“Tamarisk was hogging the water and so is inhospitable to wetlands in the area where birds and animals come for water,” he said. Thus, the conservancy’s goal is “to get rid of things that have outcompeted native species.” Working to get rid of tamarisk, as well as cows that have been allowed to graze in the area, he wants to see native willows and cottonwood trees come back.
Joining Desert Preservation Initiative volunteers at a work site, Herrero said he wanted to “see the group’s operations and how they organize people to do the work.” He learned about site preparation, breaking down cut materials and the need to apply herbicide quickly on cut stumps to prevent tamarisk regrowth.
Herrero said his job encompasses the direct work of restoration and conservation advocacy, and he aims to “talk clearly about the threat to public lands and land management issues.” To that end, he wants to present “a collective face with other groups such as DPI” to meet with lawmakers as necessary and to educate the public about land management issues.
“Partnerships and sharing our experiences make us all stronger,” added Desert Preservation Initiative President Chuck Warren.
Both Warren and Herrero said that a spiritual connection to nature fostered in childhood brought them to their current conservation and restoration work. Both grew up spending hours and days in forests and other wildlands.
As a youngster, Warren said he built trails into the forest near his family’s mink farm in Oregon. When he moved to Kayenta in Southern Utah, he began working on trails in the Kayenta Wash but found many areas virtually impassable because of thick tamarisk growth. As he learned more about this invasive species, he saw the enormous fire risk they pose.
“If people understand the enormous fuel load these trees present there would be no question of their support of our efforts to remove them,” Warren said.
Herrero grew up in the San Bernardino National Forest, living what he described as “a free range childhood” filled with camping, hiking and backpacking. His father’s reading of conservation-minded authors, especially Edward Abbey, and his support of the Sierra Club, eventually led Herrero to many trips in the Eastern Sierra and a career with The Wildlands Conservancy. He started as a ranger at Bluff Lake Reserve in the mountains of Southern California.
For both men, the challenge of engaging people in issues faced when restoring habitat and protecting wildland, and the natural and archaeological features they contain, depends first and foremost on education.
“We need to develop and engage a citizenry that understands biodiversity and land management,” Herrero said.
The task for The Wildlands Conservancy, which offers outdoor education to children and stewards over 200,000 acres across 25 preserves in three states for free public recreation, is huge. With a small staff, the conservancy depends on volunteers and getting the word out to the public.
The Desert Preservation Initiative faces the same challenges on a local level. Ivins residents have contributed more than 3,000 hours over the past couple of years to remove tamarisk that clog washes, block trail access, inhibit the growth of native flora and fauna and pose significant fire risk to homes. However, tamarisk spreads readily as its seeds move downstream in the Santa Clara watershed.
Which is why Herrero said collaborative learning between conservation groups is essential.
When Dave Herrero came to Southern Utah to see tamarisk-removal efforts by the Desert Preservation Initiative, an Ivins-based nonprofit, he took one of the key steps to success in the world of nature conservation — learning from other groups with shared values and goals.
Asked what he gets out of it, volunteer Aaron Martin puts it simply:
“Dirty clothes, a (temporarily) sore back, and a big smile on my face,” he is quoted saying on the nonprofit’s website.
There’s little doubt what Kayenta homeowners and outdoor enthusiasts get out of it. Beck said the group has amassed 2,750 volunteer hours over the past two years, clearing 22 large Kayenta properties and removing countless tamarisks affecting homes, washes and trails.