Arizona

Love Arizona parks? Then get out there and use them

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635528131686761919-VerdeKayak-CVR[Arizona Republic Editorial board, December 8, 2014] – There’s a big difference between idealizing a faraway river and feeling the current beneath your boat. That distinction matters to Arizona’s state parks, and the Arizona State Parks Foundation understands why.

When city folks express support for the state parks, it represents a casual friendship. When people get out there and experience the real thing, it leads to a committed, long-term relationship — a relationship worth working to preserve and enrich.

“The more people we get into the parks, the more people will be actively interested in the parks,” says Bill Meek, president of the parks foundation board. “We need to get people out there experiencing what we’ve got.”

An engaged constituency is essential because politicians have not been good to the parks. Funding was stripped during the recession, and the current budget deficit may lead to more pain.

Lack of funding translates into at least $80 million in capital needs at the 31 natural, historic and archaeological sites that make up the state parks system. In addition to funding to keep the sites safe and well maintained, more than $200 million in capital projects have been requested to provide better experiences for visitors.

The problem is not a lack of public support. Over the years, Arizonans have shown continued support for parks in polls, through surveys and at the ballot box. In 1990, they approved the Heritage Fund, which targeted $10 million annually to the parks from Lottery revenues.

The problem is lack of public engagement. Consider this: Lawmakers stripped Heritage funding from the parks during the Great Recession while letting it continue to flow to the Arizona Game and Fish Department. Hunters and anglers form a strong and active constituency. Lawmakers didn’t ignore them.

The constituency for state parks is much broader and less actively engaged politically.

Enter an idea that could help raise money and public consciousness on behalf of these state treasures.

Verde River kayak tours run by the Verde River Institute and the parks foundation include a guide to interpret the flora and fauna, as well as stops at local communities and a tasting session at a winery cooperative.

The $200 fee includes a $115 donation to the parks foundation. Tours this fall brought in about $5,000, which will become seed money to develop a business plan to expand the tours, parks foundation Executive Director Cristie Statler told The Arizona Republic’s Mary Jo Pitzl.

Meek says if the tours are expanded, they could develop a funding stream that lawmakers could not sweep. He says parks systems around the country are using “social enterprise,” an idea that uses commercial strategies to benefit human or environmental needs. That’s the kind of creative thinking our parks need in these tough budget times.

But that’s not all.

Giving people a hands-on experience with resources they had not previously touched deepens their understanding and appreciation. It builds deep commitment. That makes them more likely to “take action and talk to their legislators,” says Doug Von Gausig, director of the Verde River Institute. He leads the river tours.

The more opportunities people have to experience the state parks, the more committed Arizonans will be to speak up for these amazing places.

Source: http://www.azcentral.com/story/opinion/editorial/2014/12/07/state-parks-benefit-engaged-constituency/20058401/

Editorial: Arizona’s Budget Solutions Increasingly Dire

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[Editor’s Note: While the Arizona Heritage Alliance has serious reservations and questions about privatization of state agencies, we offer the reader what’s being said and written about the topic — and other related topics — from news and editorial pages from across the state.  The source of the following editorial is the Prescott Daily Courier.]

When Arizona lawmakers said “tough decisions” are ahead in dealing with the state budget, they were not kidding. Arizona currently faces an estimated shortfall of nearly $900 million and, with education taking the lion’s share of the budget, cuts likely will be deep and painful.

Enter into the equation two recommendations the 11-member state commission on privatization and efficiency has floated: privatizing at least some state parks and increasing the state’s use of privately operated prisons.

The panel’s members have not projected potential savings – they submitted a preliminary report several months ago and now are preparing a larger report due Dec. 31 – but one of the two “targets” appears to be rather simple, and the other certainly would be contentious.

The first – privatizing some state parks – is the rather simple one. Yavapai County Supervisor Carol Springer is a member of the commission, and it was Yavapai County that was part of a partnership that saved state parks from the budget axe.

The partnership included Yavapai County government, the Arizona State Parks Board, the Town of Jerome, Town of Camp Verde, City of Sedona, Camp Verde Historical Society, Jerome Historical Society, Concerned Citizens of the Verde Valley and the Benefactors of Red Rock State Park. They kept open Fort Verde State Historic Park in Camp Verde and Red Rock State Park in Sedona, and reopened Jerome State Historic Park in Jerome.

Was it a private effort? No. However, these three parks attract more than 150,000 visitors each year and if the state can find more entities, even private ones, to take on the task – more power to them.

The sticky concept of utilizing more private prisons is an unpopular one locally and statewide.

It was in Prescott Valley that an effort failed this past spring to bring a prison to a site just outside of the town’s boundaries. Widespread public opposition and lack of support from a majority of the Prescott Valley Town Council prompted prison officials to abandon the site.

Also, the topic became even more controversial across the West after the July 30 escape of three violent offenders from a private prison near Kingman. Serious lapses were found in both the prison’s security operations and the state’s monitoring, according to the Associated Press. The escapees were recaptured but two of them and an accomplice are accused of committing a double homicide in New Mexico while at large.

Arizona uses private prisons to house about 5,500 of its 40,000 inmates, but expanding the use of private prisons is an uphill battle.

Yes, privatize the parks – as long as the responsible party maintains service. For the prisons, good luck. That will be about as popular as cutting financing for education, which legislators have said is not off the table.  What’s certain is the state is running out of options.

