New board member believes active, political approach is necessary to preserve natural resources and species. Others say the Sierra Club has a political agenda in Malibu, leaving behind environmental concerns.
By Sylvie Belmond/Special to The Malibu Times
Marcia Hanscom, a controversial local environmentalist and avid supporter of former City Council candidate Robert Roy van de Hoek, was elected to serve on the National Board of Directors of the Sierra Club early in April.
Some believe, however, that with Hanscom at the helm, the club connotes more trouble for Malibu.
The Sierra Club is very active in Malibu, acting as a watchdog organization in the political forum and sometimes filing lawsuits to make its point. To some, the club seems to pick on Malibu more than it should, but club officials reason the Sierra Club needs to be active in cities that surround urban centers before the land is gone.
Dr. Gordon LaBedz, chair of the Sierra Club Angeles Chapter, which Malibu falls under, is happy that Hanscom was elected for the job.
“She is probably one of the most important environmentalists in Southern California,” he said, noting that Hanscom works fulltime to protect wetlands in California, a state that has lost more than 90 percent of its wetlands.
Others are not so sure.
Councilmember Joan House believes the club, under the direction of Hanscom, is partial to certain individuals regardless of the environmental outcome. In the recent City Council elections, the club solely supported van de Hoek and did not support or endorse a second candidate in the two-seat race. John Wall, who has blue ribbon Sierra Club credentials, was also running for a council seat and did not make it. The Sierra Club did not endorse him.
“Rumors were that Hanscom wanted to bullet-vote her candidate, who happens to have a personal relationship with her,” House said. “These actions are contradictory to my believed goals of the Sierra Club. Principals and ethics are left at the altar.”
For that reason, and because the club has filed lawsuits against the city for various reasons, House observed that many of her friends have not renewed their membership with the club.
“Most offer that the club has a political agenda in Malibu, that the club is leaving the environmental issue,” she said.
But club leaders are undaunted. As he spoke about the club’s activities in Malibu, LaBedz said it is only natural the city would become a focus for the club’s efforts since it is one of the more natural cities in Southern California.
“The club tends to spend more time trying to protect cities that have some natural areas left,” he said.
While the club does sue the city at times, it does not target Malibu any differently than other cities on the urban perimeter, he said.
While Hanscom believes the club has not changed its approach to save the environment, which has been called radical at times, Ed Lipnick, a longtime member of the club and a Malibu planning commissioner, sees it differently.
“I was never an activist member of the Sierra Club, merely a dues paying member that enjoyed outdoor recreation,” Lipnick said.
But over the years, Lipnick feels the focus of the club’s activities has shifted from preservation of natural resources to a much more political and environmental focus.
“It is the preservation of the wonderful lands of the West that I am interested in,” he said.
But “wetlands and environmental issues in an urban environment like Malibu I do not think should be the activity of the Sierra Club as there are many other organizations for that.”
Lipnick also noted that a lawsuit the club filed concerning two houses on Latigo Shore had absolutely no environmental component whatsoever.
“I have no idea why they took those on,” he said.
As he spoke about Hanscom’s activities, Lipnick said, “It seems to me that she has been using her position with the club to influence local Malibu governmental and land-use issues and I am not sure that is proper.
“I do not think that a national organization like the [Sierra] Club should attempt to play a role in local political issues.”
But political involvements are not new to the club, said Hanscom, who noted the Sierra Club, since John Muir founded it, has always had as its mission to protect and explore the beauty of the Earth.
“Muir was considered radical by many of his peers, both prodding and challenging the government to do more to protect the wildness of nature,” she said. “He successfully convinced President Theodore Roosevelt to help protect many of our national natural treasures.”
“Our primary purpose is environmental protection, and most of the organization’s budget is devoted to that end,” she added.
As far as being involved in local politics, Hanscom said, “The club organizes citizens in the community to speak out and take action on behalf of environmental protection because it hopes to see more environmentally aware city council members on the panel in the future.”