Photo: Megan Baker

Over the course of the last 20 years, Mountain Equipment Co-op (MEC) has grown to become Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society's (CPAWS) most important corporate partner. The relationship began with MEC donating to CPAWS conservation campaigns and has blossomed into a long-term partnership.  

In 2002, the relationship took a big step forward when MEC partnered with CPAWS in the "Boreal Rendezvous" project, a public relations effort aimed at raising awareness of the importance of protecting Canada's Boreal forest.  CPAWS organized 10 canoe trips down beautiful rivers in Canada's Boreal forest, involving, notable Canadians, artists, writers and conservationists. MEC contributed gear, marketing expertise and space in their stores across the country to promote the project. With MEC's help, and a major media campaign,, Boreal Rendezvous  successfully raised the profile of Canada's Boreal forest over the course of just one summer.

Since the Boreal Rendezvous project, a long-term partnership has grown between MEC and CPAWS, involving such elements as generous annual capacity grants; year-round advertising space in the MEC stores to promote CPAWS conservation campaigns; and most notably, a joint social marketing venture called "The Big Wild".  

The Big Wild" included pioneering web and social media efforts to engage MEC's members in CPAWS' wilderness conservation campaigns.  Since its inception, The Big Wild has helped to inspire more than 100,000 actions in support of wilderness conservation.  The website will wind up this year, but as a legacy project, MEC is now the title sponsor of a peer-to-peer fundraising project called The Big Wild Challenge  launching this season, intended as an annual campaign to engage Canadians in raising money for wilderness conservation, linked to their outdoor activities.

MEC and CPAWS have also launched new ways to promote conservation. They are currently in their second year of annual co-branded marketing campaigns to promote a specific CPAWS' conservation priority.  

Last year the focus was on marine protection. Through the "Dare to be Deep: Protect Canada's Oceans" campaign, MEC donated marketing expertise, space in stores and online for promotion, and affixed hang tags on dry bags, informing members that MEC would donate $1 towards CPAWS' ocean conservation efforts for every dry bag purchased. Through this effort, more than 12,000 new signatures were gathered and a $40,000 financial contribution from MEC through the dry bag sales was donated to CPAWS in support of their efforts to establish new marine conservation areas.

In 2013, MEC is supporting CPAWS' new "I love Canada's parks" campaign, aimed at engaging citizens in defending Canada's parks from spending cuts and other threats. Through "I love Canada's Parks", MEC will again be donating social marketing expertise, prizes, and promotions through online and in-store channels. MEC will affix hang tags on day-packs informing members they will donating $1 from every pack sold, up to $20,000, to CPAWS for park conservation.

The value of MEC's contribution to CPAWS over the past 20 years now exceeds $1 million. CPAWS also benefits tremendously from MEC staff's generous sharing of marketing and customer relations expertise.

It takes years to gain the Canadian conservation victories that CPAWS strives for, and MEC has demonstrated through their continued partnership that they are in it for the long haul.  

In central Colorado, there is a place you don't see on many postcards. It hides in the shadows of more famous tourist destinations like the Maroon Bells.  The Thompson Divide area may be less known, but it is classic Colorado high-country and as important as any of its neighboring postcard destinations.

The Conservation Alliance has funded the Thompson Divide Coalition for efforts to protect the Thompson Divide, 220,000 acres of pristine backcountry in the White River National Forest, from future oil and gas leasing, and to resolve existing leases through expiration or purchase.

The Divide lies directly in the path of advancing oil and gas development. The area is beloved in its natural state - as a recreational playground, a renowned hunting area, summer range for some 35 different ranching operations, and the source of the region's agricultural and drinking water - and there is essentially unanimous community support for keeping it drill-rig-free.

U.S. Senator Michael Bennet has joined the effort to protect this untouched landscape, and has introduced legislation to permanently protect the Thompson Divide from future oil and gas leasing.

Please sign the letter thanking Senator Bennet for introducing The Thompson Divide Withdrawal and Protection Act and sign on as a citizen co-sponsor today.

Click here to sign on.

Click here to learn more at the Thompson Divide.

Click here to watch Peter McBride's film, A Divide United.

 

 Chasing Water

A presentation by photographer and filmmaker, Pete McBride

Thursday August 1st, 2013, 7AM-9AM 

The Marriott Downtown, Salons F-I Salt Lake City, UT 

Click here for details
 

Ask the Forest Service to Protect the Los Padres National Forest From Development!
Comments Accepted Until May 16

The Los Padres National Forest is one of the gems of America's national forest system. Extending more than 200 miles along California's central coast, the area features breathtaking scenery, rare wildlife, free-flowing rivers, and hundreds of miles of trails through chaparral, conifer forests, sub-alpine meadows, and desert sagebrush.