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Arizona’s Heritage Fund celebrates 20 years of helping Arizona wildlife

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[Source: Gretchen Mominee, Examiner.com]

Photo: Gretchen Mominee

Twenty years ago, Arizona residents voted almost two to one to create the Heritage Fund, showing a “huge groundswell of grassroots support” from a “broad base of different groups” according to Lynda Lambert, Public Information Officer for  Arizona Game and Fish Department. What’s not to like? The Heritage Fund benefits native wildlife and habitats, it benefits rural communities, and it benefits anyone who loves the outdoors — all at no cost to the taxpayers.

The Heritage Fund is supported entirely by sales of Arizona Lottery tickets, and the Fund allows the Arizona Game and Fish Department to effectively operate a number of their programs and projects. In addition, the Fund is matched with federal dollars, which creates a statewide impact, helping not only the wildlife itself, but also helping the state economy. It is particularly an asset to rural communities, where the Fund has helped purchase land, restore habitat and create public access areas which draw hunters, anglers, hikers and birdwatchers. In fact, the Heritage Fund has been responsible for opening two million acres for public access in Arizona.

The Heritage Fund also supports environmental education, reaching out to almost 40,000 fourth graders annually. The Fund has given 640 grants that have gone toward projects such as creating schoolyard wildlife habitats and funding school outings so that students are able to directly experience the impacts of invasive species such as crayfish.

The Heritage Fund has also helped with bald eagle management. Lambert noted that the state has gone from 11 pairs of bald eagles in teh 1970s to 52 nesting pairs today. Part of the reason for their numbers increasing is undoubtedly due to DDT being banned, but the Heritage Fund has also played a role in their comeback, establishing a program in which teams of seasonal field employees monitor the nesting sites, estimating when the eggs hatch and intervening in cases in which babies have fallen.  The teams also help educate the public, ensuring that seasonal closures are respected and explaining to hikers and boaters the reason for the closures.

The Heritage Fund has also been integral in assisting with reintroduction projects such as bringing the black-footed ferret, California condors and black-tailed prairie dogs back to their native habitat. The Fund also supports habitat restoration efforts which help all the native species in those areas, not just one reintroduced species, since a healthy habitat for a black-footed ferret is also going to tend to be a healthy environment for other native plants and animals. And, Lambert noted, “Arizona has the highest

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Petrified Forest National Park Under Threat from Underfunding

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[Source: Environment Arizona]

A new report, The Best of America: Under Threat from Underfunding released today by Environment Arizona and Mayor Jeff Hill of Holbrook showed that visitorship to Petrified Forest National Park is on the rise. But even as Petrified Forest draws more and more visitors, it could face budget cuts in the coming year- leaving it with fewer resources for maintenance, upkeep and stewardship.

“Last year, visitors poured into Petrified Forest to explore one of the world’s largest collections of petrified wood and go hiking in the Painted Desert,” said Bret Fanshaw of Environment Arizona. “Yet just as its popularity grows, Petrified Forest is under threat from underfunding.”

Petrified Forest National Park relies on its operating budget to hire park rangers, for programs like natural history and geology and to maintain general facilities and trails. The proposed National Park Service budget for the coming fiscal year calls for cutting Petrified Forest’s operating budget by $35,000. With 87,899 more people going to the park in 2009, budget cuts will make it harder for park stewards to keep up with increased usage.

“Now is the time Petrified Forest National Park should be best protected,” said Fanshaw. “Instead, it could be facing painful cuts, which could force park keepers to delay maintenance, hire fewer rangers or cut back on programs.”

Mayor Jeff Hill of Holbrook pointed out that Petrified Forest National Park is also an important cornerstone of the region’s economy.

“Petrified Forest National Park is a driving engine of tourism,” noted Mayor Hill. “It is a crucial part of our economy, our culture and our history.”

Similar threats to Arizona’s state parks have been seen in the last year. Parks like Homolovi Ruins are now closed because of major sweeps to conservation funds by the state legislature. Sweeps of $71 million in the last two years nearly forced two-thirds of Arizona’s state parks to close last spring, but many have stayed open temporarily with help from local communities. Advocates noted that the state parks will need to establish a permanent funding source this year or many others will shut down.

“Arizona’s state parks bring in $266 million in tourism revenue every year,” Fanshaw remarked. “Instead of stealing conservation money, the legislature should invest in our parks to keep them open and benefiting local communities.”

The threats to Petrified Forest National Park are also being seen around the country. Environment Arizona’s report reveals that nationwide, two-thirds of national parks, including parks in nearly every state, saw visitorship climb. However, almost three-quarters of parks that saw this increase in visitors last year could face a budget cut in the coming year.

In addition to operations and maintenance funding, national parks are threatened by overdevelopment and pollution on lands adjacent to or within its boundaries. The Land and Water Conservation Fund was established to give parks grants for land acquisition as privately-held parcels of land near the park come up for sale. Unfortunately, many parks never receive these funds.

“Just like Petrified Forest, parks throughout America are becoming more popular destinations. Parks still offer affordable family vacations and are ideal places for people of all ages to explore the great outdoors,” said Fanshaw. “We need to give our parks the resources to ensure they are just as majestic in 2999 as they were in 2009.

Environment Arizona urged the Obama administration to prioritize national park preservation in their America’s Great Outdoors Initiative. Advocates also called on Senators McCain and Kyl to secure funding for the National Parks Service.

“The Administration’s America’s Great Outdoors Initiative aims to protect America’s greatest places and reconnect Americans with the outdoors. Here at Petrified Forest, we see that happening everyday, as more and more families come to see ancient trees turned to stone; now is the time to fulfill the promise of America’s national parks,” said Fanshaw. “We urge our leaders to fully fund the National Park Service and permanently and fully fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund so we can all enjoy what is truly the best of Arizona for generations to come.”

 

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