"The Colorado River - Our Over-Stressed Lifeline" presentation

As you know if you've been following our actions for a while, we often advocate for better water bills at the state legislature. I believe it is helpful to understand our unique water issues to better advocate for it.  

Sustainable Tucson's Water Committee (that I affectionately call Team Agua) will be hosting brief educational presentations on important water topics every month before our regular meeting. You're invited to attend the presentation and discussion to follow. You're also welcome to stay for the meeting if you would like to learn more about what we do. 

At the October 27th meeting, we'll start off the series with The Colorado River - Our Over-Stressed Lifeline. This talk will cover the current and projected state of the Colorado River, along with ongoing negotiations over future water rights, and what a reduced water allocation could mean for us here in Tucson.

The meetings are open to all. Please join us!

 

Sustainable Tucson Water Committee Monthly Meeting

The Sustainable Tucson Water Committee meets virtually on the last Monday of every month from 7:00-8:30pm.

Google Meet joining info
Video call link: https://meet.google.com/ani-wqxn-jat

Or dial: ‪(US) +1 916-905-1996‬ PIN: ‪879 450 407‬#

For more information about the Water Committee, please email jana@sustainabletucson.org.

Urge your Rep to Oppose the SPEED ACT that guts NEPA

Urge your representatives to oppose the SPEED Act and other attempts to dismantle  our bedrock environmental protections today.

The Proposed "SPEED Act" currently in Congress prioritizes the interests of fossil fuel, mining, and other corporate polluters at the expense of our families and communities. 

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is a bedrock environmental law that has long been an essential tool to ensure that taxpayer dollars and public infrastructure serves the public interest and ensures a healthy environment for present and future generations. 

Trump has already signed executive orders changing the way that agencies conduct their NEPA review, limiting our participation. 

Now legislation in Congress like the SPEED Act would gut further NEPA, limit reviews, weaken science, and eliminate government accountability when agencies fail to adequately consider the health, environmental, or economic impacts of their decisions. Instead of speeding clean energy development, this bill would create conflict and delay by prioritizing corporate profit over the public interest.

We can not sit back and be silent while billionaire corporations try to sacrifice the air we breathe, water we drink, and climate we rely on for even larger profits. 

Will you take action to protect our health, climate, and future? Urge your representatives to oppose the SPEED Act and other attempts to dismantle  our bedrock environmental protections today. You can use the Sierra Club's form or call your representative. Find the script below. 

1-202-601-3839

(You will need the name of your representative. Mine is Rep. Juan Ciscomani.)

And you can also write your Reps here: sc.org/Protect

Learn About the Arizona Legislature to Better Advocate with It

Sandy Bahr speaking at a committee meeting at AZ legislature

In addition to advocating for water conservation, climate action and environmental policies on the local  level, a big part of our work is weighing in on bills at the state legislature using the online Request to Speak system when the session starts up again January 12th. 

It only improves our advocacy to learn more about how the legislature works. In fact, I was inspired to start this group after attending the Sierra Club's Volunteer Lobby Workshop and Environmental Day at the Capitol. I would greatly encourage you to attend their upcoming Volunteer Lobby Workshop.. 

Volunteer Lobby Workshop! Learn About the Legislature

Date and Time:
Tue, Oct 7, 2025; 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM  (Arizona)

Organized By: Sierra Club Grand Canyon Chapter

Join the Sierra Club for this workshop to learn more about Arizona government, focusing on the Arizona Legislature, and how to lobby/advocate for change at the Capitol. They will cover the basics, including how a bill goes through the process, plus hear from people who have testified in committee and possibly from one of our legislators. They have allowed extra time for questions and answers.

Register to get the Zoom link:

https://act.sierraclub.org/events/details?formcampaignid=701Po000019073pIAA

Additional Directions: Send any questions you would like them to address ahead of time, but you will have time to ask during the workshop, too. sandy.bahr@sierraclub.org

Take Action: Protect the San Pedro River and Our Climate

Your voice is needed to defend the Sky Islands on two fronts — one local, the other national.

 

1) The San Pedro River, a life force in our region, is at risk from an aluminum melting plant proposed for Benson, Arizona. The 200-acre facility would be located right next to the river and has raised concerns about water usage, air pollutants, and toxic run-off, especially worrisome given the company’s track record of violations. Get more details and sign a coalition petition opposing this project.  

https://www.change.org/p/save-our-health-our-river-from-industrial-harm-in-benson-az

 

2) The Trump administration recently proposed to repeal the EPA’s 2009 Endangerment Finding, in which the agency formally acknowledged decades of science showing how greenhouse gases harm the climate and our health. The finding set the stage for crucial regulatory actions, as well as emission limits on factories, power plants, vehicles, and agriculture. If the finding is revoked, it’ll eliminate the legal basis for the EPA to rein in pollution under the Clean Air Act, harming people and our climate and pushing species closer to the brink. Learn more and take action with our allies at the Center for Biological Diversity (comments due Sept. 22).

https://act.biologicaldiversity.org/cMe-8_08KUGelloWGdcskw2

- Action by Sky Island Alliance 

Oppose the 2001 Roadless Rule Rescission proposal

Roadless Inventoried Areas in the Coronado National Forest

Please oppose the 2001 roadless rescission proposal. The science behind the proposal is flawed and this really is just another step to destroying our environment, local communities, clean water, etc all for fossil fuels and big industry profits. Please comment before the comment period ends September 19th using the link below.

https://www.regulations.gov/docket/FS-2025-0001/document?withinCommentPeriod=true&fbclid=IwY2xjawMiwitleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETF2cEp5T1dGMXZPdFdSdUVPAR4-p1TYfn-Xi1prywXhbP1VGIV7sgOPXut6FS1tJA9-oUHBINMFMwf_RKsUlA_aem_cODZZS2nqICUIgnCmbVoRQ

Below is a sample comment specifically tailored towards AZ. It is always good to personalize the comment if you can.

Subject: Comment Opposing the Proposed Rescission of the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule

To Whom It May Concern:

I am writing to strongly oppose the proposed rescission or weakening of the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule(Roadless Rule), particularly as it applies to roadless areas in Arizona’s national forests. These areas are among the last remaining intact ecosystems in our state and play a vital role in safeguarding biodiversity, water quality, climate resilience, and cultural heritage.

Arizona’s approximately 1.2 million acres of roadless national forest lands—including parts of the Apache-Sitgreaves, Coconino, Kaibab, Prescott, and Tonto National Forests—represent some of the most ecologically sensitive and scenic landscapes in the Southwest. These lands support critical habitat for imperiled species such as the Mexican spotted owl, Gila trout, and jaguar, as well as providing essential ecosystem services like water filtration for millions downstream.

The original 2001 rule was based on the most extensive public comment process in Forest Service history, receiving over 1.6 million comments—with more than 95% in favor of protecting roadless areas. There is no new compelling scientific, legal, or democratic rationale for undoing this policy. Instead, a rescission would undermine public trust and jeopardize decades of bipartisan conservation progress.

Road-building in these fragile areas would increase the risk of:

* Wildfire ignition and spread, especially in Arizona’s arid forests already suffering from drought and climate stress;

* Habitat fragmentation, leading to the decline of native wildlife populations;

* Cultural resource damage, including impacts on sacred Indigenous sites and traditional uses;

* Loss of recreational opportunities that depend on solitude and natural integrity.

The Roadless Rule does not prohibit fire prevention, forest restoration, or community safety projects—it only restricts unnecessary road construction and industrial development in the most ecologically valuable areas. Arizona communities value these lands not for extractive development but for clean water, wildlife, and quiet recreation.

I urge the Forest Service to retain the full protections of the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule and reject any proposal that would erode the ecological and cultural legacy of Arizona’s national forests.

Thank you for considering my comment.

Sincerely,�[Your Full Name]�[Optional: Title / Affiliation / Tribe / Organization, if applicable] More information:
Repealing 'Roadless Rule,' Trump rolls back protections for 58M acres of forests & wildlands

Push Back on Trump's EPA Wrecking Ball

Push back on the EPA's plan to reverse the endangerment finding that allows them to regulate CO2 emissions

The Trump EPA has issued a proposal to revoke the endangerment finding. The proposal relies on misinterpretations of the law and recent cases, fringe science, and tortured cost analysis to justify a conclusion that the EPA cannot and should not regulate greenhouse gases.

Learn more and take action here: https://earthjustice.org/experts/hana-vizcarra/a-legal-analysis-of-the-trump-epas-plan-to-revoke-the-endangerment-finding

Note that this action requires making public comments to the EPA, not just signing a petition. While this action requires more time and effort than the actions below, the impact of this policy change would be far greater than any of the actions below.

Oppose the EPA's plan to weaken power plant carbon pollution standards

On June 11, 2025, Donald Trump and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin announced their proposal to repeal standards that cut climate pollution from power plants–a major source of the carbon pollution that exacerbates climate change. With their Polluters First Agenda, Trump and Zeldin are attempting to undermine the scientific basis for any climate pollution standards and replace scientists with partisans who will carry water for the big polluters. These actions would increase dangerous pollution that makes people sicker and raises the likelihood of extreme weather events such as wildfires, flooding, tornadoes, and more.

Please sign on to oppose this repeal of these standards

https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/oppose-the-epas-plan-to-weaken-power-plant-carbon-pollution-standards-partner/?source=SCGC

Submit a public comment to stop the repeal of lifesaving Mercury and Air Toxics Standards  

The Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) have achieved a 90% reduction in mercury pollution from power plants and cleaned up dangerous soot at the same time. Now the Trump administration wants to rollback the 2024 provisions that strengthened these standards.

We must stop the Trump administration’s Polluters First Agenda. Use the button below to sign the petition

https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/submit-a-public-comment-to-stop-the-repeal-of-lifesaving-mercury-and-air-toxics-standards-partner/?source=SCGC

Defend Our National Monuments

A recent opinion from the Department of Justice says that they think President Trump can abolish areas protected as national monuments by previous presidents. This finding is disturbing on many levels, but it also indicates that we are likely to see some of our national monuments eliminated or shrunk. We know for sure that they are looking at the Baaj Nwaavjo I'tah Kukveni - Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument, adjacent to Grand Canyon National Park and the Ironwood Forest National Monument, northwest of Tucson. 

Please sign the petition opposing any reduction in size or removal of protections for the Baaj Nwaavjo monument.

https://act.sierraclub.org/actions/Arizona?actionId=AR0521102&id=701Po00000yg9u2IAA&data=696f42e9785e9478e7ff871c629d98d7017c871f797a78dff43d5ffcfeccee5977af3ad4be2bd6e16b29c9f5c4371337

2025 Environmental Report Card for AZ Legislature & Governor

Check out the 2025 Environmental Report Card! See How Your Legislators Did This Session The Sierra Club, joined by Chispa Arizona and Arizona Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Advocates, released the 2025 Environmental Report Card for the Arizona Legislature and Governor. “Not only did we not see any real progress on water issues, but we saw harmful utility bills signed into law, allowing old coal plants to continue operating after the utilities have bonded for their debt, continuing to pollute our air and water and fuel climate change,” said Sandy Bahr, director for Sierra Club’s Grand Canyon Chapter. “The Legislature and Governor also gave utilities liability relief for fires sparked by their infrastructure. The attacks on voting, especially early voting, continued, but those bills were vetoed and the referrals did not get to the ballot – at least not this time.” See the full news release here and the report card in English here. La Tarjeta de Evaluación del Medio Ambiente de 2025 está disponible en español Some of the bad bills at the AZ legislature.