Conservation in the Limelight

Annual Meeting

Pee Wee Audubon

Thank You

Mayacamas Campout: May1-2

Volunteers

Field Trip Reports

Observations

Midweek Walkabout Results

Pee Wee Reports

Early Birdathon Report

Conservation Groups Rally to Audubon's Support

Birding Bodega Bay: Spring and Summer

Backyard Birding: Birdbaths

Welcome New Members

SCCC Recognizes Nature Educators

Conservation Groups Rally to Audubon's Support

Over the past month, Audubon's suit to keep the proposed Geysers wastewater pipeline out of the Mayacamas Mountain Sanctuary has garnered support from other major conservation organizations. At issue is the Sanctuary's "forever wild" conservation easement. Our sister environmental groups realize that violating the Sanctuary's protected status could threaten other protected properties.

Some of the organizations publicly supporting Audubon's position are the League of Women Voters of Sonoma County, Friends of the Russain River, Sonoma County Conservation Action, and the Sierra Club, Sonoma Group. An article in the March newsletter of the California Native Plant Society, Milo Baker Chapter, concludes, "How can any of us protect public and preserved lands if these types of designations become meaningless?"

Friends of the River put it this way:

"The Open Space Acquisition Process, wherein willing landowners enter into good faith agreements with public agencies to preserve agricultural and open space lands, must be respected by all government entities, and kept out of the political arena, so as not to jeopardize future acquisitions and the public trust. For this reason, Friends of the Russian River will actively support action by National Audubon to protect this Agreement." (March 17, 1998 letter to the county Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District signed by Tim Derry, Secretary, Friends of the River.)

According to Bill Payne, Mayacamas Committee chair, "Even some people that support the pipeline concept as an alternative to Russian River disposal recognize the importance of preserving the Sanctuary's 'forever wild' conservation easement, and agree that, if there is to be a pipeline, it must be rerouted."

Preliminary findings by the Geysers consortium's own engineers suggest that an alternate pipeline route could also save the project $6 to $10 million in construction costs.

(Many thanks to Joanne Dranginis and others for their help in reporting on the pipeline issue.)