t's another thing...

All seemed fairly calm; many issues seemed on the brink of resolution, and we had only to keeping the office running. Then suddenly the phone exploded. The rather dramatic fee increases for private boaters took up a week or two of phone time, and you'll see some of the facts and opinions about that in this issue...
And if it's not another thing…
IT'S ONE THING…
The aircraft noise issue metastasized. A final rule was announced, yet offered no resolution. Rhetoric and law suits ensued even before full details of the new rules were available, (at least before they were available to the environmental side of the fracas.) So all those letters you and I have written must be written again. It's a common strategy to wear down those on the opposite side of an issue—usually those who aren't making millions from status quo—until they finally give up in frustration.
Sometimes it's a lot of things…
Then there's the dam. As the Glen Canyon Environmental Studies team is dismantled, we are presented with many challenges for the future. How can we achieve continuity in monitoring? How can we make the Adaptive Management process work?Who's in charge? What about changing the water temperature? On a bigger scale, the future of the dam itself is being questioned. How long can it last? How long should it last?

Few people have stronger opinions about the dam than our featured boater this issue, Katie Lee. Whether or not you agree with her, you've got to credit Katie for not sugar coating anything. Hers is a wild blend of emotion—intense passion for beauty lost beneath a reservoir which she refuses to call “Powell”, and simmering rage toward those who facilitated that loss.
At our fall meeting, we reexamined the goals of our organization and addressed a number of questions. We were founded to provide a common voice for the community to speak out—not for ourselves, but for the Canyon and the experience it offers. Are we doing our best toward our primary purpose of protecting Grand Canyon? In our dedication to “providing the best possible river experience”, doesn't that include all boaters—commercial and private alike? With these ideals, how will we face the difficult decisions to come and still manage to hold together as a community?
For those who were unable to attend the fall meeting, we need your input. If you like how things are going, tell us. If you don't like what we're doing, all the more reason to tell us. And if you really don't like how things are going, we've got three directors seats and the vice president/president elect seat up for grabs in the spring. Think about running. We need your perspective and we need your energy.
Happy New Year,

Jeri Ledbetter