Water is life, but it's under threat in drought-stricken Arizona from mining and other industries. That's why the Patagonia Area Resource Alliance (PARA) is launching a Water is Life campaign to reform the laws and regulations that heavily favor mining in Arizona and allow for unlimited pumping of precious groundwater.

        You know how vital clean, accessible water is to all life in Arizona. But current regulations simply aren't strong enough to prevent over-extraction that's drying up our aquifers and wells and devastating local ecosystems, especially given long term drought conditions. PARA is dedicated to protecting Arizona's water for generations to come. And your help is needed to make it happen. The only way to protect our region from Hermosa and looming future mines is to reform the state laws and regulations that heavily favor mining at the expense of water, air, healthy communities, wildlife and a sustainable economy.

 Give Now to Protect Water 

Here's our plan to safeguard our water future:

Short–Term Goals

• Expand our current collaborative partnership network and coalesce alliances to reform groundwater regulations in rural Arizona
• Research and develop policy reform strategies for the many laws and regulations in Arizona exhibiting favoritism toward the mining industry
• Educate the public about pro-mining biases in Arizona statutes
• Continue to mitigate Hermosa Project impacts through the permitting process and the Community Protections and Benefits Agreement process 

Long-Term Goals

• Reform and update Arizona laws that currently favor the mining industry, to protect air and water resources from waste and pollution from mining activities
• Mining activities in the Patagonia Mountains and throughout Arizona are conducted with minimal negative impacts to water, air, wildlife, and the existing nature-based economy (ranching, recreation, agriculture) continues to thrive

         “There is no justification for allowing one industrial project to undermine any community's future, especially under a legal loophole that permits extraction in the middle of a water crisis. The question isn't whether Arizona should mine copper and other minerals. It's whether we can afford to do it without rules that protect our shared resources and prioritize long-term public needs. We live in a desert. Water is life. Arizona's future depends on treating it that way.”      -   John Ball, Nogales resident, retired battalion chief and fire chief, testifying at a the Nogales City Council meeting

* We can't do this alone. We need the support of concerned citizens like you. The future of Arizona's water is at stake. You can help to create the changes needed to keep our water flowing for centuries to come.*

Please donate to our Water is Life campaign.

Your one-time tax-deductible gift will help kick start our Water is Life campaign, while a monthly gift will work wonders over time!

With gratitude from the entire PARA Watchdogs Team,

Anna, Joni, Carolyn, Laurie, Val, Chris, Sean, Richard, Markleigh and Cynie 

P.S. Won’t you please support the Water is Life campaign today?

Water is Life: Don’t Mine it Away!

E. Clement “Clem” Shute Jr. accepts the Dianne Feinstein Lake Tahoe Award from U.S. Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) at the Tahoe Summit August 6. Over his legal career, Clem successfully defended Lake Tahoe environmental policies and helped strengthen the bi-state partnership to protect Lake Tahoe.

Shute has played an instrumental role in Lake Tahoe’s protection and restoration since the early days of the environmental movement, according to the award presenters. During his career, he helped establish the bi-state Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) in 1969, the first interstate compact agency of its kind in the nation. He also helped strengthen the agency’s regulatory framework and defended its policies before the highest courts in the nation.

“It’s a personal honor to have nominated Clem for this award on behalf of the environmental community and all who cherish Lake Tahoe,” said Dr. Darcie Goodman Collins, CEO for Keep Tahoe Blue. “From his landmark legal accomplishments that went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, to his decade of service on TRPA’s Governing Board, Clem helped build partnerships for Team Tahoe that continue to protect Tahoe today — and will into the future.”

In addition to helping establish TRPA more than 55 years ago, in 2011, Clem answered the call to return to Lake Tahoe as one of California’s representatives on the agency’s 15-member Governing Board. For the next nine years, Shute was a strong presence on the board. He helped negotiate a pivotal update to the Lake Tahoe Regional Plan in 2012 that ultimately brought California and Nevada together to recommit to the Bi-State Compact, TRPA Executive Director Julie Regan said.

Clem Shute stands for a photo with the presenters of the Dianne Feinstein Lake Tahoe Award. From left, Keep Tahoe Blue CEO Dr. Darcie Goodman Collins, TRPA Executive Director Julie Regan, E. Clement “Clem” Shute Jr., and Placer County Supervisor and Governing Board member Cindy Gustafson.

“Clem embodies the spirit of collaboration and partnership that has underpinned Lake Tahoe’s protection for more than 55 years,” Regan said. “During the Regional Plan Update, his extensive knowledge and commitment to collaborating with Nevada officials brought the bi-state partnership back together. Lake Tahoe remains one of the clearest bodies of water in the world thanks to leaders like Clem over the decades.”

Shute began his law career in the California Attorney General’s office working for the San Francisco Bay Area Conservation and Development Commission. His work in the appellate courts established significant precedents in environmental law. In 2002, he was part of the legal team that successfully defended the Lake Tahoe Regional Plan before the U.S. Supreme Court in Tahoe Sierra Preservation Council v. TRPA, a case that is widely cited in land-use planning policy. In 2015, Shute was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the California State Bar.

Shute’s love of Lake Tahoe goes back to his childhood when he spent vacations on the North Shore with his family. Even as a boy he understood how special the lake is.

“When given the chance to help ‘save Lake Tahoe,’ the choice was easy,” he said. “Looking back, it’s incredible to see just how much has been accomplished collectively. It is humbling to be included among the major figures in Lake Tahoe’s preservation, and I feel those who were alongside me share in this award.”

In 2021, Senator Feinstein herself became the first recipient of the eponymous award for her decades of dedication to Lake Tahoe’s preservation. She co-founded the annual Lake Tahoe Summit 30 years ago along with the late Senator Harry Reid of Nevada. The event continues to bring federal, Tribal, state, and local leaders together to address environmental challenges facing the Lake Tahoe Basin and build collaborative, bi-partisan solutions.

In 2022, the legendary scientist Dr. Charles Goldman received the award. His research in the 1960s showed how harmful development practices were destroying the lake’s famed water clarity. Goldman’s work has helped guide science-based environmental policy in the Tahoe Basin for decades.

Read Tubac WEEKLY'S interview with Clem on the Interview Page.