It’s just human nature to pay little attention to something that we do not directly encounter in our daily lives. But when it comes to Sonoita Creek, we ignore it at our own risk. Were this modest stream to become polluted or suffer the fate of rivers such as the Colorado, the Rio Grande and our own Santa Cruz, the consequences would be catastrophic…and very costly. That’s why Friends of Sonoita Creek (FOSC), has been working for more than a decade to protect this vital natural resource.
Under the direction of their board, and president Anne Townsend, FOSC is intent on ratcheting up the organization’s efforts both to gather data needed to monitor the health of the creek and to educate the public about the threats to the creek. Three major activities have either been recently initiated or will be undertaken in the near future. The first is known as Rapid Stream Riparian Assessment (RSRA), a systematic method of assessing the health of a stream and its adjacent environs. Last spring, RSRA was employed to survey a segment of Sonoita Creek within The Nature Conservancy’s Patagonia-Sonoita Creek Preserve and a stretch just below the dam at Patagonia Lake State Park. FOSC hopes to employ the RSRA method regularly over many more segments of the creek to establish a baseline of data which it can then share with other agencies who have interest in, and in some cases, responsibility for, protecting the watershed.
A second area of focus, in collaboration with Borderlands Restoration, will be to monitor the status of individual wells and wet/dry areas within the watershed.
A third activity will be to document the status of fencing around the perimeter of Patagonia Lake State Park and the Sonoita Creek State Natural Area which encompasses more than 11,000 acres immediately west of the park and through which Sonoita Creek flows. Presently, ranchers have permits to graze their cattle in portions of the park and the natural area. Yet cattle do get past the fence to graze in the off-limits parts of the natural area to the detriment of hikers and horse riders using the natural area as well as the protected flora and fauna, some of which are threatened species.
To extend its effectiveness FOSC is partnering with several local and state agencies, both governmental and not-for-profit. For example, Friends volunteers will be working closely with the Arizona State Park’s Natural Areas Program Advisory Committee on the fencing project. Working with the town’s new Flood and Flow Committee, on which Townsend serves, and representatives of other watershed-interested agencies, FOSC hopes to engage miners and ranchers in efforts to identify ways in which their mutual interests can be served. Volunteers will also be helping plant new cottonwood trees along the creek within the Nature Conservancy’s preserve as well as helping preserve manager Luke Reese plan activities to celebrate the preserve’s 50th anniversary this year.
FOSC, a 501(c)3 tax-exempt agency, needs more members and volunteers if it is to succeed in carrying out these ambitious plans. Individuals interested in becoming members or simply volunteering to help with any of the activities may call 520-394-0173 or stop in to the Patagonia Regional Visitor Center to pick up a membership brochure. Dues are $15 and up and donations are tax-deductible.