Articles
(Español abajo)My name is Matthew Jensen. I’m the River Run Network Intern with Watershed Management Group here in Tucson. Every day, I wake up, I go to class, go to work, and live my life. Every day, I drink lots of water because everyone needs water to live. When I was younger, it was easy to think that water was almost infinite, all I had to do was turn on the sink and there it was. Even now,...
Western communities face massive water cuts in the coming years, making WMG’s work more relevant than ever. Your donation today ensures we can scale-up our conservation solutions and watershed restoration efforts. Together, we can take water conservation to the next level, shifting people from water consumers to water stewards: recharging our aquifer, restoring our rivers, and caring for our...
Our fall newsletter is hot off the press! Is it time to pack our bags and leave Tucson? What can be done at the policy level to respond to the Colorado River shortage? How many days of flow were there in Tanque Verde Creek last year, how can you go hydro-local at home, and what opportunities is WMG offering to get involved and learn more?Read about all of this and more in our fall 2022 newsletter...
Right now, the massive Colorado River water storage system is in crisis and facing the potential of total failure — a “dead pool” scenario where Lake Mead water levels drop so low they are unable to deliver water to Tucson and people across the West. In August, Tucson moved up from a Tier 1 to a Tier 2 Colorado River shortage, triggering additional drought response measures. But have these...
Giving TuesdayRainwater on Tap Happy HourTuesday, November 29th5:30p.m. – 8:30p.m.Living Lab, 1137 N Dodge BlvdOnline registration closes at 4pm 11/29. Tickets available at the door.Get Your Tickets Here Enjoy rainwater refreshments at our 7th annual Rainwater on Tap Happy Hour on Giving Tuesday! You'll be in great company with live music and dancing from The Out of Kilters, innovative...
The River Run Network has a recurring monthly initiative to help remove trash and continue to care for our creeks and rivers. Join us along the Rillito River, Pantano Creek, Santa Cruz River throughout the year as we clean up along the river and share more of this beauty with others.As tributaries to the Santa Cruz River, it is important to keep trash and invasive species out of these creeks! The...
Thank you very much for sharing your stories with us. The time to send more stories is over and now we are working on editing, translating and printing the book Guees That Arroyo: Tucson. We will be in touch with everyone who shared their stories and the River Run Network community with the date and time of the book's release.~Muchas gracias por compartir tus historias con nosotros. Se acabó el...
The 2024 Binational Beaver Survey Methods & Results...Part 1!Read the full report hereBeavers once thrived in the rivers of southeastern Arizona but were extirpated over 100 years ago due to extensive trapping. To restore this keystone species and their crucial ecosystem services, the Bureau of Land Management reintroduced beavers to the San Pedro River. Since then, Watershed Management Group...
The Tanque Verde Challenge Continues ~ Help Us Remove Invasive Arundo and Restore the Flow!Join WMG’s River Run Network in continuing our effort to completely remove invasive Arundo from Tanque Verde Creek!Since winter 2021, we’ve been hosting volunteer work days to remove Arundo donax, a thirsty invasive plant that drinks up to 3-4 times as much water as native plants and crowds out native...
(Español abajo)The Tanque Verde Bosque in East Tucson is a shallow groundwater area, meaning there is groundwater flowing within 50 feet below the ground. The groundwater is in a small aquifer constrained by bedrock, which helps push the water towards the surface and allows for quick recharge and more surface flow. The creek is fed by rainfall and snowmelt that flows down the Catalina and Rincon...
(Español abajo)Check out our new graphic of the Tanque Verde Creek here in Tucson, which indicates the 3 ways we are working with the community to restore the flow of this beautiful creek. Click on the image to make it larger.You can Subscribe to our Tucson Action Bulletin to receive an email every week with information about the different workshops we offer so we can get into action...
Update: Early registration for tickets closes at 3:30p.m. today!Inviting all monsoon lovers to an evening of short films celebrating the summer rains and rainwater harvesting in action.Come watch locally-produced films on our outdoor big screen at WMG's Living Lab (1137 N Dodge Blvd) on September 27th from 6-9pm, culminating in our feature presentation of Water Harvester: An Invitation to...
