By the 21st Century, you might think that every magical, special, ecologically-intact spot on this planet would long since be on the tourist trail, and maybe even find itself over-developed. Somehow, though, the mountains, streams and wildlife that make up the Gila ("hee-la") are still here to be explored, loved and protected (New York Times Article:
Walking a Dream of Desolation).
The Gila River carves its way 650 miles through America's first designated wilderness area. Hikers share backcountry with mountain lions, fox and lizards, coyotes, hawks, elk and bears. And the human past shouts its history in pictographs, cliff dwellings, and historic ranches.
Those
who explore the Gila River's wilderness watershed know that
the largely wild flow of the Gila River is literally the lifeblood
of this national treasure, and must be preserved for all time.
And,
indeed, vigilance is needed. The Gila River continues to be
threatened by water development projects. With good planning
and citizen involvement, New Mexico's last wild river can
be a magical and healthy ecosystem for our children to enjoy
for generations to come. Read more
What's New at GCC?
6th Annual Gila River Festival Celebrating the Gila’s Web of Life
September 16 – 19, 2010
Silver City, NM
The Gila River represents the lifeblood of a biologically diverse landscape to which humans are intricately tied. Several thousand plant and animal species call the Gila River and its headwaters home, making the mountains of southwestern New Mexico a North American biodiversity hot spot - many species found in the Gila occur nowhere else in the world. Given that 2010 marks the International Year of Biodiversity, the 6th annual Gila River Festival will celebrate the Gila’s extraordinary web of life, highlighting the importance of New Mexico’s last free-flowing river in sustaining an ecologically diverse and connected landscape.
The AWSA Stakeholders Group and Implementation/Technical Committee continue to meet regularly to discuss projects for evaluation under the Arizona Water Settlements Act (AWSA). Stakeholders in southwestern New Mexico are trying to determine how to use funding from this Congressional water bill to cost-effectively balance water supply and demand while protecting the Gila River. Southwestern New Mexico can use $66 million to meet local water needs or use up to $128 million in a federal subsidy to divert up to 14,000 acre-feet per year from the Gila River and its tributary, the San Francisco. After several monthly meetings at which Deputy Interstate Stream Commission (ISC) Director Craig Roepke cast doubt on the use of AWSA funding for non-diversion alternatives, ISC attorney Tracy Hartzler-Toon clarified at the April meeting that $66 million in AWSA funding can be used for any water supply demand as defined by the Stakeholders Group.
This was welcome news to the Gila Conservation Coalition and most other stakeholders who support cost-effective alternatives to meet our future water needs, including municipal and agricultural conservation, watershed restoration, and sus-tainable use of groundwater supplies. In addition to the fact that no need for Gila River water has been demonstrated, implementation of proven conservation and water efficiency measures can sharply reduce the amount of water needed in the future at a fraction of the cost of a Gila River diversion project. GCC believes conservation and sustainable use of groundwater can secure our water future without building a costly diversion project that will alter this river forever. The Gila Conservation Coalition will continue to promote common-sense alternatives that protect the Gila for our future and save taxpayers’ money.
AMEC, hired to conduct water planning studies for the ISC, presented the results of its water demand work for southwestern New Mexico at the June meeting. The consultancy reaffirmed that the region has enough water to meet its future water needs over the next 40 years without diverting Gila River water. The firm projected relatively slow growth for all counties and urban centers in the four-county region, with the exception of a projected faster rate of growth for Deming. Only about five percent of water use in the area is projected for the municipal/domestic sector, with the bulk of consumptive use by the agriculture and mining sectors. The consulting firm also presented data the demonstrated he significant potential for conservation to reduce municipal demand and thus extending the life of public water supplies. This conclusion supports the soundness of GCC’s proposal to use AWSA funding to implement water con¬servation as a means to create “new” supply.
These demand results will be used in combination with a water supply assess-ment completed last year to evaluate the region’s future water needs. It is expected that the Bureau of Reclamation will conduct this water needs assessment along with identification and evaluation of alternatives to meet future water needs.
