Administrative History
John Zierold, formerly the head of the California Planning and Conservation League, began advising the Sierra Club on state legislative matters in the 1960s, and he became a full-fledged lobbyist for the club in 1970. Some of his early successes included helping to pass the legislation which created the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, the [San Francisco] Bay Conservation and Development Commission, and the California State Solid Waste Management Board. He also influenced laws on logging and forestry management, nuclear safeguards, coastal zone management, and California's counterpart to the National Environmental Policy Act.
When Zierold retired in 1984, his assistant, Michael Paparian, became the state director. Paparian currently supervises a staff of experts in such areas as ancient forests, public lands, hazardous materials, and energy and water policy legislation. The Sacramento office also maintains a consultative relationship with Sierra Club California, which is comprised of volunteers from each California chapter.
From the guide to the Sierra Club California Legislative Office Records, 1970-[ongoing], (The Bancroft Library.)
