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Land preservation meets national defense meets eco-tourism in a plan that protects wildlife corridors, military flight paths and the West Valley’s access to some dynamite outdoor activities. Talk about achieving multiple goals with one great idea.
A proposal backed by environmental groups and military interests
in southern Arizona would protect hundreds of thousands of acres -- as well as
large swaths of the airspace above them.
Conservation Outreach Associate Ian Dowdy, with the Arizona Wilderness Coalition, was interviewed on August 14, 2012 regarding the Sonoran Desert Heritage conservation proposal that protects federal lands in western Maricopa County. In this short video clip Ian outlines why the conservation of these lands is vital to the local enconomy and to the longterm viability of Arizona's military installations.
To view the video click here:
The Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust last week announced nearly $1.9 million in grants going to 22 Arizona non-profit organizations. They are:
A Stepping Stone Foundation: $55,000 to support preschool classrooms for about 35 children ages 3 and 4 from low-income families at Westwood Elementary School in the Alhambra School District in Phoenix.
Arizona Wilderness Coalition: $50,000 to complete the final phase of the Sonoran Desert Heritage Campaign to protect nearly 1 million acres of wilderness-quality public lands west and southwest of Phoenix.
Following a decade of massive and unprecedented growth, a
question emerges: How does one protect the pristine land that makes Arizona so
appealing? A broad coalition of Valley organizations has the answer: Designate
it as wilderness.
Mix together the military, wildlife, petroglyphs, tourism, the desert and economic development . . . and you have one amazing idea.
It's called the Sonoran Desert Heritage Proposal, and if approved by Congress, it would protect about 750,000 acres of public land in western Maricopa County.
Spend a few weeks among the high-rise buildings in major cities back East, and the Valley's mountains and vistas are the first thing you notice upon arriving home.
We're fortunate to have wide, open spaces and sunlight beaming down most of the year. It's what makes us the envy of the nation and a tourism destination.
This generation is responsible for the environment of generations to come was the core point of a presentation on the Sonoran Desert Heritage Proposal last week at the Wigwam resort.
The plan provides for conservation efforts of U.S. Bureau of Land Management acreage, said Ian Dowdy, a representative of the Arizona Wilderness Coalition.
About 700,000 acres of public land near Phoenix -- one of the West's fastest-growing cities -- would receive additional protection under a broadly supported proposal unveiled by environmental groups yesterday.
The initiative, presented at a press conference in Phoenix, calls for establishing three types of protected lands in the area. All are found within Bureau of Land Management lands in Maricopa County, home to more than 4 million people.
A coalition of environmentalists, business leaders, developers and mayors announced a proposal Wednesday to protect roughly 700,000 acres of public lands in the West Valley.
The group wants to preserve for future generations the ecology, cultural heritage and recreational opportunities in the Sonoran Desert west of Phoenix.
