The Introductions

I recently had the opportunity to sit down with Congressman Joe Heck, Nevada State Assemblyman Cresent Hardy, Nevada State Senator Joe Hardy, members of the community and a special interest group to discuss Gold Butte politics. Most of the faces were the familiar and the agenda was the standard affair. Despite the repetitive nature of these meetings there is one part that I always look forward to, the introductions. This is when we go around the table and state our name and for many, it is a time to recite their genealogical connection to Gold Butte. I love this because it exhibits the pride and sense of community that locals take in Gold Butte.

Some, at the table roll their eyes, as locals relate stories about trips out with their grandpa or get lost counting how many great-greats it was when their family first came into this country. These stories are told not to elevate the local status above the group or suppose that our opinion is more valid for this single reason. Members of the community who have long standing lineage at Gold Butte understand that we are not entitled to anything more than anyone else because we have seniority. What we are is proud of our heritage and the lessons and love that have been passed down through the generations for the piece of God’s country called Gold Butte. It is that love that makes us passionate and protective of Gold Butte.

The politics in regards to Gold Butte, best described as a distraction, are often oversimplified to access versus protection. With this over simplification it is easy to pose legislation as the simple solution. This is a detriment to Gold Butte and plays handily into a narrow agenda. The reality is that there are specific projects that can be done to help improve the visitor experience and protect the cultural resources that don’t require legislative action. Quite simply none of the projects that need to be done at Gold Butte need congressional action. They can and are being accomplished on a community level with the local managing agency partnered with the community. If we look to ourselves instead of Washington for answers we will find them. The very people sitting around the table who take pride and ownership of Gold Butte will be the solution to a sustainable Gold Butte.

 

The question was posed, I don’t know if we can always count on that level of commitment by the community. I handily disagree with that statement as I am proudly raising five children who are learning the same love and appreciation for Gold Butte as my parents and grandparents taught me and I know many other parents doing the same. In response I asked, where are you going to place your bet, your children or the federal government to save Gold Butte?

Who better to have as the active stewards of Gold Butte than those who have watched generations in their family care for this piece of country out of love, as opposed to politics? We know that it’s not a locals only spot anymore, regrettable nevertheless reality, however we also have a deep knowledge and understanding of the area and a desire to maintain the place we have loved and lived so that we may pass it on to our children. It is the partnerships between the managing agencies and an engaged community that will save Gold Butte for the next generation, not legislation.

Gold Butte Backcountry Byway

I posted some pictures, history and maps about the Gold Butte Backcountry Byway on www.backcountryrambler.com Rambler. Now is the time of year to be out and about enjoying our beautiful Backcountry:
http://www.backcountryrambler.com/2012/03/gold-butte-backcountry-byway.html

The Story of Mining in Gold Butte

Gold Butte offers a variety of sights and features that appeal to a wide and diverse audience. There are the geologic features that are as impressive and magnificent as anywhere and cultural resources that will get any history enthusiast out of the library and ready to exploration. There are early Native American sites scattered throughout this rough country, remnants of the early Spanish explorers hidden amongst the hills and traces of the early pioneer settlement in this rough and colorful country. There is appeal for every visitor.

One of the biggest chapters in the story of Gold Butte is where the stories of the Cultural and geologic lines intersect to tell the story of mining in Gold Butte.

Mining has played an important role in the history and development of the area now known as Gold Butte. For the early inhabitants it was a source of goods to trade amongst other tribes throughout the west. Turquoise, obsidian and other metals have been found in the Lost City dwellings and other sites throughout the area which were used to barter for other goods. The salt deposits along the Virgin River, now covered by Lake Mead, also provided salt for the local people as well as another resource for trade.

As Time moved forward other explorers came into this area in their quest for treasure. The signs of the Spanish Explorers and their new mining practices can still be seen throughout the Gold Butte country. The Spanish arista were an early mining technique to spate the rock and the ore to get the precious metals hidden within. The circular relics etched into the rock are evidence of the early explorers and their determination.

The pioneer settlement of this area began in the mid-19^th century. Early Mormon settlers came to the confluence of the Virgin and Muddy Rivers to build the town of St. Thomas. The early life of these Mormon settlers was that of hardship but after a few hiccups and a resettlement after a dispute over which state the town actually resided in for taxation, the area began to flourish.   St. Thomas soon became the hub of the area. Settlement expanded and the business enterprises that follow soon began to spread over this country. The proximity to the Colorado River, Spanish Trail and the eventual spur off the Los Angles & Salt Lake Railroad contributed to this little town’s development.

With the ability to transport commodities through a variety of ways mining, farming and ranching soon began to spread over this promising desert. The growth and development of Gold Butte during this time was directly tied with the early pioneer settlements of St. Thomas and the services it provided. The railroad provided the ability to transport ore, equipment and other necessities to the growing mining camps and emerging ranches.

The rich historical landscape that persists in the Gold Butte country today is inextricably tied with this history of mining throughout the stage of development. Each period has brought its own character, stories and left its legends. One is not more important than the other and all have contributed to the rich history that makes Gold Butte the place we all love.

Please join us on March 3^rd, 2012 at St. Thomas for a community celebration as we bring this historic town alive for a day. We will have many of the descendants of those early pioneers as well as those who remember visiting St. Thomas there to reconnect. There will be music and dramatizations of the early days being performed live, where they would have been performed then, at the old St. Thomas School. There will be maps and historical displays as well as pictures taken in the early days displayed where they were taken to help visualize the then, now. If you have history or stories please contact me so we can share and make the most of your stories to help bring St. Thomas alive and reconnect his landscape to its history.

