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Verde River Stories
On May 7th, Fennel Blythe, Native Seed Coordinator with Friends of the Verde River traveled to New Mexico for the New Mexico Native Plant Farm Tour. She had the privilege of attending an informative and inspirational farm tour sponsored by the Institute for Applied Ecology, directed by Melanie Gisler and coordinated by Maggie Parrish. Friends […]
JAMIE NIELSEN December 12, 2017 New conservation challenges, new take on restoration The Verde River continues to flow through the valley today, over land and underground, supporting agriculture, wildlife, forests and economies. It winds through Arizona’s transition zone between desert and plateau, making this one of the most biologically diverse areas in the American Southwest. […]
Over 30 years ago, after I packed up all my possessions, and moved from Phoenix to Los Angeles, my mother sent me a flyer for a property in Camp Verde with a note that said “you should buy this place.” I surely thought she’d lost her mind. While the property looked appealing, I couldn’t imagine […]
JAMIE NIELSEN December 12, 2017 The Verde River: Heart and soul of the Verde Valley A ribbon of cottonwood, willow and sycamore trees delineate the river and its tributaries, winding through the semi-arid landscape of the Verde Valley. Ash, walnut, soapberry, hackberry, alder and many other trees flourish here too. Bright yellow-gold cottonwood leaves and […]
JAMIE NIELSEN December 12, 2017 Waxy, wrinkly, smelly trench foot. Lightning. Hemotoxins and neurotoxins, rattlesnake and spider bites. Kevin Kennedy, Logistics Technician with Arizona Conservation Corps (AZCC), is grilling the crew members-in-training about “the umbles”. “These are the signs of hypothermia! Mumbles, stumbles, and grumbles. Get ’em dry, get ’em warm, people!” This is the […]
Why is this study important? It represents a critical first step in characterizing the streamflow requirements of habitat and wildlife along the Verde River. Haney, J.A., Turner, D.S., Springer, A.E., Stromberg, J.C., Stevens, L.E., Pearthree, P.A., and Supplee, V., 2008, Ecological Implications of Verde River flows: A report by the Arizona Water Institute, The Nature […]
Why is this study important? This modern geologic map synthesizes the work of dozens of geologists over decades into a unified, comprehensive map of the upper and middle Verde River watersheds. DeWitt, Ed, Langenheim, Victoria, Force, Eric, Vance, R.K., Lindberg, P.A., and Driscoll, R.L., 2008, Geologic map of the Prescott National Forest and the headwaters […]
Why is this study important? It represents the most recent published groundwater-flow model analysis specifically for the Little Chino Sub-basin. Timmons, Daniel, and Springer, Abe, 2006, Prescott AMA model update report: Arizona Department of Water Resources, 77 p. In 1995, the Arizona Department of Water Resources developed a regional groundwater-flow model to quantify the impacts […]
Why is this study important? This report combines data collected from boring deep narrow holes into the ground with new aeromagnetic and gravity measurements. This combination of data provides the most comprehensive analysis to date of the thickness, shape, and boundaries of basin-fill aquifers of the Big Chino, Little Chino, and Verde Valley sub-basins. Langenheim, […]
Why is this study important? The report applies multiple lines of evidence to examine contributions to the baseflow of the upper Verde River. It concludes that the Little Chino aquifer provides approximately 14 percent and the Big Chino aquifer system provides between 80 and 86 percent of the Verde River baseflow measured at the Paulden […]