Support and Practice Conservation

Please be a Steward for Our Earth - It is Delicate 

"Behold, my friends, the spring is come; the earth has gladly received the embraces of the sun, and we shall soon see the results of their love!  Every seed is awakened, and all animal life.  It is through this mysterious power that we too have our being, and we therefore yield to our neighbors, even to our animal neighbors, the same right as ourselves to inhabit this vast land."

– Sitting Bull

Hunkpapa Lakota Leader and Holy Man.

At Powder River Council; 1877

Earth Day was created on April 22, 1970, my 15th birthday.   With this connection, conservation became a central value in my belief system.   

It is the responsibility of every human to help preserve the earth and its natural resources.

At a minimum, each of us must act in ways which minimize our individual impact on this planet that we share with all humanity.   

Where possible, we need to influence the political system to implement measures which will prevent long-term, permanent damage to the earth.  Climate change is very real.   We must demand that Washington proactively act to minimize, and hopefully reverse, the damage that is being done.

About 1/3 of the people in the world own essentially NOTHING and they struggle day-to-day simply to survive until tomorrow.   Most Americans do not realize that:

• 26% of the world's population does not have daily access to clean drinking water

• 46% of the world's population does not have access to sanitation services

• 30% of the world's population does not have daily access to food

We MUST learn to conserve what we have and to help provide more for those in need.  

Please help

• Donate your time and money to local Conservation Projects

• Contact your political representatives at the state and federal level and demand that they take action to create and support Conservation efforts

• Donate to international relief societies

• Conserve at home: reduce, reuse, and recycle consumables 

• Become better educated and informed.  Many citizens of the United States are unaware of the ecological challenges we face and as a result they are not able to make informed decisions.  Don't be one of those: learn the facts (not opinions), stay informed, act.

 "We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children"                                                                                                                                             ....  author unknown

• Leave no signs that you have been out in nature:

  • • • • Remove ALL of your trash from an outing.   Clean up trash left by others.   Unfortunately, people leave trash everywhere, please take some home with you on every outing; if not you, then who?

        • If out shooting, pick up your shell casings (even .22 shell casings - they are everywhere) and anything used as a target .  Do not shoot objects which will shatter such as glass or ceramics - it is impossible to clean these up completely.

        • Be extra careful with fire.  In Idaho, if you are responsible for starting a fire, you may be held financially liable for the cost of putting it out.  Shooting during the dry season has a very high risk of starting a fire.  Dry cheat grass is an explosive fuel.

        • Disassemble fire rings that you might construct - leave the charred side of the rocks down and scatter the cold ashes.

        • Bury human wastes properly - there is not much more disgusting  than stumbling upon someone else's waste and toilet paper.  Keep catholes 100 feet from sources of water.  

• Never travel cross-country with wheeled vehicles; stay on existing: roads, trails or sand washes.  

• Do not travel on muddy dirt roads where you can see that your tires are creating ruts - don't hike on muddy trails if it can be avoided.

• Take extra care with riparian areas.  If crossing waterways, minimize how much you stir up the bottom and the river banks.

• Do not kill animals simply for pleasure.

• Do not vandalize property - public or private.

• Do not disturb archaeological sites.

  • • • All artifacts found on public lands are protected by state and federal laws. It is illegal and unethical to collect artifacts on public lands. 

      • It is illegal to dig for artifacts

      • Artifacts include anything made or used by humans including arrowheads and flakes, pottery, basketry, rock art, bottles, coins, metal pieces, and even old cans; essentially any human created item which is greater than 50 years old. 

• Volunteer to work with government agencies and social groups who are performing habitat restoration or research projects.

One final comment:

In 2010, I was hiking in the bottom of Hart Creek slot canyon outside of Oreana.  I stepped on an icy rock and fell into the creek.  In the process, I broke-off my left leg just about at the head of the femur.  Thanks to the excellent response by Life Flight and the Owyhee County Sheriff’s Department, I am here today.

My leg healed well, however, I cannot walk very far at a time.  If I am to continue to explore these wonderful areas of the West, I have to do it by mechanized means.

 I decided to use an ATV for exploring the more inaccessible areas of the west.  They are amazing machines capable of going just about anywhere, and that is one of the main problem with them.  Many people do just that.  They ride them anywhere they want, without consideration of the damage they do.  Ride an ATV through a pristine area once and you instantly have a road.

 We need to protect our wild areas so that our children may continue to experience the earth in as natural state as possible