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Learn about the GOOD STEWARD LITTERBAG and VOUCHER PROGRAMS

 

Good Steward Litterbag Flyer

 

 

Currently the Stewards have a Forest Project Funds Grant from Yavapai County Supervisor Chip Davis and the County Board of Supervisors. Dave and Judy Miller are administering this grant. If you are cleaning up forest lands or any other public lands, and need help with dumping fees, email Judy or Dave Miller about the Good Steward  "Voucher" program,  dvnjdymlr @ cableone. net. Or, call Jim and Lynn Sweitzer of Camp Verde, 567-3010; Diane Joens of Cottonwood, 634-4112, Tim Costello, Cottonwood, 634-8033; Debbie LaFrance for Clarkdale/Verde Village, 639-4774; and Charles Mackey, 639-1768, Verde Village, can also assist with vouchers.

 

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Note: Yavapai County extends 2009 Forest Project Funds Voucher Grant for One Year! See article below. 

Stewards of Public Lands Plan Camp Verde

 Cleanup on Saturday, June 13, 2009 

Stewards of Public Lands invites members of the community to help with a Camp Verde Copper Canyon cleanup project on Saturday, June 13. Volunteers will work from 7 a.m. until 11 a.m.  

The town of Camp Verde is providing the dumpster and other assistance. Cooperators are the U.S. Forest Service and Yavapai County Community Service workers. Jim and Lynn Sweitzer of Camp Verde are organizing the cleanup.  

“Some volunteers will work at Copper Canyon, and we’ll arrange some small groups to cover Middle Verde and Wingfield Mesa,” says Jim Sweitzer. Volunteers and Marvin Buckel of the town of Camp Verde have already picked up some of the larger items, Sweitzer says. Pickup trucks would be helpful for the Saturday cleanup. 

For Saturday’s cleanup, volunteers may reach Copper Canyon by accessing Oasis Road from Highway 260, 1-1/2 miles south of I-17, and one mile south of Finny Flat Road. Oasis only turns to the right. Drive to the bottom of the hill; turn right at the first road. Volunteers may also drive down Salt Mine Road, two miles, and make a right onto Oasis. Watch for signs. 

Co-chair Jess Tyler reports that the Stewards are currently maintaining 6,000 acres of public lands. Besides cleaning the lands, Stewards have collaborated with the Forest Service to build fencing as impediments to illegal dumping. Stewards of Public Lands is a multi-community effort, with Verde Valley cities and towns furnishing volunteers, dump trucks and backhoes to assist in the cleanups. The Forest Service provides garbage bags, staff and equipment. Yavapai County assists via their Community Service program. Private businesses also support the Stewards’ work. Debbie LaFrance of Verde Village provides refreshments and safety supplies. 

Volunteers should wear long sleeved shirts, long pants, hats, gloves and sturdy shoes. Eye protection—such as goggles, glasses or sunglasses— is needed. Participants should also bring drinking water, a snack, sunscreen, and cleanup tools including a rake, hoe, shovel and grabbers. 

"We want to set a good example for others in our communities,” says Stewards Cochair and Mayor of Cottonwood, Diane Joens. “Come help us reclaim our public lands from illegal dumping and littering.” 

More information is available at Web site www.verdestewards.org or by calling Jim or Lynn Sweitzer at 567-3010 or co-chairs Diane Joens, 634-4112 or Jess Tyler, 649-0023. 

 

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 Yavapai County Extends Deadline for Forest Project Funds Grant

On June 2, the Stewards of Public Lands and Cocopai RC&D received the following letter, after contacting District 3 Supervisor Chip Davis's office and requesting an extension of time for our Vouchers Program Grant:

June 2, 2009

 

Ms. Diane Joens
Co-Chair
Stewards of Public Lands
1611 South Plaza Way
Flagstaff, AZ 86001
 
 
Re: 2008 Forest Project Grant - Cocopai RC&D - Stewards of Public Lands Request for Extension of time to expend awarded funds
 
This letter will serve as approval to extend the time to expend the 2007-08 Forest Project funds awarded in June 2008 to Cocopai RC&D - Stewards of Public Lands. This extension is granted for one year from the date of this letter and is not extendible beyond that date. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact County Administrator Julie Ayers at 928-771-3200.
 
Signed, Julie Ayers
County Administrator
Yavapai County

  

If you would like to learn more about the Stewards' voucher program, and how you can clean up public lands and get your dumping fees covered, please check our Web site, www.verdestewards.org.

