Time to save our natural land.
The undersigned ask that the El Paso City Council pass the following ordinance:
The City of El Paso shall preserve, in its natural state and in perpetuity, all of the undeveloped land owned by the City (including that managed by the PSB) north of Transmountain, east of Interstate 10 and south of the New Mexico/El Paso boundary excluding that land described in the Northwest Master Plan, and shall also preserve, in its natural state and in perpetuity, all of the undeveloped land owned by the City (including that managed by the PSB) north of Transmountain, west of Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. and south of the New Mexico/El Paso boundary. The City shall take all steps necessary to preserve all of this land and to prevent it from being developed with either private development or major public roadways.
Conservation organizations and groups announce that they have begun collecting signatures on a new initiative petition. The petition calls for the preservation in its natural state and in perpetuity of all City owned land (even if managed by the PSB) north of Transmountain and east of Interstate 10 and west of Martin Luther King, Jr.
Organizers say that there are several good reasons for all El Pasoans to sign the petition whether they live near or faraway from the mountains. Preserving all of this land on both sides of the mountain will benefit El Paso in several ways: preservation will help us sustain the scarce resource of water - an effort which includes all El Pasoans not just those living closer to the mountains; continued enjoyment of hiking and biking trails already in existence and utilized by the public; improvement of our quality of life especially as El Paso seeks to reach its goal of decreasing obesity and diabetes; protecting wildlife and making sure that they have adequate habitat and range in order to survive; and, ensuring that millions of dollars annually will come into El Paso through ecotourism as more and more people enjoy mountain biking, rock climbing, hiking and other recreational activities in our mountains and the surrounding region.
Members of the Franklin Mountains Wilderness Coalition, El Paso CAN (Conservation Action Network), El Paso Conservation Leadership Institute, iloveparks.com, elpasonaturally seek a minimum of 2,310 signatures of persons residing in El Paso and registered to vote. Even if someone did not vote in the previous city elections, as long as they are registered and living in the city, they may sign the petition. (Persons not living in the city limits but in the County of El Paso are not eligible.) The El Paso City Charter requires that 5 percent of the total number of voters in the previous general city election (in this case, May 2013) must sign a petition before it can be validated and presented to City Council. Should City Council fail to pass the ordinance, then petitioners may gather the same number of signatures again in order to require the matter to be voted on at the next city election.
Elpasonaturally has added a new page for the 2013 Initiative Petition. The page has the petition, instructions for signing and/or gathering signatures, reasons to sign and maps of the affected areas.
El Paso CAN (Conservation Action Network) is asking for the names and email addresses of all El Pasoans (or people living in the El Paso southwest region) who want to be kept informed about environmental and conservation issues in and around the City of El Paso. Suggestions for ways to help and take action will be given but are suggestions only. Each person can choose his/her level of involvement: send an email, write a letter, sign a petition, join a demonstration, or whatever. To get on the list, just send your name and email address to diegotolbert@gmail.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment