I’m a 40+ year resident of Wyoming and live in Cottonwood Park in Jackson, a stone’s throw from Flat Creek, which, incidentally is listed as an impaired stream by the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality and is not safe to swim in downstream of High School Road due to excessive bacterial contamination.
El Agua es Vida. As an avid sailor, former outdoor educator, and outdoorsman, I know this to be true. Our very existence as a species depends on clean water. Water for drinking, water for bathing, water for cooking, water for food. Although water covers 70% of our planet, less than 3% is fresh water. Here in Jackson, we are surrounded by water, and we are fortunate to have more lakes, rivers, and streams than any other county in Wyoming. But these water resources are threatened. Although virtually every living thing on our planet depends on water, we have abused it, polluted it, wasted it, and basically taken it for granted. Even here in Jackson Hole. Like the air we breathe, all of us have a basic human right to clean water, but increasingly that right is being denied. I am committed to doing everything I can to ensure we all have access to clean water now and for future generations.
I recently retired from the Wyoming Outdoor Council where I served as staff attorney and senior conservation advocate, and formerly as executive director. Much of my recent work with WOC focused on addressing a range of serious water quality challenges facing Teton County. It was through that work that I learned of POWJH. A number of important water quality initiatives including, most importantly, the development of a comprehensive water quality management plan, were launched during that period. As a board member, I hope to continue my involvement in local, state and federal initiatives to protect our precious water resources. Our community needs a strong voice for water quality protection, and POWJH fills that role.
Working closely with our partner agencies and organizations, POWJH has made significant progress addressing a number of pressing water quality issues, first and foremost, persuading the county to invest in a comprehensive water quality management plan. Our community developed a water quality plan in 1978, but that plan was put on a shelf and ignored. POWJH is committed to ensuring that history doesn’t repeat itself. POWJH is a powerful advocate for clean water. We will continue to raise awareness of our water quality problems, and build community support for action to address these challenges.