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Stewards Chronology     Click here for Stewards Collage

 

 

"We want to set a good example for others in the community,” says Stewards Cochair and Mayor of Cottonwood, Diane Joens. “We're sending a positive message that our public lands are special and we need to work as a community to maintain them."

Click for final report on the Forest Project Funds 2007 Grant

Stewards of Public Lands did a wide-sweep clean in the upper Verde Valley cleanup Jan. 12. Charles Mackey and Clarkdale Police Chief Pat Haynie load an illegally dumped couch into a dumpster on Ogden Ranch Road. The Stewards began cleaning public lands in the Verde Valley in 2004. “The year 2008 is a lot cleaner in the upper Verde Valley than 2004, thanks to all the Stewards,” says Cochair Jess Tyler.

 

 
$5,000 Forest Project Funds Grant No. 2 from Yavapai County Board of Supervisors Read More...
 
We have disbursed all funds for the Enforcement Grant: $1000 to Sedona, $1000 to Cottonwood, $1000 to Camp Verde, $1000 to Jerome and $1000 to Clarkdale. Many thanks to Supervisor Chip Davis and staff for their support of the Stewards of Public Lands. Stay tuned for more information about the benefits of this grant from the Police Chiefs and Marshal of the respective communities.
 
$5,000 Forest Project Funds Grant No. 1 from Yavapai County Board of Supervisors Read More...
 
Many thanks to Judy Miller who completed the final grant report for the first Forest Project Funds grant.
Stewards of Public Lands Receive Forest Service's
First Annual Verde Valley Stewardship Award

Photo by Joan E. Tyler

The Stewards of Public Lands were awarded the first annual "Verde Valley Stewardship Award" by the Coconino and Prescott National Forests. The award was presented by Dee Hines, Verde District Ranger, and Heather Provencio, Red Rock District Ranger, at the Camp Verde, Copper Canyon Cleanup March 10. From left to right, Charles Mackey, Ranger Dee Hines, Jess Tyler, Ranger Heather Provencio and Debbie LaFrance show the award plaque.

Stewards Goals

Protecting people and property from wildfire by cleaning up illegal dump sites on public lands, and protecting the Verde Watershed and its aquifers.


 The Stewards of Public Lands are committed to maintaining Verde Valley public lands clean of illegally dumped trash and litter so valuable land resources may be safely enjoyed by all. Stewards believe in “leading by doing.” Goals are to provide significant volunteer effort and coordinate with local businesses, municipalities, county resources and state and federal land management organizations to make area cleanups successful and affordable, “publicizing” efforts and successes, attracting additional resources and educating the public about the efforts and need to keep public lands clean and accessible by all. Stewards also work with law enforcement organizations to deter further dumping by posting signs in targeted cleaned areas that indicate dumping is illegal and provides a phone number to call if illegal dumping is observed. The Stewards work to set a good example for fellow community members. "The activist is not the person who says the lands are trashy. The activist is the person who cleans up the lands." Diane Joens, Stewards Co-chair


Stewards Work Across Jurisdictional Boundaries

The Stewards of Public Lands work to clean up local Arizona public lands, to keep them enjoyable and accessible for the public by removing litter and illegal dumping. Acknowledging that no one single governmental entity has the financial or human resources to clean up and manage rampant illegal dumping on public lands, the Stewards find creative ways to coordinate existing programs at the federal, state and local level to address the issue of overlapping jurisdictions. The Stewards maintain and monitor areas to keep them clean and support public education to reduce further dumping and littering. Stewards support affordable dumping alternatives, and encourage and assist law enforcement to deter littering and dumping on public lands. Stewards clean up the Verde River Watershed for everyone’s health and safety. By cleaning up the lands, the landscape is restored to its former beauty and enjoyable and safe recreational opportunities are restored for residents who enjoy hiking, running, bicycling, hunting and sightseeing. Great partnerships enable, empower, and encourage people to work together toward achieving success. --Prescott and Coconino National Forests

Stewards of Public Lands...

Removing fire fuels from public lands

Preventing wildfires on the urban rural interface

Protecting people and property

Cleaning the watershed

Protecting water quality

Setting a positive example for change

A Collage of Stewards' Work


 Contact Stewards for more information

HELP WANTED! 

Great partnerships enable, empower, and encourage people
to work together toward achieving success. --Prescott and Coconino National Forests

This Web site made available through a Forest Project Funds Grant from Supervisor A.G. "Chip" Davis and the Yavapai County Board of Supervisors. This Web site developed and maintained by Diane Joens as a public service project. Charles Mackey donated funding for the ongoing domain name and hosting costs.
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