Take Action for Gold Butte

Nevada's piece of the Grand Canyon puzzle Photo by Tyler Roemer We need you to speak up for Gold Butte. For many years, this amazing place has been a favorite locals’ destination—and the word is out. Though remote, the area is being impacted by visitors from the rapidly growing communities of Las Vegas, Mesquite, St. George and well beyond. Visitors are a great thing! But not without the right designations, management and law enforcement to keep the area from being ruined by a few bad apples—or “loved to death” by well-meaning visitors. We want Nevada’s congressional representatives to introduce a bill that will designate Gold Butte as a National Conservation Area and Wilderness. And we need you to tell them to do it. Gold Butte lies in Representative Joe Heck's district. Please call and tell him you support greater protection for Gold Butte and want it designated a National Conservation Area with Wilderness. Rep. Heck’s office number in Washington D.C. is: 202-225-3252 You can call his Las Vegas office: 702-387-4941 You can send him an e-mail here. We sometimes hear from members who say, “Gold Butte? - I thought we already got that protected.” And the answer is almost. Keeping the Gold Butte drum beat going is essential, and it takes tenacity and consistent engagement to stand up for our public lands. That’s why—even if you have called a congressional office about Gold Butte before—we are asking you to do it again. Thank you. DRAFT LETTER TO CONGRESS BUSINESS SUPPORTERS

Why is Gold Butte Important? Gold Butte’s landscape is rich in archeological, cultural and biological resources, including thousands of Native American petroglyphs, mining era artifacts, the Las Vegas poppy, desert bighorn sheep and the federally endangered desert tortoise—and many other species. Young desert tortoise Photo courtesy of Great Basin Institute Wildlife: Threatened desert tortoise habitat Critical Gambel’s quail habitat Critical habitat for desert bighorn sheep Important habitat for Golden eagles and migratory birds, such as the colorful Scott's oriole, various hummingbird and warbler species Numerous raptor and owl species Important connectivity of unfragmented habitat adjacent to the 600,000-acre Grand Canyon Parashant National Monument Natural and Scenic Values: Dramatic geologic formations, including slot canyons, stunning red rock cliffs, countless canyons and washes draining into the Colorado River. Unique landscape combining Great Basin, Mojave, Sonoran and Colorado Plateau desert life zones. Diversity ranges from Douglas fir and white fir in the higher elevations, and cholla and Joshua trees at lower elevations. The only pocket of Arizona cypress in Nevada can be found in the Gold Butte area. Archaeological & Cultural Resources: • Spectacular cultural resources, including petroglyphs and agave roasting pits. • Nominated to the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s 11 Most Endangered Sites. • Prehistoric rock shelters dating back over 4,000 years, continued use of roasting pits dating back to 400 BC. Threats: • Sandwiched between two of America’s fastest growing counties (Clark County, NV and Washington County, UT) Gold Butte is experiencing an unprecedented number of visitors. • Off road vehicle route proliferation. Impacts from increased off-road vehicle use have resulted in vandalism to Native American rock art and cultural sites, including bullet holes in petroglyphs, trash and graffiti. The area lacks a clear management directive and currently has only one law enforcement officer responsible for over 300,000 acres, and that staff person is only available in the area four days a week. You can learn much more about this region, how to get involved in local service projects, or learn more about visiting Gold Butte from our great partner organization, Friends of Gold Butte.

Email, call or write to your Representatives In addition to calling Representative Heck, as requested above, we need people to contact Nevada's other members of Congress, too. Please ask them support legislation that will designate a Gold Butte National Conservation Area with Wilderness. Contact Congressman Heck. This is the link. https://heck.house.gov/contact-me/email-me 8485 W. Sunset Road Suite 300 Las Vegas, NV 89113 Phone: (702) 387-4941 Contact Congresswoman Berkley. This is the link. http://berkley.house.gov/contact/email-me.shtml Las Vegas, NV office 2340 Paseo Del Prado, Suite D-106 Las Vegas, NV 89102 Phone: (702) 220-9823 Contact Congressman Mark Amodei. This is the link. http://amodei.house.gov/ 125 Cannon House Office Building Washington, DC 20515 Phone: (202) 225-6155 Email, call or write to your Senator Contact Senator Reid. This is the link http://reid.senate.gov/contact/index.cfm Las Vegas 333 Las Vegas Boulevard South, Suite 8016 Las Vegas, NV 89101 Phone: 702-388-5020 Contact Sen. Dean Heller. This is the link. http://heller.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/contact-form Lloyd George Federal Building 333 Las Vegas Blvd. South, Suite 8203 Las Vegas, NV 89101 Phone: 702-388-6605 Fax: 702-388-6501 Not sure of your district? click here. http://mapserve.leg.state.nv.us/website/lcb/viewer.htm

We began campaigning for Gold Butte more than 10 years ago--and it's been an amazing journey we refer to as "The Evolution of Compromise." Click here to read more about the progression of the Gold Butte Campaign.	2002	2008	2010

Parting Words You have made it this far... scrolled to the bottom of a long page about one of the West's most spectacular landscapes. Please return to the top and make that phone call. Staff members from every Congressional office we have ever worked with (and that's all of them in Nevada) tell us your calls really do make a difference. Thank you.