Hi all, and thanks for opening up this email! I just came back from a three-week trip through the North American hot deserts, taking in as much as I could from Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge to Big Bend National Park, and recording conversations with desert activists from Shoshone to El Paso. The two most recent episodes result from that trip, with a few more to come!
S3E4: Nevada Supreme Court Upholds Water Protections for Desert Wildlife
Chris speaks with Patrick Donnelly of the Center for Biological Diversity about a significant victory in the Nevada Supreme Court regarding water rights. They discuss the case of Coyote Springs, a proposed city in the desert that would have had a detrimental impact on the Muddy River and its endangered species. The court ruling sets a precedent for managing groundwater and surface water as a single resource, potentially affecting other areas in Nevada facing similar water issues. This episode sheds light on the importance of protecting desert ecosystems and the interconnectedness of water resources.
S3E5: Protecting the Great Bend of the Gila
Chris explores the proposed Great Bend of the Gila National Monument with advocates Skylar Begay of Archaeology Southwest and Mike Quigley of The Wilderness Society. They discuss the importance of protecting this pristine Sonoran Desert landscape, rich in cultural and natural history. With the threat of encroaching development and destructive recreation, the establishment of the monument would safeguard significant cultural sites and provide habitat for endangered species like the Sonoran pronghorn.
This newsletter is a project of the nonprofit Desert Advocacy Media Network. D.A.M.N. also produces the 90 Miles from Needles desert protection podcast and Letters From the Desert, an email newsletter by desert writer Chris Clarke.