A Wild & Scenic Gila River

PROTECTING ONE OF THE SOUTHWEST’S LAST FREE-FLOWING RIVERS

 
 

The Gila River, one of the last free-flowing rivers in the Southwest, is home to the nation’s first designated wilderness area. History abounds in and around the Gila River. Geronimo, a fierce defender of his Apache homeland, was born among the headwaters of the Gila. Other inhabitants of the Gila built their homes on the cliffs in the tributary canyons of the Gila. 

Cultural sites, petroglyphs and pictographs tell the stories of people who lived in the Gila thousands of years ago, which still remain the ancestral lands of the Chiricahua Apache. The ecology of the Gila, as well as the fish and wildlife that it sustains, was previously under threat from a proposed diversion project that would have benefited only a handful of special interests, and Hispanic families throughout Southwest New Mexico would have had to bear the financial burden by paying higher water utility bills and other tax offsets to pay for the project. As of June 2020, the diversion was defeated by a coalition of advocates, including Nuestra Tierra.

Now, we have the opportunity to protect and conserve the Gila through Wild & Scenic Designation, which Nuestra Tierra fully supports.

 
 
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WILD & SCENIC LEGISLATION

  • Protects 450 miles of the Gila River system under the 1968 Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, introduced by Sens. Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich.

  • Existing water rights, grazing rights and existing water distribution structures would remain. 

 

RECREATION IN THE GILA

  • Hispanic families in and around the Gila landscape enjoy the Gila year round for its amazing recreation opportunities:

  • Hiking, fishing, hunting, camping, swimming, floating, backpacking, bird watching, grilling, photography, equestrian, and more.

HUNTING & FISHING

  • The Gila is home to amazing and endemic game and non-game species, such as the Gila Trout.

  • Turkey hunting in the Fall and Spring, javelina hunting, quail hunting, and if you’re lucky big game opportunities abound in this biologically rich area.

  • Fishing opportunities for every skill level exist in places like Lake Roberts, Bear Canyon Lake, the forks of the Gila, the San Francisco, and more.

 

HISPANIC HERITAGE

  • Mining communities surrounding the Gila have employed Hispanic workers and created multicultural communities that have called the area home for hundreds of years.

  • Hispanic communities surrounding the Gila today rely on the forest and the river as an important source of recreation and help shape the identity of these communities.

  • Hispanic elected officials from Grant County, such as Lt. Gov. Howie Morales and County Commissioner Chris Ponce, strongly support a Wild & Scenic Gila River.

We need your help!

Although U.S. Senators Udall and Heinrich have introduced the MH Dutch Salmon Greater Gila Wild & Scenic Rivers Act, it must pass the Senate and it must be introduced in the House. We strongly encourage U.S. Rep. Xochitl Torres Small, whose District includes the Gila, to introduce mirror legislation in the U.S. House.

We invite Nuestra Tierra Conservation Project supporters to stay engaged and help create a Wild & Scenic Gila River by contacting your member of Congress, signing up for our newsletter, and telling your friends and family to support this effort.