first Thursday of each month at 6:30pm. So far we have shown Vanishing of the Bees, a documentary concerning declining bee populations and the use of systemic pesticides in our agricultural system.

"Nights in Rodanthe" house located along the Outer Banks, North Carolina

Shored Up

Our next film is Shored Up on Thursday, May 1, 2014 at 6:30pm at Trent River Coffee Company, 208 Craven Street, New Bern.

Our beaches and coastline are a national treasure, a shared resource, a beacon of sanity in a world of constant change…and they’re disappearing in front of us. Shored Up is a documentary that asks tough questions about our coastal communities and our relationship to the land. What will a rising sea do to our homes, our businesses, and the survival of our communities? Can we afford to pile enough sand on our shores to keep the ocean at bay? In Long Beach Island, New Jersey and the Outer Banks of North Carolina, surfers, politicians, scientists and residents are racing to answer these questions. Beach engineering has been our only approach so far, but is there something else out there to be explored? Our development of the coastlines put us in a tough predicament, and it’s time to start looking for solutions.

Below you will find the trailer for Shored Up and a map to Trent River Coffee Company.

 

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We hope to see y'all there!

Please join us our facebook group: Carolina Nature Coalition or email us at carolinanaturecoalition@gmail.com, with your questions or comments.

Sincerely,

Stella Smith of the Carolina Nature Coalition