|
|
|
 |
Our Summer 2001 newsletter is now online. Read it here. |
|
|
|
|
It's been more than a year now since you've heard from us - and for that we apologize! Please be assured that we are still alive and well. To the best of our ability we continue to carry our message to various organizations and locations throughout the west. There have been some changes in our organization and more are planned. There have been some dramatic positive developments along with perhaps a few disappointments. The following vignettes will bring you up to date on a few of our efforts. The "Friends" grassroot organization began in July, 1997 when a
group of Page area residents met together for the first time to discuss the emerging issue and effort to drain Lake Powell, espoused mainly by the Glen Canyon Institute (GCI). Subsequent
meetings were held as it became apparent that the main goal of the anti-Lake Powell movement was to discount the importance of Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Powell and to question the value of its electrical
generation, its agricultural and culinary water conservation and its role in the recovery of rare, threatened or endangered species. The implied message was that the Dam constituted a pox on the landscape at whose
doorstep could be laid all of the real (or imagined) ills of the southwestern United States, the Grand Canyon and the lower Colorado River. Predictably, a large number of unaffiliated environmental purists
bought into this "Anti-Dam Philosophy" as the GCI began to solicit support. Recognizing the potential threat posed by the "Drain the Lake" faction, a "Friends of Lake Powell" Steering
Committee was formed and permission was granted by the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area to talk with and solicit contributions from Lake Powell visitors. And thus began our first steps towards building a
Pro-Lake membership. The Glen Canyon Institute has continued to recruit support with a religious fever drawing mainly upon the environmental elite, under-graduate college students, and a sympathetic press. The
Institute hired an Executive Director and over $300,000 in donations have been raised to be used to solicit new members and conduct a so called "Citizens Environmental Assessment" of the Glen Canyon Dam.
The Friends organization has tried to counter this effort with factual information and a general awarenes of the many benefits associated with Lake Powell. Meanwhile, many Lake Powell boosters and water
recreation enthusiasts as well as local, state and federal government leaders continue to scoff at the notion of decommissioning Lake Powell and for good reason. It is hard to imagine how any one group
could muster enough political pressure to override the Colorado River Storage Project Act and if somehow succeeding there, it simply boggles the mind to contemplate the ensuing huge loss in economic revenues; not
to mention the tremendous cost and effort that would be expended in a vain attempt to restore the lake bottom to its former self. None-the-less, one needs to look no farther than the nearest National
Forest to see the very real evidence of recent sweeping changes in public opinion and land use policies that have effected the traditional resource industries such as lumber, ranching and mining. The
"Friends" organization was warmly welcomed at a hearing of the National Parks Subcommittee of the House Interior Committee in Washington, D.C. in 1998. That hearing resulted in favorable political
contacts who expressed their support and put us a path toward the future goal of creating a national billboard and media campaign that would, hopefully, enlighten the public and swing overwhelming public
sentiment to our pro-Lake philosophy. Two years later, we are disappointed by the lack of major outside funding and the slow start to the hoped for fruition of a national "Keep Lake Powell" campaign.
