Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities


** Water returned to the Santa Cruz river. Will the Biden administration protect it?
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Wednesday, October 2, 2024
Courtesy Spencer Harding, Sonoran Institute ([link removed])

In Southern Arizona, the proposed Santa Cruz River Urban National Wildlife Refuge ([link removed]) would honor Indigenous stewardship, enrich community efforts to restore biodiversity, and provide equitable outdoor access for communities of color. It would also bolster President Joe Biden's conservation legacy by contributing to the national goal of protecting 30 percent of America's lands and waters by 2030.

The effort to revitalize almost 20 miles of the river corridor is led by a diverse coalition ([link removed]) of over 50 individuals and organizations who are calling on Interior Secretary Deb Haaland to designate the Santa Cruz River Urban National Wildlife Refuge.

Over the course of about a hundred years, the Santa Cruz River was degraded by settler diversions and overuse. But thanks to diligent community involvement, water has returned to the river, bringing biodiversity with it.

In a new storymap ([link removed]) from the Center for Western Priorities, we meet members of the coalition who are restoring the Santa Cruz River and leading the effort to designate the wildlife refuge. The storymap ([link removed]) is part of the Center for Western Priorities' Road to 30: Postcards ([link removed]) series, which highlights community-driven efforts across the country that will bring America closer to the national goal of protecting 30 percent of lands and waters by the end of the decade.


** Quick hits
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Why can't we pipe in water from the East to fix the Colorado River crisis?

Colorado Sun ([link removed])

Tribe: 1.4 million gallons of fluid leaked from Dakota Access Pipeline drilling

E&E News ([link removed])

Judge to decide if exploratory lithium mining will continue near sacred hot spring

High Country News ([link removed])

BLM considers allowing some e-bikes on non-motorized trails around Moab

Times-Independent ([link removed])

New 'Find Wilderness' map highlights wildest places across the U.S.

Wilderness Society ([link removed])

Remembering President Jimmy Carter's mark on Yellowstone and Alaska

KTVQ ([link removed]) | National Park Service ([link removed])

Utah adds 2,600 acres of state land in wildlife migration corridor: no roads, no ATVs, no parking

KSL NewsRadio ([link removed])

Fat Bear Week returns with a reminder that bears—even the chonky ones—are very wild

USA Today ([link removed]) | Explore.org ([link removed])


** Quote of the day
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” Great Pizza. Beautiful Park. Fine Rangers.”

—President Jimmy Carter's message on the wall of the Yellowstone National Park employee pub


** Picture This
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@usinterior ([link removed])
With the arrival of crisp, cooler air, fewer hours of daylight, leaves changing from green to hues of gold, orange, red, and brown, and the sound of bull elk bugling in meadows, fall is a special time of year to visit Rocky Mountain National Park.

It’s a gorgeous sight and signals that winter is just around the corner in the southern Rocky Mountains!

Photo at @rockynps ([link removed]) by Jim Garrison

#RMNP ([link removed]) #fallcolors ([link removed]) #Colorado ([link removed]) #usinterior ([link removed])

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