Save the Verde! News & Announcements

Greetings,

Meetings You May Have Missed
At the Verde Watershed Association meeting in Clarkdale last month, Chino Valley mayor and chair of the Upper Verde River Watershed Protection Coalition Karen Fann offered the public an opportunity for discussion about the Coalition.  In her opening remarks she called the Coalition "a good thing" and invited skeptics to "uncross your arms."  Attendees challenged the Big Chino pipeline timeline in light of the lack of protective measures for the Verde by Prescott, Prescott Valley or the Coalition, and emphasized the need for a regional watershed management plan.  The Coalition's mission statement to protect the Verde was also questioned, since global warming and proposed groundwater-dependent development (40,000 homes in the planning stages) in northern Yavapai County will put additional stresses on the Big Chino aquifer and the river.  The meeting was reported in the Verde Independent.

Then at the March Upper Verde River Watershed Protection Coalition meeting, community members challenged officials about the proposed July 2009 pumping date in spite of the lack of plans for river flows and habitat protection.  The reply from officials: There is simply no rush to get projects in place — we have "decades" before there will be any impacts.  Was that finally an admission that there will be impacts?  Now how about an admission that putting off responsible planning and not informing citizens of the all-inclusive costs of the pipeline project, including future mitigation, is an abdication of their duty to the public and the Verde?  Just a thought.

On the Fish Front
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposes to restore the native fish community in the headwaters of the Verde River by eradicating non-native fish from Stillman Lake (just upriver from Granite Creek) and restocking the area with natives like the endangered razorback sucker and the roundtail chub, a species of concern.  Currently the ability to effectively conserve and manage native fish in the upper Verde River is limited due to the presence of non-native fish.  The preferred alternative would include the use of a chemical piscicide to remove non-native fish.  Read more about the proposal and the March 26 public meeting also on the Verde Independent Web site.

Download the draft Environmental Assessment of the proposal from the Fish and Wildlife Service Web site.  Send your comments in favor of native fish restoration to StillmanLake@fws.gov by April 25, 2007.

Next Pipeline Protection Coalition Meeting
Please attend the next meeting of the Upper Verde River Watershed Protection Coalition on Wednesday April 25 at 2:00 p.m. and request that Prescott, Prescott Valley and the other communities work with the Fish and Wildlife Service to prepare a formal mitigation plan or Habitat Conservation Plan (see letter dated April 29, 2005).  The meeting is at the Prescott Town Hall, 201 S. Cortez Street.  Call Joanne at (928) 772-8204 for more information and talking points.

Calendar
Check out the latest calendar of events! If you have an item for the calendar or want more information, please contact Joanne at (928) 772-8204 or Michelle at (602) 628-9909.

Send Us Your Droplets in Time for Earth Day!
Time is running out for you to get your decorated Little Drop of Water to us for display at Earth Day.  Download your 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.  Or drop them off at the Crossroads Café or Prescott Coffee Roasters.

Juanita Hull-Carlson, an artist whose work is featured at Van Gogh's Ear on Whiskey Row in Prescott, is working with the Center on a fundraiser for the Save the Verde campaign featuring Little Drops decorated by local professional artists, with framing assistance by The Frame & I.  The framed droplets are on display at the Raven Café, 142 N. Cortez St. in Prescott, and available for sale.  Proceeds will benefit the Center's Save the Verde campaign.  Contact Ashley at (928) 533-4309 for more information.

Or Meet Us at Earth Day
The Center will have a Save the Verde table at Earth Day on April 21 at Granite Creek Park, 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.  Bring your droplet or decorate one there and enter it to win a special prize.  We will award gifts for the best droplets as well as hold random drawings.  Then join us later at the Raven Café for more Earth Day fun.

In the Schools
Save the Verde campaign volunteer Ashley Fine has created a Verde River hydrology lesson for elementary students and is presenting to several classrooms in the Prescott and Verde Valley areas.  If you're interested in having Ashley share information or present to a class, please contact her at (928) 533-4309.

More House Parties!
Want to do something special for the Verde?  Host a letter-writing party!  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 growing!  Please contact Ashley at (928) 533-4309 if you're interested in hosting a House Party.

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 you want Prescott, Prescott Valley and Chino Valley to work with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to formulate a Habitat Conservation Plan to protect the upper Verde River and its habitat.  Emphasize, too, that the city-sponsored Upper Verde River Watershed Protection 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.

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 make a donation to this campaign from the secure Web site.  Please contribute today!

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