The Babocomari area is severely damaged. To get this area on the way to recovery, cattle has been excluded from the parcel. The has also been restoration in the battered cottonwood-willow forest along the river side to its former glory. It will be exciting to see how we can make a real difference. An ecosystem can recover given time and care.
History
editForest Guardians latest preserve was acquired largely as a result of a landmark legal victory in front of the Arizona Supreme Court. This victory, won in 2001, overturned a century old policy which had prohibited non-ranching groups from holding state grazing leases. We followed up that legal victory by becoming the first non-ranching entity to successfully obtain a state land lease in Arizona when we acquired a lease along the Babocomari River.
The Babocomari Preserve not only protects a portion of the Babocomari River, which will soon again be teeming with native cottonwoods and willows, but it also protects 160 acres of native grasslands. These grasslands include the once prevalent Giant Sacaton grass, which is now found in only a fraction of its historic range.