The U.S. Forest Service recently proposed long-awaited changes to the management plan for this area. While some of the proposed changes are a step in the right direction, forest officials failed to recommend a single acre for formal designation as Wilderness. As a result, 16 of the forest's Inventoried Roadless Areas totaling more than 400,000 acres remain vulnerable to development.

Recommending areas for wilderness designation is the first step towards securing permanent protection for these lands under the Wilderness Act of 1964. The Wilderness Act is America's strongest land conservation tool - wilderness lands are forever protected from development. Camping, hiking, horseback riding, fishing, and hunting are all allowed in wilderness.

But the Forest Service's proposed changes fall far short of permanent protection. Instead of recommending these lands for wilderness designation, the Forest Service is proposing to classify them as Back County Non-Motorized (BCNM), leaving them vulnerable to development. Oil exploration and drilling, mining, construction of communication towers, "temporary" road construction, other energy development, and the disposal/sale of public land to private interests are all allowed on BCNM lands, but they are absolutely prohibited in areas recommended for wilderness designation.

The agency recently released a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for public review and comment. The DEIS selects a Preferred Alternative (referred to as "Alternative 2″) that does not recommend a single acre for wilderness protection in the Los Padres National Forest. In the same document, the Forest Service rejects an alternative approach that emphasizes wilderness protection, called the Recommended Wilderness Emphasis ("Alternative 3″).

A coalition of forest users, local business leaders, elected officials, scientists, and other stakeholders are working together to ask the Forest Service to reconsider its "no-new-wilderness" policy. We want the Forest Service to recommend permanent wilderness protections for thousands of acres of forest land in the Santa Barbara, Ventura, and San Luis Obispo backcountry. Join us, and let your voice be heard!

Write a Letter

The Forest Service is accepting public comments on the DEIS and its Preferred Alternative until May 16, 2013. This is the last opportunity for the public to submit comments before the Forest Service makes its final decision later this year.

Click here to send a letter to Forest Supervisor Peggy Hernandez today, urging her to recommend certain lands for wilderness protection in the Los Padres National Forest. You can edit our sample letter and send it with the click of a button! Easy.

Click to send your letter by May 16!
Click here to learn more about the places at stake.
Click here for background information and maps.

"Patagonia has been the most supportive and influential company in the development of our organization." Jeff Kuyper, Executive Director of Los Padres ForestWatch

They began as a small cluster of committed volunteer advocates, determined to improve the way the Los Padres National Forest was managed.  Devoted and unwavering, this group of individuals became Los Padres ForestWatch (LPFW) and applied to Patagonia for funding. This was the start of a strong and successful partnership between LPFW and Patagonia.

From the grassroots up, Los Padres ForestWatch is working to protect and restore the forests, chaparral, grasslands, rivers, wildlife and wilderness along California's Central Coast, specifically in the Los Padres National Forest and nearby public lands.

A partnership with Patagonia has been instrumental in the work, and success, of LPFW.  Over the past six years, Patagonia's annual Salmon Run, a 5k fun run through the streets of Ventura, California, has raised more than $35,000 for Los Padres ForestWatch.  LPFW has been the recipient of three Patagonia "Miracle Grants," unsolicited grants that are given to organizations identified by different departments within Patagonia.  When they arrive in the mail, they are "Miracles."  Patagonia has also contributed to LPFW through grants and in-kind product donations from Great Pacific Ironworks, their Ventura, CA retail store.  Patagonia employees working in the store have granted over $20,000 to Los Padres Forest Watch over the last 5 years.

LPFW has received financial sponsorship from Patagonia for the Cherry Creek Clean-Up, the Ojai Wild! Benefit event, and the Wild & Scenic Environmental Film Festival.  Patagonia also nominated Los Padres ForestWatch for funding from The Conservation Alliance - resulting in a $30,000 grant for LPFW's work to protect Wilderness areas and Wild Rivers in the Los Padres National Forest. 

 "The best thing about Patagonia is that their commitment to our work goes far beyond financial support," proclaimed Kuyper.  "Patagonia doesn't hesitate to put their boots on the ground and they encourage their employees to do the same."

Patagonia employees have helped with barbed wire fence removal projects on the Carrizo Plain National Monument, micro-trash clean-ups in California condor habitat, and rolled up their sleeves and got their hands dirty for the Conservation Alliance's Backyard Collective Event, a one day service project that benefited the work of LPFW.

