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US (AZ): EAC debuts new greenhouse at Discovery Park

Nearly 80 members of the Gila Valley communities of Safford, Thatcher and Pima, along with invited guests, marked the completion of the Eastern Arizona College Discovery Park Campus Greenhouse on Friday, Sept. 20.

EAC President Mark Bryce acknowledged the importance of the greenhouse and collaborators that guided its completion. Noting the importance of each partner, he quoted Richard Feynman, who said, “Nature uses only the longest threads to weave her patterns, so that each small piece of her fabric reveals the organization of the entire tapestry.”

Bryce noted the importance of education and how the greenhouse, while providing that education, will also offer new employment opportunities for local students.

BLM Gila District Manager Tim Shannon echoed Bryce’s praise of the greenhouse partnership, stating, “The greenhouse is a great example of what can be done when people and organizations work together toward a common goal.”

He specially thanked Safford Field Office natural resource specialist Jeff Conn for his vision and leadership in getting the project started in 2010.

“Jeff worked with the BLM’s Native Plant Materials Program, which contributed $50,000 for the purchase of the greenhouse and supplies,” Shannon said. “That was a major first step in the project.”

Conn also secured a National Fish and Wildlife Foundation grant of $30,000.

“This 3,000-square-foot greenhouse was developed with two major cultivation goals in mind: To grow native plants that will be used for riparian restoration and to cultivate students’ interest and skills leading to careers in natural resources and horticulture,” Shannon said.

Two areas of public lands especially important to the BLM are the Gila Box Riparian National Conservation Area and San Simon Valley, where the BLM has devoted decades to habitat revitalization and watershed enhancement. The BLM and Gila Watershed Partnership are now planning for the eventual spread of the tamarisk beetle into the Gila Valley by being prepared with native plants to replace the nonnative tamarisks (salt cedars) killed by the beetles.

Use of the greenhouse by EAC students and other youth in the community fits perfectly with Department of the Interior and BLM goals to support engagement of youth in hands-on education and experiences that will lead to careers in land management.



“We’re looking to create our ‘workforce of the future’ and this project goes a long way toward that goal,” Shannon said.

Jan Holder, executive director of the Gila Watershed Partnership, shared Shannon’s enthusiasm for the project, calling it “a great example of how working together we can do something great.”

While noting that the Watershed Partnership is a “small nonprofit,” she explained that, since 1992, they have completed over $7 million in projects and programs to benefit the Upper Gila Watershed.

“We aren't big and splashy. We don’t have vehicles with our logo or even our own office; the BLM provides that for us.” Holder said. “We want to see all the money we raise used on the ground.”

She acknowledged Graham and Greenlee counties, local cities and towns, organizations and businesses for their support. She thanked the Walton Family Foundation and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Partners in Conservation program for their financial support.

“This greenhouse will help us make our watershed a healthier place,” Holder said. “It will help educate our kids and put more dollars into their pockets and in our local economy.”

Rick Stilgenbauer, outreach director from Arizona Sen. John McCain’s Tucson office, was also on hand, as were Safford Mayor Chris Gibbs and Pima Mayor George Lemen.

For more information or to volunteer at the Discovery Park Campus greenhouse, contact Paul Anger at 928-428-6260 or [email protected].


Source: www.eacourier.com

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