Events & Meetings
Environmental Lobby Day is coming up on Earth Day, April 22
Register now!
Download the brochure.
YWCA & Ohio Statehouse
Downtown Columbus
Together we can make a difference for Ohio's future!
Meet your lawmakers.
We need your voice at the Statehouse.
Contact Ellen Mee at 614-487-7506 or ellen@theOEC.org for more information.
Networking, watershed advocacy, and fun on the shores of Lake Erie.
River Rally 2008
May 2nd - 5th, 2008
Sawmill Creek Resort Huron, Ohio
River Rally is an intensive, interactive four-day training and networking opportunity, including more than 70 workshops on a variety of watershed management and conservation topics.
It’s for anyone and everyone interested in watershed protection!
Download the brochure.
Register.
Attend OEC's Environmental 
Lobby Day as a group and save money
There is thrift in numbers!
Call 614-487-7506 now to reserve a table for a group at OEC's 2008 Environmental Lobby Day. The regular rate for tickets is $25 for OEC members and $30 for non-members.
Special rates are:
3-9 people paying together - $20 for members/$25 for non-members
10+ people paying together - $15 for members/$20 for non-members
Group rates are available only by phone.
OEC opposes potential lowering of
Lake Erie's water level
Lake Erie and our precious Great Lakes are in trouble.
Lake Erie water plays a crucial role in our region's economy and in our daily lives, whether it’s the water we drink, the water that supports manufacturing and power plants, or the special times and places we enjoy with our families on the Lakes.
Right now there are no consistent standards across the region governing the use of Great Lakes water. Without rules that everyone must follow, the Lakes are vulnerable to pipelines and overseas tankers that would divert water away from the region to foreign countries and thirsty regions right here in the U.S.
The Great Lakes Compact passed the Ohio House of Representatives by 90-3 just last month. Its intent was to safeguard Great Lakes water from diversions. Now, Ohio Senate Republicans have drafted proposed legislation, SB 291, that could result in Great Lakes water remaining unprotected. The language of the Ohio Senate's "Non-Pact" would entitle any Great Lakes state to use at least as much water as any other Great Lakes state.
Currently Illinois is authorized to divert two billion gallons of Great Lakes water a day to Chicago. According to Environment Canada (a Canadian federal agency) and the International Joint Commission, if the seven other Great Lakes States that border Lake Erie and the three upper Great Lakes were to withdraw the same amount of water as Illinois, future Lake Erie water levels could drop as much as a half a foot.
Already lower water levels have forced Great Lakes freighters to lighten their loads and change routes to avoid running aground in shallow harbors and waterways.
Read more about the OEC's objections to the Ohio Senate's partisan efforts to weaken the Great Lakes Compact. Be prepared to take action in an upcoming OEC e-mail action alert.
Green tags - a way to ensure Ohio's clean energy future
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, U.S. annual energy consumption is projected to increase by 37% and greenhouse gas emissions by 36% over the next 20 years. We must begin to do something to reverse this trend now!
You can contribute to the development of renewable energy in Ohio by combining the purchase of green tags with your regular electricity purchase.
Here's how it works. The average residential consumer uses 750 kilowatt hours (KWh) per month. SOAR Energy, an OEC affiliate, offers green tags in blocks of 250 KWh at a cost of $5 per block ($.02 per KWh). You can choose to purchase green tags for all or part of your power purchases. All profits earned the sale of green tags will be invested in the wind farm in Bowling Green, Ohio.
SOAR Energy is a member-owned solar and renewable energy
buyers' 
cooperative, formed in late 2001 to develop and serve
the market for green power with the cooperation of environmental, consumer and low-income community organizations. As a non-profit cooperative, SOAR Energy is designed to meet the needs of its members. All members have a vote and can get involved in the organization.
SOAR Energy DOES NOT provide electric service. Purchasing green tags will not affect your current electric bill in any way. What buying green tags will do is enable you to invest in clean, green, renewable energy developed right here in Ohio!
Click here for more information and to enroll in SOAR Energy's green tags program.
OEC's 2008 Real Ohio Tours
...from the northwest to the south of Ohio with two stops in the middle
Real Ohio Tours are free for members and $25 for non-members.
OEC membership is $35 per year. Join the OEC.
Download the brochure.
Here's where we'll be going this year:
Bird Watching at Crane Creek - Ottawa County
Saturday, May 17 - 10:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Olentangy River Wetland Research Park - Franklin County
Saturday, May 31 - 10:00 a.m.- 11:30 a.m.
Canoeing on the Little Miami Wild & Scenic River - Hamilton County
Saturday, June 28 - 10:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Tallgrass Prairie Tour - Knox County
Saturday, July 19 - 10:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
(Special breakfast reception at 9:00 a.m. for Capitol Club and Legacy Club members. *)
Cuyahoga National Park - Summit County
Saturday, September 27 - 10:00 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
(This special tour is exclusive to our Legacy Club and Capitol Club members and will include lunch.*)
*Contact OEC at 614-487-7506 for more information about planned gifts or larger donations.
PLEASE NOTE: RSVP is required for each Real Ohio Tour (614-487-7506).