As parking space is limited, and a four-wheel drive is required, if you plan to attend please carpool with your neighbors so we can have room for as many as want to attend. We are hoping to have at least 6 to a vehicle.

Please visit www.stthomasalive.blogspot.com for more information

Gold Butte Recreational Analysis

The Moapa Valley Progress has written an excellent article on the BLM’s effort to work on the Recreational Analysis for the Gold Butte area. The article can be read at the following link:

http://mvprogress.com/2012/01/25/blm-urges-public-involvement-in-gold-butte-analysis/

The objective of the Recreational Analysis, as I understand it, is to identify what different activities people do within the Gold Butte area. With this data they can better manage the area and accommodate the various uses within the region.

I have contacted the local BLM office to get more information available and more widely accessible so we can engage a larger audience in the effort to better manage the Gold Butte area. As more data and links become available I will post them here.

There will be a series of public meetings held in the surrounding communities in March and April. 

Whitney Pockets Clean Up 2011

Thanks to everyone who showed up to the Public Lands Conservation Committee cleanup project at Whitney Pockets on Saturday, December 10th. 

We had over 75 people sign in and contribute to the work effort. 

Thanks to State Assemblyman Cresent Hardy for the food for the BBQ. 

Thanks to Partners In Conservation (PIC) for the paper goods and garbage sacks.

We had people from Mesquite, Bunkerville, Moapa, Logandale and Overton showing their support for local public lands and their willingness to be involved and do their part in responsible use and community stewardship. 

We are already planning our next project for the spring out to Gold Butte. Please friend our facebook page to stay informed on our Community stewardship projects.

Public Lands and Community Involvement

This was a column I wrote for Clark County Commissioner Tom Collins District B Winter 2012 newsletter

Read the Entire newsletter here

The outdoor recreational opportunities available in rural Clark County are as vast as the country is open. As more people have become aware of these opportunities, and the uses diversify, the need for more involvement to care for our backcountry has increased.  

A growing number of residents in Commission District B are coming together to resolve the challenges that face public lands. We believe that public lands policy should be developed and implemented on a community level. Our focus is not on gaining a bureaucratic designation but instead providing local, on the ground solutions to the challenges that face our public lands.  

We are working to provide sustainable public lands management initiatives that are built on the framework of community involvement, conservation and responsible use. An actively involved community working together with the land managing agencies creates and provides the protection that our public lands need.  

Some of the projects we accomplished in 2011 include a roads monitoring project, providing dumpsters on high usage weekends, a community cleanup project and a historic documentation project.  

With the upcoming year we will be focusing on growing community stewardship of our public lands and encouraging people to get out and enjoy Clark County’s beautiful backcountry. For more information please visitwww.savegoldbutte.com.

Reckless Recognition

The dialog surrounding Gold Butte over the last few years has focused on the goal of designating Gold Butte as a National Conservation Area (NCA). The tactics and rational as to why this particular designation would be the answer to all the woes that face Gold Butte has evolved and changed, depending on the audience, but the NCA designation continues to be a roadblock to any other conversation.

In the spring of 2010 I had the opportunity to meet with the director of the BLM, Robert Abbey and visit Gold Butte with him and other community and political leaders. Standing around the graves of Art Coleman and William Garret, Director Abbey touted the benefits of the NCA as a way to share Gold Butte with a larger community and gain national recognition for Gold Butte. During the summer of 2011 I had the opportunity to meet Deputy Secretary of the Interior David Hayes where he echoed the opinion that Gold Butte was deserving of national recognition. Recently Caesars Entertainment and other corporations and businesses, far removed from the conversation and lack adequate knowledge of the situation, have added their support for a nationally recognized Gold Butte. Special interest, political appointees and big business agree that an NCA is the way to achieve this recognition.

The problem with the logic that Gold Butte deservers more recognition is that it blatantly ignores the fact that Gold Butte does not currently have the infrastructure or the management plan in place to adequately manage the influx of visitors that will come with national recognition. Recognition and even funding don’t solve many of the problems that face our public lands. Look at Red Rock NCA. It still experiences extreme cases of vandalism and carries the same designation sought for Gold Butte. A bureaucratic designation does not solve the problems that face our public lands, it exacerbates them. The simple fact that the people who are calling for this designation are the same people complaining that Gold Butte is not adequately managed clearly illustrates that they either have an ulterior motive, which is not the long term success of our public lands, or that they are blinded by their own ambition and fail to see the contradiction of their own arguments. Recognition does not equal protection.

We cannot pretend that we can keep Gold Butte to ourselves or hide it from those who enjoy the diverse recreational opportunities that are available within the Gold Butte area. However we can also not ignore the fact there are risks associated with a national designation and increased usage without the proper framework in place before that designation. The short term economic benefits that may possibly come with a national designation will be negated in the long term if this agenda is rushed and the risks that accompany higher usage are not properly addressed. Without having adequate planning, proper management and the infrastructure in place before there is increased usage the outcome will work only to complicate and intensify any problems that are currently experienced in the Gold Butte area. Reckless recognition will result in increased damage which will then be followed by restrictions and a loss of access to our public lands thereby invalidating the original intent of the designation. An actively involved community working together with the land managing agencies creates and provides protection, not bureaucratic designations.