By Water All Things Find Life
By Marka Smith
There’s an Hawaiian proverb that says, “By water all things find life.” A metaphor for our inner life, but also a truth about our beautiful planet.
Listening to a recent broadcast of the Lannan Foundation Readings & Conversations Series with Maude Barlow, a Canadian water-rights activist and the founder of the Blue Planet Project, I was struck by the sense of urgency with which she speaks about the water crisis that is speeding quickly toward a point of no return.
Here in the high mountain desert of New Mexico, water is a precious resource and our awareness of and contributions to the status of clean water is essential to our health and economy. The Santa Fe Watershed Association “works to return the Santa Fe River to a living river, from Lake Peak to the Rio Grande, balancing human uses with natural resource protection and restoring the heart to our community.” according to their website. (An interesting fact: the Santa Fe River Watershed is 285 square miles – from Lake Peak (12,408’) in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains to the confluence with the Rio Grande at Cochiti (5,220’).)
As a non-profit organization serving the well-being of our city and surrounding eco-system, SFWA is always in need of support from the public through donations and volunteer work including participating in the Spring tree-planting days.
Projects include The Living River, a long-term project that aims to revive the Santa Fe River into a vibrant, life-bearing stream, the Santa Fe River Trail Corridor Project, which will include designs for a multi-purpose trail and for major restoration of the river from Camino Alire to NM State Highway 599, the Santa Fe Municipal Watershed Restoration Project, a community collaboration with the City of Santa Fe and the US Forest Service, and the San Isidro Park bosque and stream restoration project, another collaboration, this time between The Santa Fe Watershed Association, Santa Fe County, local schools, youth groups, and members of the community of Agua Fria, a village west of Santa Fe.
Coincidentally, a recent tragedy occurred along the Santa Fe River, when city crews mistakenly cleared the trees and vegetation near De Vargas Park, a section that had been lovingly cared for and nursed back to life by the Watershed Association with the help of the Rotary Club of Santa Fe, who have taken an active role in the care of the river.
According to a recent article in the Santa Fe New Mexican dated March 4th, 2010:
“”We spent five years nursing that stretch back to health. We were beginning to see birds, snakes and other wildlife,” said Ouida MacGregor, chairwoman of the river stewards committee for the Rotary Club of Santa Fe. “It feels like everything we’ve done there has been for naught.”
“They’ve absolutely stripped everything. All they left was a few of the small cottonwoods,” MacGregor said, of the stretch from Sandoval to Guadalupe streets.
In addition to planting and cleaning its section of the river, the club also contributes $1,000 a year to the Santa Fe Watershed Association for projects that promote and improve that span of the river. Last year during the city’s fishing derby, anglers fished off the banks, surrounded by thick stands of willows, young cottonwood trees and flowers tended by Rotarians.” read the full article
Despite this setback, our river is coming back to life. Get involved in one of their projects or show up for a Community Tree Planting.
Santa Fe Watershed Association Community Tree Planting Schedule:
Saturday, Mar. 27, 2010 at 10 am
Community Tree Planting
Saturday, Apr. 03, 2010 at 10 am
Community Tree Planting
Saturday, Apr. 17, 2010 at 10 am
Community Tree Planting
Saturday, Apr. 24, 2010 at 10 am
Plant a Tree for Earth Day
Saturday, May. 01, 2010 at 09 am
Community Tree Planting
Saturday, May. 15, 2010 at 10 am
Last Spring Willow Planting
Join the Santa Fe Watershed Association and Santa Fe County’s Open Space and Trails to plant willows along the river. The planting will be at San Isidro Park in the village of Agua Fria. Be part of this river restoration project by helping to stabilize the river banks with native plants.
For more details about the Commnuity Tree Plantings and more information about SFWA’s projects, visit their website: http://www.santafewatershed.org/
Marka is an artist, graphic designer, writer, and performing arts promoter. She is web designer/manager for GreenRoads Realty, and editor of GreenLivingNewMexico.com. Her pastels, jewelry, and graphic design can be seen at www.spokenfire.com. Marka@GreenRoadsRealty.com
