The Mill Creek Partnership
We are the third iteration of the Mill Creek Partnership. The group first formed in the mid-nineties in response to the damage that was occurring in the canyon due to increased visitation and off-road vehicle use. The group did an incredible amount of work over the course of several years, bringing in a wide variety of agencies and individuals, assessing impacts and making recommendations to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) about the environmental state of the Mill Creek Canyon at the Powerdam. As a result of their hard work, the Powerdam area of the Mill Creek was closed to motorized vehicles and a variety of restoration projects were begun. We are proud to carry on the work of the Partnership and look forward to seeing the canyon area and its beautiful waters get healthier and healthier.
Here is what we wrote to the BLM on February 9, 2011 when we first decided to try to restart the Partnership:
Mary O'Brien and I have been discussing reviving the Mill Creek Partnership as the Mill Creek Partnership III. (There have been two prior Partnerships.) We recently worked together with several volunteers to remove chicken wire that had became too tight and damaging to the cottonwoods as they grew and we replaced it with proper fencing. We caged off a few unprotected trees and noted a large number more that need some protection/chicken wire removal.
Earlier in the season we were part of an effort to remove as much Russian thistle as possible from around the trail head parking area up toward the Powerdam structure. Seven volunteers and five members of the Quiet Lawn Care Company, (a group comprised of the homeless population of Moab), joined together to remove an impressive amount of this undesirable invasive in just two hours.
In the process of undertaking these projects we discussed restarting the Mill Creek Partnership to actively address a host of issues in the canyon that are negatively impacting the health of the place. Among other things we would like to:
Allow beaver to naturally locate in the creek, but mitigate any impacts to trails. When needed, we want to make sure beaver families are moved at the right time of the year to ensure their ability to prepare for winter at a new site.
Continue caging trees to protect them from the beavers.
Create educational signage to inform the public about the amazing work beavers do and how they are helping to restore the natural world, which in turn helps landscapes to adapt to climate changes.
Remove as much Russian thistle as possible on a regular basis.
Deal with other invasive plants and trees (e.g., Russian olive), with other groups when possible, such as Rim to Rim Restoration and others.
Maintain the one main trail BLM has approved for the canyon. Increased usage of the canyon, especially to the waterfall and pools in the near left hand, in the last few years, has caused a large system of user-created trails. Parking lot and road issues need to be addressed as well.
Address the issue of liability for the Powerdam structure itself. People have died jumping from the dam and a lawsuit is just a matter of time away. If we can prevent injuries and death at this spot, it would be a major accomplishment.
Quickly deal with any damage and graffiti, as well as trash and recycling. Moab Solutions has worked on this for the last eight years. Sandy Freethey and Bonnie Duncan repainted several walls of the pump houses to make them less intrusive and more attractive. Sandy helped define paths around the parking area and deployed her mother on a weeding mission several months back.
We would like to find any of the members of the original Mill Creek Partnership to see if they would like to be involved and to get their ideas in the mix. We are emailing those we know about. Could you forward this email to any others who fit that description?
We would welcome the opportunity to work with you on furthering these goals and developing others. We look forward to discussing this with you in the near future.
Sincerely,
Sara Melnicoff and David Morgan, Moab Solutions
Mary O'Brien, Grand Canyon Trust
Bob O'Brien, Castle Valley resident
Here is what we wrote to the BLM on February 9, 2011 when we first decided to try to restart the Partnership:
Mary O'Brien and I have been discussing reviving the Mill Creek Partnership as the Mill Creek Partnership III. (There have been two prior Partnerships.) We recently worked together with several volunteers to remove chicken wire that had became too tight and damaging to the cottonwoods as they grew and we replaced it with proper fencing. We caged off a few unprotected trees and noted a large number more that need some protection/chicken wire removal.
Earlier in the season we were part of an effort to remove as much Russian thistle as possible from around the trail head parking area up toward the Powerdam structure. Seven volunteers and five members of the Quiet Lawn Care Company, (a group comprised of the homeless population of Moab), joined together to remove an impressive amount of this undesirable invasive in just two hours.
In the process of undertaking these projects we discussed restarting the Mill Creek Partnership to actively address a host of issues in the canyon that are negatively impacting the health of the place. Among other things we would like to:
Allow beaver to naturally locate in the creek, but mitigate any impacts to trails. When needed, we want to make sure beaver families are moved at the right time of the year to ensure their ability to prepare for winter at a new site.
Continue caging trees to protect them from the beavers.
Create educational signage to inform the public about the amazing work beavers do and how they are helping to restore the natural world, which in turn helps landscapes to adapt to climate changes.
Remove as much Russian thistle as possible on a regular basis.
Deal with other invasive plants and trees (e.g., Russian olive), with other groups when possible, such as Rim to Rim Restoration and others.
Maintain the one main trail BLM has approved for the canyon. Increased usage of the canyon, especially to the waterfall and pools in the near left hand, in the last few years, has caused a large system of user-created trails. Parking lot and road issues need to be addressed as well.
Address the issue of liability for the Powerdam structure itself. People have died jumping from the dam and a lawsuit is just a matter of time away. If we can prevent injuries and death at this spot, it would be a major accomplishment.
Quickly deal with any damage and graffiti, as well as trash and recycling. Moab Solutions has worked on this for the last eight years. Sandy Freethey and Bonnie Duncan repainted several walls of the pump houses to make them less intrusive and more attractive. Sandy helped define paths around the parking area and deployed her mother on a weeding mission several months back.
We would like to find any of the members of the original Mill Creek Partnership to see if they would like to be involved and to get their ideas in the mix. We are emailing those we know about. Could you forward this email to any others who fit that description?
We would welcome the opportunity to work with you on furthering these goals and developing others. We look forward to discussing this with you in the near future.
Sincerely,
Sara Melnicoff and David Morgan, Moab Solutions
Mary O'Brien, Grand Canyon Trust
Bob O'Brien, Castle Valley resident
Shortly after we made our request to the BLM, they told us they would be very happy to work with us, and so began the adventures of the 3rd group known as the Mill Creek Partnership. We'd love to have you join us for one project or a hundred! Visit our "Contact Us" page to drop us a line. Thanks!