The "Friends", however, are grateful for a substantial donation made by the Page City Council and for the continued support of the Page Chamber of Commerce. This local support combined with a continuing
stream of unsolicited donations from pro-Lake supporters has made it possible for us to maintain a defense of our Lake. Even without major funding, our grass-roots efforts have been successful as evident by a
ground-swell of support for Lake Powell and its "Friends" throughout the West which will likely lead to the future creation of new local Chapters of "Friends" in other western States. On
the national level, the Sierra Club support to drain the Lake appears to have moderated. In fact, some former card-carrying members of the Sierra Club now have cast their support to the Lake Powell
"Friends". In the past month, a Public Relation firm, Diversions, has been retained to help spread our message to a broader audience using national media contacts and newspapers, travel magazines and
outdoor magazine editors. New funds are needed to offset these new costs and the travel expenses of Steering Committee members who donate their time and expense to travel throughout the Southwest on behalf of the
Friends organization. We are relying on your continued support and monetary donations to keep us moving in a positive, forward direction. It is not without design that this newsletter reaches you on the
eve of the Christmas giving season. Please be aware that your donations, personal or corporate are 100% tax deductible as we have secured 501.C.3 tax exempt status. The last page of this newsletter
contains a membership application form where you can express your monetary support. We invite you to distribute this newletter to other individuals who use our Lake and feel as strongly about it's future welfare
as you Notice of New Board and Steering Committee Members A few months ago, when not much seemed to be happening on the pro lake Powell side of our controversy many of the original group of Page
citizens met together again. The result of that meeting was a renewed grass-roots emphasis on the leadership for the "Friends of Lake Powell". By way of introduction, here's our 1999-2000 leadership
line-up together with a brief sketch of who these people are. Suffice it to say that all are community leaders who are intimately familiar with Lake Powell and who care deeply about the consequences of draining
this beautiful Lake. Chair - Val Gleave, owner Gleave Insurance, Page, AZ; member and former chair of Coconino County Community College Board; former Vice Mayor, Page, and member, Page City Council. Directors - Kim Beck, Page area businesswoman with substantial interests in Day's Inn/
Suites, Jack-in-the-Box Restaurant, Lake Powell Convenience Market and Texaco Fuel. - Nancy Holman, Business Manager for McDonald's Page Lake Powell, Inc.
- Steve Ward, Public Relations Director, ARAMARK Lake Powell Resorts and Marina, Page. - Temp Reynolds, Retired, former Superintendent, Glen Canyon Natl. Recreational Area; former Executive Director, Utah Department
of Natural Resources; currently serves as a Director of several local and regional organizations. - Joan Nevills-Staveley, Executive Director, Page Lake Powell Chamber of Commerce, Visitor and Convention Bureau.
Joan's dad, Norm Nevills operated one of the earliest rafting companies through Glen Canyon, so this area has been Joan's playground since childhood.
- Ed Weeks, Mechanical Engineer, Navajo Generating Station, Salt River Project, - Paul Ostapuk, Environmental Scientist, Navajo Generating Station, Salt River Project. Following is a sampling of meetings which your Steering Committee has attended:
April 1999 - Joan Stavely and Steve Ward spoke to the Colorado River Guides Association at Marble Canyon, Arizona. April 1999 - Paul Ostapuk attended a GCI rally in Flagstaff where David Brower spoke.
June 1999 - Joan Staveley addressed the Coconino County Republican Women in Flagstaff, Arizona. August 1999
- Ed Weeks spoke at the Utah Area Management Power Systems (UAMPS) symposium in Ephraim, Utah. Val Gleave spoke in Flagstaff. September 1999
- Paul Ostapuk attended and participated in Water User's Association symposium on the Colorado River at Keystone, Colorado. October 1999
- Ed Weeks and Paul Ostapuk attended a presentation at the Museum of Northern Arizona concerning endangered fish species and the Colorado River. November 1999 - Paul Ostapuk attended a conference on the UofA's
Roger's College of Law regarding Environmental Restoration Challenges for the New Millennium which including a session on draining Lake Powell. UTAH AND ARIZONA LOOK SERIOUSLY AT ADDITIONAL USES OF LAKE POWELL WATER Two new proposals for western
growth based on utilization of Lake Powell water have surfaced in the past year. First and most serious is a proposal by the State of Utah to utilize a portion of its unobligated Colorado River Water allocation (from
the Colorado River Compact of 1922) for further growth and development of southern Utah. As proposed, water would be drawn from the Wahweap Arm of the Lake and pumped to a reservoir site near St. George, UT.
