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Dear Friends of the Verde River,
Announcement #1
Please
welcome Joanne Oellers as an organizer for the Save the Verde
Campaign! You can reach Joanne by email at joanneoellers@yahoo.com.
We’re very excited that she will be working with us.
Announcement #2
House
Parties! In addition to the letter-writing parties we've been
holding in Prescott, and soon to hit Cottonwood and Sedona, we will
be helping YOU host a House Party for the Verde. All you have
to do is let us know you want to host a party, invite a few friends,
provide some food and beverages, and we'll show up with some
entertainment, ideas and materials. If you're short on friends
who can help, we'll find some for you—our phone list is getting
pretty long.
Please contact Ashley at creasotebsh@yahoo.com if
you’re interested in hosting a House Party. We’re particularly
looking for any of you Prescott Valley folks to step forward! This
should be a great time.
UVRWPC News
The last
meeting of the Upper Verde River Watershed Protection Coalition held
Nov. 22 showed – again – that the leaders lack any real will to
protect the Verde River. Only three members of the coalition
attended. Not that it’s a very inclusive group to begin with, but
how much is really going to get done with just three people there –
especially when one of those present is Yavapai County Supervisor
Carol Springer?
Under discussion was whether or not to create the
Upper Verde River water management district including the Big Chino
aquifer and Prescott AMA. The water management district, which would
provide a first step toward protection measures, appears too
threatening for some (read: Springer). For more information about
the meeting, see The Daily Courier online article:
http://prescottdailycourier.com/main.asp?SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1&ArticleID=41972
Real breakthroughs will require many people to show up
at these meetings and voice their desires for progressive solutions.
The December meeting has been cancelled due to the holidays, but
please mark your calendars now for the Jan. 24 meeting when the
water management district proposal discussion will continue.
PLEASE Write a Letter to the Editor
TODAY!
Take a few minutes and write a letter
to the editor of your local paper. Tell them that Prescott’s and
Prescott Valley’s pursuit of Big Chino water is short-sighted and
will lead to the destruction of the upper Verde River and its
habitat. Emphasize that the Coalition’s isolationism hurts the river
and that the members should join the Verde River Basin Partnership
and cooperate with other communities in the watershed. Click here for more talking points and links to
some area newspapers.
Calendar
Please check out our updated calendar list of a number of upcoming
events! Please note that the Prescott City Council
will consider joining the Verde River Basin Partnership at their
Tuesday, December 5, Study Session at 3:00 p.m. (See
the calendar for more information). You can make a difference
by just showing up!
If you have an item for the calendar or want more
information, please contact Michelle Harrington at 602-628-9909 or
mharrington@biologicaldiversity.org.
Little Drop of Water
The
Little Drop of Water project was recently featured in Shaun
McKinnon’s Arizona Republic online blog, Waterblogged: http://www.azcentral.com/blogs/index.php?blog=169&m=2006&w=47
The Center has collected hundreds of beautifully
decorated “Little Drops” as part of the Little Drop of
Water project! Our goal is to gather at least 2,000 droplets.
That’s where you come in. Download your own droplet today from the
savetheverde.org web site. Write your notes for
the Verde, promise to conserve water or request protection of the
river’s flows, and mail them to us at: Little Drop of Water, Center
for Biological Diversity, P.O. Box 39629, Phoenix, AZ 85069.
Some of the “Little
Drops” are currently on display at the Prescott Gateway Mall Barnes
and Noble and at Coffee Roasters in downtown Prescott. Stop in to see some of the
great art and messages people have been writing. You can also pick up and
drop off your droplets at these locations.
Make a Contribution!
The Center for
Biological Diversity appreciates your interest and involvement in
the Save the Verde campaign. Please visit savetheverde.org
for other news and updates. You can also make a donation to
this campaign from the secure Web site. Please contribute
today if you haven’t done so already.
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