One Patagonia employee, who participated in a Middle Sespe Trailhead clean-up project, was so inspired that she organized her own department staff to get out for another clean-up project on "Designer's Day Out," a day when the Patagonia design team engages in volunteer work that is meaningful to them.

Patagonia's support has helped Los Padres ForestWatch grow into an organization with four full-time staff and a great list of accomplishments in the Los Padres Forest. 

Los Padres ForestWatch wouldn't be where they are today without Patagonia's outstanding and ongoing support. 

"Our victories are their victories and we consider everyone at Patagonia among our closest supporters and friends."

Brown Bridge Pond After Dam Removal

Brown Bridge Pond Before Dam Removal

We funded Conservation Resource Alliance's Boardman River Dams Project to remove three dams and restore 15 river miles resulting in a free flowing and reborn Boardman River, benefiting the fishery, the community and the efforts of other communities to remove similar dams.

Returning a cold-water, blue ribbon designated trout stream to a more natural state after over 100 years of man-made manipulation is no small task. The Conservation Resource Alliance, acting as contracted Project Manager, has successfully led the Boardman Dams Implementation Team through the complex process of removing Brown Bridge Dam on the Boardman River in northwest Michigan. Constructed in 1921, Brown Bridge Dam was the first of three historic hydro-electric dams on this northern Michigan gem slated for removal. Set in motion nearly a decade ago, this massive community driven project consumed a total of 21,270 man hours, equal to 14 people every day for 5 months, to complete the construction phase of this initiative.

After the successful removal of the Brown Bridge Dam, Conservation Resource Alliance restored 2.5 river miles and 12.2 acres of previously inundated floodplain. CRA now turns its attention to removing Boardman and Sabin dams.

Swan Range, Proposed Addtion to the Bob Marshall Wilderness. Photo: Zack Porter

Conservation Alliance grantee, Montana Wilderness Association, is working to protect nearly a million acres of Montana's wildest backcountry through the Forest Jobs and Recreation Act.  Jack Rich is one of many voices - including conservationists, recreationalists, outfitters, business owners, forest managers, and others - that have helped shape the collaborative legislation.  Support from the Conservation Alliance has helped the Montana Wilderness Association build strong community support for this grassroots, collaborative solution for the future of our public lands.

Since 1982, Jack Rich has been introducing people to Wilderness in a way that "speaks directly to the heart." That was the year he first began managing Rich Ranch Outfitting, located near Seeley Lake, MT, on the edge of the Bob Marshall Wilderness, where Jack's family has been outfitting trips for several generations. The Bob Marshall Wilderness was created with the passage of the original Wilderness Act in 1964, which specifically allowed outfitting to continue because it was "consistent with the purpose of the act".

Jack believes that recreation is listed as the first purpose in the Wilderness Act not by chance, but because recreation is the pathway to preserving the quality of these lands. Without ample opportunity to experience Wilderness, he worries that people could lose interest in its value. "What makes the idea of wilderness tangible for people is the ability to experience wildness that touches the heart first hand," he says. "It's the outfitter's job to facilitate this experience."

Jack believes that experience leads to action, and he's lived a life that would seem to prove his theory. About ten years ago, he began working with the local snowmobile club, the local sawmill, members of the Montana Wilderness Association, and the Wilderness Society to establish a vision for the long term management of the legendary Blackfoot and Clearwater River Valleys, made famous by Norman Maclean's novel, "A River Runs Through It." That vision included improved snowmobile recreation, Wilderness protection for the headwaters of the Blackfoot and Clearwater rivers, and provisions for increasing forest stewardship and restoration.

"We laid out that vision, but we needed a legislative vehicle," Jack explains. "It was Senator Tester who came to us to ask if we were interested in getting this done. We saw Senator Tester as a person of integrity, so we stepped up to the plate." The Blackfoot Clearwater project was included in the Forest Jobs and Recreation Act, which was first introduced in 2009 and continues to be a top priority for Senators Tester and Baucus of Montana. In 2010, Jack received Montana Wilderness Association's Brass Lantern Award in 2010 for his work on the legislation, and for a lifetime spent sharing the Bob Marshall Wilderness with others.  

"We've been privileged," Jack says.  "These lands provide more than livelihoods and recreation. These lands provide passion for our lives. We want to prevent something from happening that would deprive our children of the same source of inspiration."

Learn more about the Forest Jobs and Recreation Act by clicking here.

