"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated." - Mahatma Ghandi
"Of the tree in whose shade one sits or lies, not a branch of it should he break, for if he did he would be a betrayer of a friend, an evil doer." - Buddhist teaching
The EPWU and the El Paso County Water Improvement District #1 are in the process of destroying all vegetation along the Montoya drain and canal in the Upper Valley near the El Paso Country Club. (Map of the area)
A fire which happened about two weeks ago burned some vegetation and damaged a fence on private property. That fire is the excuse being used by authorities to take the extreme measure of scraping the drain and canal of all vegetation. There are several things wrong with what they are doing:
Birds nest and animals have young this time of year. Animal habitat including bird nests have been completely decimated.
Without the trees the water gets no shade and so will evaporate more easily - that's a really dumb thing to do especially during a drought.
Without the shaded trees, humans can't enjoy the recreation of truly being outdoors seeing birds and mammals such as foxes and having a relaxing, cool stroll in spite of the heat.
Without the trees the integrity of the slopes are compromised.
It would have been so much better to do the less extreme thing of thinning out the dry foliage. It would have been so much better to wait until non-nesting season.
It would have been best to have had a vegetation and wildlife management program in place over the past many years so that animal habitat would be protected, human recreation could be maintained, native plants could have slowly replaced some of the evasive salt cedar. It would also be best if both the EPWU and the EPCWID would hire Ecology Officers - people who could review projects and help to maintain ecosystems and ecoservices and the beauty of vegetation.
Instead, the extreme response to a fire was to rip out everything. When the loss of habitat was mentioned to Chuy Reyes, the mis-Director of the EPCWID, he argued that protecting the community comes first. (Had he done the responsible thing and had a wildlife/vegetation management plan in place and operative over the past many years, there probably wouldn't have been a fire in the first place. Same criticism goes for the EPWU.) An angry neighbor responded to his statement by suggesting that all forests should be cut down immediately to protect humans from forest fires!
I walked the area today along with Teacher Xavier Miranda and his daughter, Anthropologist Dr. Ben Brown and Attorney Dave Webster. KFOX sent a reporter. One can only hope that others will pick-up the story: the El Paso Times, KVIA, KTSM, El Diario, etc. EPCWID may "own" the drain - but waterways add to the quality of life of the neighborhood, to athletes, recreationalists, birders and others who enjoy the land. There needs to be public outrage. Unfortunately, until more people become angry enough to protest, more natural assets will be destroyed along with habitats and recreational opportunities.
Far too often El Pasoans dump their no longer wanted dogs and cats in the desert, the State Park, along Transmountain. This same attitude seems to prevail when it comes to solving a problem caused by the mis-management of wildlife and foliage along drains and canals. Get it straight: "The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated." Ghandi
[The next meeting of the PSB will be held on Wednesday, July 10, 2013, at the EPWU, 1154 Hawkings Blvd. in the 4th Floor Board Room. The next meeting of the EPCWID will be held on the same date at the same time (how convenient) at 13247 Alameda, Clint, TX.]
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