
04/30/10

Dear Jennifer Ruyle and planning staff, 

I really do commend all the work you have put into this plan. After all your
work, I wish I could support the current plan. But I find that it falls
short to address the tasks we have to protect the amazing biological
diversity inherent to this region. It falls short in providing state of the
art visitor services that match the style of a new (wired) generation. It
falls short in securing quietness, wilderness protection, education for the
public about resources and more. The omission of assessing and planning for
climate change is serious. 

The plan needs to address problems on its lands that are a result of larger
border security issues, illegal immigration and visitor safety.  We have
serious criminal elements on our forest lands. We have people camped at most
of the major springs on a nightly basis in the dry season. How are these
uses affecting wildlife, watershed, and other values that the Forest should
protect. These problems are not going away.  The problems are many, but they
need to be assessed and we need more rangers on the trail. This illegal use
is use and it needs to be addressed.  I hope we get some baseline data on
this as we need to know the impact on wildlife and environmental health when
people displace them at springs, foul waters by bathing and defecating, make
trails, leave garbage, etc.

Access issues are complex but they need prioritization and set goals for
accomplishing working out problems. My number one priority for access is
Skeleton Canyon in the Peloncillos.    

Please give strong protection to Reddington Pass with respect to residents
and quiet recreation. There is no reason to sacrifice this area - it is
settled, and it provides a very important corridor on that side of
ever-growing Tucson. I support the concerns of the Friends of Reddington
Pass. 

I am concerned about management on east side of the Santa Rita Mountains.
There are some prime riparian habitats here, and grasslands that are in good
condition. Again, I think quiet recreation is appropriate here. 

We need education to be a stronger part of recreation, to be an expressed
goal. Forest land use and issues are evolving. Young people are wired - we
need to look at how to reach the public through informational podcasts,
Blogs, whatever it takes to keep people interested and involved in their
public lands.  I think Cave Creek Canyon is a crown jewel and deserves a
world-class interpretive center such as the Discovery Tower Center on
Pipeline Road in Panama. We need to present science, conservation,
experience. I urge Coronado National Forest to be bolder in their approach
to the Visitor experience and set some trends for the nation. Encourage
private partnerships to accomplish this. Each community adjacent to
trailheads and use areas should have a visitor facility (public or private),
a visitor education program (public or private) and day-use guides available
to enhance the experience of the visitor (public or private). Interpretive
signage is needed. Viewpoints need to be maintained - our Vista Point in
Cave Creek Canyon has so much tree growth the view will soon be gone. 

Visitors need access to their forest. I see NO reason to limit low-impact
guided outfitting on the forest in Cave Creek Canyon or in any other
location. Coronado National Forest is not issuing permits on the Douglas
district and our community of Portal is suffering economic impact from this
arbitrary decision. Why restrict Cave Creek and not other canyons. Why
restrict all of the drainage when there are three branches and a lot of area
that gets light use. Guided birding and hiking opportunities are much-sought
after and provide public service that the Forest is not providing. It
protects the resources and enhances Visitor experience. We need public input
on this and we need to keep permits open, flexible to needs of ecotourism
operators that have a high regard for resource protection. Local operators
are needed to work with lodges and bed and breakfasts to provide visitor
services. In our community a permit with 400 use days is sitting idol, not
re-allocated or re-issued before the prime visitation season and this has
resulted in loss of income to our community. I have sent the Forest
Supervisor further comment on this issue.

We may have wolves on this forest and in the Sky Islands in the next ten
years. I hope that grazing management systems are flexible enough to allow
wildlife managers to work with land owners to avoid conflict, move animals
around if needed in response to denning activities, etc. We need educational
signage about reintroductions, from Turkeys to Leapord Frogs - get the word
out. People need to connect to wildlife to care. Wildlife-based tourism
revenue helps communities to care - encourage it. Work with Arizona Game and
Fish. Work with private companies, university students. No educational group
should be denied a permit to bring students to learn about this area - that
to me is unacceptable.  

Climate change is real and it is here. New Mexico has done just an amazing
job looking at its rare species, assessing scenarios for climate change and
predicting impacts. We need this type of analysis. We barely have accessible
baseline data let along monitoring projects. We need these in the plan so
when funding is tight this still gets done. It's essential. The New Mexico
analysis provides a tool for quick assessment of priority areas. They are
ready. Coronado is not. 


I support several Special Management Area proposals that have already been
submitted. There are many special places on this Forest that deserve
recognition and protection. Again, THINK BROADER. This region has global
significance. Its listed as a Global Diversity Hotspot by Conservation
International, one of the few such designated areas in the US. Coronado
National Forest is not being managed to enhance or recognize globally
important attributes. Bring in outside biodiversity experts to make
recommendations. Use the Special Management Area designation to recognize
these values. I know that Scientist and Conservationists working with the
Coronado Planning Partnership have identified 11 areas and submitted
detailed reports on each of them. The Coronado National Forest should give
serious consideration to all of these.

The community of Portal wants sustainable ecotourism and I support the
concept of quiet recreation opportunity. This is what our visitors are
looking for. I imagine this is true throughout much of the Sky Islands. 
I support additional Wilderness designation and several areas have been
identified for consideration. I urge you to move forward to analyze and
protect these areas. I think 10 is a just a good start, and we need to look
at adding acreage to additional areas. We also need to actively pursue
adjacent landowner conservation easements to ease pressure on our forest
service lands and enhance their bio-functions. Work together. Think BIG. 
Sky Island Alliance was thinking BIG when they created a series of
Wilderness Suitability reports identifying 290,000 additional acres that
should be evaluated. Coronado National Forest should use these reports and
additional acres in potential wilderness evaluations.



Peg Abbott
Naturalist Journeys
P.O. Box 16545
Portal, AZ 85632
Phone & FAX 520-558-1146
Toll Free 866-900-1146
www.naturalistjourneys.com
peg@naturalistjourneys.com
 