Another Try For California's Second National Conservation Area Audio Report on Apr 26, 2013 by Craig Miller from KQED ScienceOn one of those crystalline mornings so rare in California valleys, I joined a small group gathered in front of a coffee shop in the town of Winters, about 30 miles west of Sacramento. But we wouldn’t be lingering there over lattes. "The plan for the day is to go up to Cold Canyon," announced Bob Schneider of the Woodland-based conservation group, Tuleyome. "We’re gonna hike up to the ridge for the views." The views being sought were of what could become the nation’s newest National Conservation Area, tucked into the broad nether region between I-5 and Highway 101. Nearly 350,000 acres of federal land, the Berryessa Snow Mountain Conservation Area would get permanent protection from mining activity, sale to commercial developers and — it’s a bit unclear what else. Tuleyome’s... Read More

Photo: Hermosa Creek, Wilderness Support Center

On Thursday, April 25, The Hermosa Creek Watershed Protection Act was introduced by Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO), with Senator Mark Udall (D-CO) as cosponsor; and by Congressman Scott Tipton (R-CO3) in the House.  This was a great day for conservation and strategic community involvement.  This achievement was made possible in part by the Conservation Alliance grantees, Wilderness Support Center and International Mountain Bicycling Association. 

• When passed, the Hermosa Creek Watershed Protection Act will designate a 108,000 acre Hermosa Creek Watershed Protection Area; 38,000 acres of this will become the Hermosa Creek Wilderness.  The rest of the watershed will have a variety of designated protections (no new roads, no commercial logging, a mineral withdrawal, protection of water quality in Hermosa Creek, etc.).  Additionally, the bill prohibits oil and gas development in four areas surrounding Durango:  Animas Mountain, Perins Peak, Horse Gulch, and Ridges Basin.
• The legislation will protect important trails in the area, including Hermosa Creek Trail, Coral Draw, Colorado Trail, Jones and Dutch Creek, Elbert Creek, Little Elk Creek, Goulding Creek and the Pinkerton-Flagstaff trails while keeping them open to mountain biking, a major component of the recreation economy in Colorado's La Plata County.
• The legislation is based directly on the work and recommendations of the Hermosa Creek Workgroup, a collaborative, community-based group formed to find agreement between a wide array of stakeholders on how best to manage the Hermosa watershed.  The Workgroup met for nearly three years, and reached consensus on recommendations that became the basis for Sen. Bennet's and Rep. Tipton's legislation.
• The designations will protect critical wildlife habitat for such iconic wildlife species as Canadian lynx, elk, and the native Colorado Cutthroat Trout, as well as some of the most significant old-growth Ponderosa Pine stands in the state.  A myriad of recreational opportunities will be preserved as well, including hiking, mountains biking, horse packing, fishing, and camping.  Significantly, Hermosa Creek is a major contributor of clean water to the City of Durango.
• The legislation is supported by both relevant counties, La Plata and San Juan, the City of Durango, and over 100 local businesses; as well as sportsmen groups, mountain bikers, commercial outfitters, water developers, motorized recreationists, and other stakeholders.

 "We are lucky in Colorado to be able to enjoy many of the country's most beautiful landscapes in our backyards," said Bennet in a press release issued by his office. "The Hermosa Creek Watershed represents some of the best Colorado has to offer. This bill will protect this land for our outdoor recreation economy and for future generations of Coloradans and Americans to enjoy. It is the result of a local effort that took into account the varied interests of the community, and that cooperation helped us put together a strong bill with the community's input."

Aaron Clark, IMBA's Public Lands Initiative Director, said, "Protected trail systems in communities all over the country provide a reliable source of revenue for their host communities. The Hermosa Creek Trail is a world-class recreation asset that deserves permanent protection. In Colorado, well-managed recreation assets on public lands act as a powerful multiplier for local economies, attracting visitors and businesses of all types. This bill is a great example of land protection for the 21st century."

Click here to learn more about the bill and Hermosa Creek.
To see a MAP of the Hermosa Creek Watershed Protection Act, click here.

The Cosumnes River is a rare example of California’s natural heritage – one of the last free-flowing large rivers in California without a major dam. As one of the last undammed major rivers, the Cosumnes River watershed is home to some of the largest intact blue oak woodlands on the western slope of the Sierra. Many people fail to realize that the American River Conservancy’s geographic scope goes well beyond the American River watershed. The main fork of the Cosumnes border El Dorado and Amador counties, while the North and Middle Forks are also a part of El Dorado County. While we are the American River Conservancy, our work extends to preserving rivers throughout El Dorado County. Since 2001, ARC has raised over $11 million to acquire 11 separate properties totaling 4,000 acres. Our conservation efforts have secured protection for a couple thousand acres of working landscapes (for livestock grazing),... Read More