It's envisioned that the transmission pipeline would occupy part of a highway right-of-way generally along the existing corridor of U.S. Highway 89. The project is regarded as potentially economically feasible because:
- Utah has outstanding Colorado River Water Rights; - an existing, reasonably straight-line ROW can be utilized to cross the Escalante Staircase National Monument; - flow would be essentially by gravity from the
highway 89 intersection with the road to the old Paria townsite a few miles east of the "Cockscomb". Utah expects to complete necessary engineering and paperwork for the application within three years. A
second pipeline project is proposed by Navajo Nation to provide water to the communities of The Gap, Coppermine, LeChee and other western Navajo Nation towns. Talks are underway with other northern communities
like Williams, Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon National Park to explore the possibility of using this pipeline to alleviate regional water needs in those areas. The city of Williams has expressed the most
interest but they may have difficulties securing the necessary capital. We will keep you appraised of future developments regarding these proposals. Restoration of Falcon is a Source of Pride Reprinted from the Arizona Daily Star, Tom Foust
Wednesday, 29 September 1999 The Arizona Game and Fish Department has taken great pride in its role to restore the peregrine falcon.
The bird was removed from the federal endangered species list this summer. ``We have worked long and hard toward recovery and delisting of this beautiful bird,'' said Duane Shroufe, G&F director. ``The delisting
clearly indicates the peregrine falcon has recovered nationwide and we will be able to enjoy more and more of them in Arizona skies over the years to come.'' Arizona was one of the prime movers in convincing the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service to propose the delisting in 1995. ``I am extremely happy to see the delisting,'' Shroufe said. ``Our surveys estimate that more than 200 - maybe as many as 300 - peregrine nest sites occur in
Arizona. `We have recorded 167 known pairs in Arizona canyons in the past decade,'' he added. ``In fact, the Grand Canyon, where we have 75 or more pairs, has the nation's highest population density.'' Shroufe said
Arizona may have as many as 1,200 to 1,500 individual birds during the annual peak. ``When you consider that our statewide population may have been in double digits 20 years ago, you can see how far we - and
this species - have come,'' he said. ``Our surveys and monitoring provided documentation essential to federal delisting, and members of my staff were relentless advocates who made sure the delisting was not perpetually
lost as a low priority issue among our federal colleagues.'' The non-game wildlife checkoff on Arizona's state income tax forms provided much of the early funding. Heritage Fund money has supported the program since
1992. Shroufe said the birds can surpass speeds of 200 mph when diving on prey. ``Blink and you'll miss one of nature's most spectacular sights,'' he remarked. (Editor's note: The fact of Lake Powell has
been an instrumental role in the recovery of the Peregrine Falcon. Insects generated as a result of the Lake environment have attracted large populations of swifts, sparrows, swallows and the like.
These small birds are the prey species of the Peregrine.)
The Clinton Administration may be a Friend of Lake Powell. Friends member Karren Little wrote the president a letter earlier this year,asking his
opinion on the proposal to drain the lake. Little, of Glenview, Ill., got a reply. Charles Calhoun, regional director of the Department of the Interior, addressed Little on Clinton's behalf. Calhoun's March 13
letter said the plan to drain the lake is not considered "feasible" by Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt or the Bureau of Reclamation because "too many of the benefits associated with Glen Canyon Dam and
Lake Powell would be lost." "If the lake were drained, it would likely take centuries for the walls and floor of Glen Canyon to return to their natural color and state," Calhoun wrote. "The
entire ecosystem of the Grand Canyon would likely change with the loss of the current food base and non-native predator fish from Lake Mead could be a major concern to native endangered fish species in the Grand
Canyon." Calhoun's letter also mentions the benefits of water storage, hydroelectric power and recreation afforded by the dam and lake. "We are glad that you are among the visitors that have taken
advantage of this area's recreational value and we hope you continue to enjoy all that the area has to offer," the letter said. After Glen Canyon Dam was completed, the number of marshes along the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon river increased... from about
10 marshes in 1965 to 65 marshes in 1976 Stevens and Ayers, 1993 "By 2050, a quarter of the world will have less water than it needs. Some experts believe the wars in the Middle East in the
21st century will be over access to drinking water,'' Brian Dixon, director of government relations
|
|||
For more information contact. friends@lakepowell.org |
|||