Watershed Management Group is excited to announce this year’s Desert Living Home Tour on Saturday, October 22nd from 10a.m. - 3p.m.! Now in its 11th year, we’re showcasing creative and sustainable yards, homes, and community spaces for all experience levels and budgets in Tucson and the Phoenix Valley. In the face of the Colorado River shortage, there’s never been a better time to see water...
[English below] ¡El manual digital “El Cuidado de los Jardines de Lluvia” de WMG ya está aquí!Ahora disponible en Inglés y Español, este recurso cubre lo básico de los jardines de lluvia, desde su funcionamiento hasta el cuidado durante cada estación del año. Los hispanohablantes de nuestra región ahora se pueden beneficiar de la información en este manual. Contenidos destacados incluyen...
Our River Run Network Program Manager (Lauren Monheim) took 11 River Run Network Members throught a flowing part of the Santa Cruz River on Saturday, July 16th, 2022.Though none of the attendees had been in the area before, there was no hesitation for the group - they all got their feet wet! It was an inspiring way to spend a Saturday morning, discussing the Flow365 Monitoring Program, talking...
Join us for a summer evening at the Living Lab in celebration of YOU and our other amazing volunteers! We are so grateful to all of our dedicated docents and board members, farsighted Flow365 members, radiant River Run Network members, and crafty Co-op members and want to celebrate all the awesome work we’ve accomplished together to restore our creeks and rivers and ensure a healthy, hydro-local...
The Hydrate Surprise class series is underway this July in Surprise's new Water Education Center! This series will guide you through designing water harvesting systems for your home, including earthworks, tanks, and greywater – just in time for the monsoons. In this series, you will learn how to evaluate your landscape for water harvesting potential and learn practical ways to convert your...
Clean pants and wet plants: that’s what a greywater harvesting set up can give you!In the Sonoran Desert, people have made use of greywater – gently used water from their washing machines, handwashing sinks, and/or showers – to irrigate gardens and trees for generations. With increasing concerns about tapping into the Colorado River for our water needs, nourishing outdoor plants with greywater is...
Care about water and ready to make an impact in your community? Then our Docent volunteer program is for you!The Watershed Management Group (WMG) Docent Program is an opportunity to share your skills and passion for a sustainable water future, and engage with diverse community members in Tucson. Docents are the face of Watershed Management Group out in the community and at our Living Lab &...
La autora de este artículo, Angélica Rascón, fue parte de nuestro equipo de pasantes en 2021 y aportó mucho en diferentes proyectos, especialmente al sur de Tucson. Se graduó de la Universidad de Arizona con una Maestría en Agua, Sociedad y Política; y aqui nos platica en este escrito lo que significa el monzón para ella y quienes la rodean.--El MonzónEn el contexto de la lluvia, cada verano del...
First, join us on a creek walk through the flows of the Santa Cruz River on Saturday, July 16th @ 8am. Our Flow365 Monitors volunteer year-round to collect data on different creeks and rivers in Tucson, and they have found another beautiful flowing area on the northwest side of our city. Come explore this stretch of the Santa Cruz with Lauren Monheim, WMG’s River Run Network Program Manager...
(Español abajo)The Julian Wash runs through Barrio Kroeger Lane, connecting to the Santa Cruz River just West of the I-10 highway.As our creeks, rivers, and washes fill up with water during our rainy seasons, trash follows and accumulates with the flow, and invasive species start outcompeting the native vegetation. In May, Favor Celestial, a community of neighbors from Barrio Kroeger Lane...
Watershed Management Group acknowledges that we live, learn, work, and engage with community on the ancestral lands of the Hohokam, Sobaipuri, and Apache people and those of the Pascua Yaqui and Tohono O’odham, whose relationship with this land continues to this day. We acknowledge that water in the Sonoran Desert is of great spiritual, physical, and ecological significance to be protected,...
Come See the Living Lab in Action!Our monsoon rains are here! Come see our rainwater capturing systems in action this summer. You'll even get to sample our filtered rainwater! We're hosting tours of our Living Lab & Learning Center every 2nd and 4th Saturday. On these guided tours, you'll learn all about our hydro-local space and how to prepare your own home or community space...