The next meeting of the AWSA Stakeholders Group is scheduled for 11am, July 15, at the Grant County Administration Building in Silver City.
Free Flow: the Gila River in New Mexico Silver City Museum, 312 West Broadway St, Silver City
Ongoing until Sept. 19, 2010
This is an ongoing exhibit of photographs by Jan Haley. The exhibit travels to Silver City from the New Mexico Museum of Natural History in Albuquerque, and is presented in collaboration with The Nature Conservancy. “Free Flow” features some 40 photographs, following the Gila River from its headwaters on the western slope of the Continental Divide to the Arizona border. Maps and interpretive text, poetry by Carol Sinor, and a video component are also included in the exhibit. Haley’s photographs provide a comprehensive look at how the river has shaped the landscape and the wildlife that is nourished by it. Riverscapes, aerial views, and intimate close-ups illustrate the Gila’s journey from its high mountain source to the arid canyon lands where it leaves New Mexico. The images also appear in Haley’s book, Free Flow: The Gila River in New Mexico, published last year by University of New Mexico Press. Jan Haley, a Hillsboro resident, published her first book of photography, Max Evans’ Hi Lo Country: Under the One-Eyed Sky, in 2004. Copies of her Gila River book are available through the Museum Store.
5th Annual Gila River Festival a Success!
“Inspirational,” “fantastic,” “informative,” “awesome.” These were just some of the words used by participants to describe this year’s Gila River Festival. Throughout the 4-day event, more than 700 people attended lectures and an Aldo Leopold living history performance, participated in birding and natural history hikes and floated down the Gila in inflatable kayaks, a festival favorite. In honor of the 100th anniversary of Aldo Leopold’s legacy in the Southwest, the 5th Annual Gila River Festival celebrated the historical connection of Aldo Leopold, America’s most influential conservationist, to the Gila. New Mexico’s last wild river, the Gila, originates in the Gila Wilderness, the first wilderness area in the U.S., originally proposed by Aldo Leopold in 1921.
Want to share your Gila River Festival photos with others?Email them to us and we’ll post them in our photo gallery!
Mark your calendars – 6th Annual Gila River Festival September 16 -19, 2010
GCC wins 2009 River Warrior Award
Along with 30 other environmental groups and individuals, the Gila
Conservation Coalition won a 2009 River Warrior Award for its efforts over
the past 25 years to protect the Gila River, New Mexico's last free-flowing
river, from dams and diversions. The San Francisco-based nonprofit Resource
Renewal Institute sponsors the award with the hope of encouraging the
"valiant, resolute efforts in defending free flowing rivers and the wildlife
that depends on them; and in acknowledgement of the commitment, hard work,
and dedication of all who work for free flowing water." Read full press
release here.
Videos
Check out GCC's 25th anniversary video
"Saving the Gila: New Mexico's Last Wild River"
"Bottlenecks & Resilience" along the Gila River with Mike Fugagli
Gila River Among America’s Most Endangered Rivers Water Development Threatens New Mexico’s Last Free-flowing River
April 17, 2008; Silver City, NM – The Gila River, New Mexico’s last free-flowing river, has been named one of America’s Most Endangered Rivers, by the organization American Rivers. The Gila is threatened by a major water development project that could double the amount of water currently withdrawn from the river, degrading this ecological jewel and imposing hundreds of millions of dollars of cost on taxpayers for an unnecessary project. The river has long been eyed for its water development potential, but estimated costs, environmental impacts, and community opposition have precluded previous projects from moving forward. Read more
Gila Conservation Coalition
305A N Cooper Street
Silver City, NM 88061
575.538.8078 voice/fax
info@gilaconservation.org
Organized in 1984 to protect the free flow of the Gila and San Francisco Rivers and the wilderness characteristics of the Gila and Aldo Leopold Wilderness areas, the Gila Conservation Coalition (GCC) is a partnership of local environmental and conservation groups and concerned individuals that promote conservation of the Upper Gila River Basin and surrounding lands.
