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    Water Woes XVI-Is The Worst Yet To Come?
    Mark L. Johnson
    • May 12
    • 1 min

    Water Woes XVI-Is The Worst Yet To Come?

    Tortolita Alliance (TA) attended the Local Drought Impact Group (LDIG) Meeting via Microsoft Team today (May 11, 2022). LDIG is a...
    213 views
    May Day! May Day! May Day!
    Mark L. Johnson
    • May 1
    • 1 min

    May Day! May Day! May Day!

    The Conjunction Moon, Jupiter & Venus line up early Wednesday (4/27/22) morning over the Tortolita Preserve. Good things come in...
    180 views
    TA Tidbits #35 Petitions, Owls & New Water Agency
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Feb 26
    • 2 min

    TA Tidbits #35 Petitions, Owls & New Water Agency

    Town Council Candidates Need More Signed Petitions Thanks to everyone who have signed the Non-Partisan Nomination Petitions for Patrick...
    348 views
    TA Tidbits #34 Petitions & More
    Tortolita Alliance
    • Feb 16
    • 2 min

    TA Tidbits #34 Petitions & More

    Meet The Change4Marana Candidates-Sign Petitions Patrick Cavanaugh, Mark Johnson and Tim Kosse are running for Marana Town Council as the...
    273 views
    Mark 4 Marana Town Council Campaign
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Feb 6
    • 2 min

    Mark 4 Marana Town Council Campaign

    I first came to Marana in 1976 on a cross county RV adventure during my senior year in college. Having grown up in a coastal environment...
    530 views
    Water Woes XIV-Pause On DAWS
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Feb 2
    • 2 min

    Water Woes XIV-Pause On DAWS

    The following serves as an update to the previously reported Marana Water Designated Assured Water Supply (DAWS) analysis. Remember DAWS...
    178 views
    Water Woes XIII-Short-Term Drought Improvement
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Jan 13
    • 2 min

    Water Woes XIII-Short-Term Drought Improvement

    The Flats-Wild Mustang Trail Helpful Facts/Hints Blog Images-Just want to remind readers that you can click on any image (photo, graphic,...
    215 views
    TA Tidbits #32-2021 Wrap Up
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Dec 18, 2021
    • 2 min

    TA Tidbits #32-2021 Wrap Up

    Night Watch Great Horned Owl keeps watch over the Tortolita Preserve! Tortolita Preserve-Trail Counter Update The Marana Parks &...
    311 views
    Water Woes XII-Kyle Center Colorado River Shortage Interactive Story
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Dec 11, 2021
    • 1 min

    Water Woes XII-Kyle Center Colorado River Shortage Interactive Story

    The Kyle Center For Water Policy at Arizona State University's (ASU's) Morrison Institute has released an excellent interactive story...
    205 views
    Water Woes XI  More Cuts
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Dec 6, 2021
    • 2 min

    Water Woes XI More Cuts

    New 500,000 AFY Colorado River Water Cut First it was the Interim Shortage Guidelines (2007), then the Drought Contingency Plan (DCP)...
    299 views
    The Case Of The Missing HCP
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Nov 14, 2021
    • 3 min

    The Case Of The Missing HCP

    Another Marana mystery is solved! This time its about wildlife and habitat. What the heck is an HCP? HCP is the acronym for Habitat...
    328 views
    Water Woes X  No Status Quo
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Nov 10, 2021
    • 3 min

    Water Woes X No Status Quo

    Drought Status Tortolita Alliance (TA) attended the Local Drought Impact Group (LDIG) Meeting via Microsoft Team on 11/10/21. LDIG is a...
    228 views
    TA Tidbits #30 Grass, Planes & Trails
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Nov 4, 2021
    • 2 min

    TA Tidbits #30 Grass, Planes & Trails

    "Two roads diverged in a wood, and I---I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference."--Robert Frost Just back...
    277 views
    TA Tidbits # 28  Save The Happy Habitat
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Oct 10, 2021
    • 2 min

    TA Tidbits # 28 Save The Happy Habitat

    Tortolita Mountains Photo by Nancy Major Huge Sonoran Desert Tortoise Found In Tortolita Preserve Marenis Kansfield (TA member) came upon...
    271 views
    TA Tidbits #27 Stormy Times
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Sep 29, 2021
    • 1 min

    TA Tidbits #27 Stormy Times

    End Of Monsoon Season Storm Upper Javelina Trail (9/26/21) Lake Mead Elevation Projections Worsen The United States Bureau of Reclamation...
    171 views
    Saguaro Destruction
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Sep 19, 2021
    • 1 min

    Saguaro Destruction

    Several TA Members have reported the destruction of older saguaros at the Saguaro Reserve Subdivision (173 homes) now being mass graded...
    940 views
    Wet But Dry
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Sep 9, 2021
    • 2 min

    Wet But Dry

    Tortolita Alliance (TA) attended the Pima County Local Drought Impact Group (LDIG) Meeting via Microsoft Team today (September 8, 2021)....
    270 views
    TA Tidbits # 26 I-11, Land & Water
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Aug 30, 2021
    • 2 min

    TA Tidbits # 26 I-11, Land & Water

    Tortolita Preserve (8/28/21)-Four Pots Of Gold Interstate 11 (I-11) Update Thanks to all the Tortolita Alliance (TA) members that wrote...
    185 views
    Water Woes IX-Water Study Session Report Part B
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Aug 28, 2021
    • 3 min

    Water Woes IX-Water Study Session Report Part B

    Water Is The Sustenance Of Life In Part A we reported that Marana Water has 2,804 acre-feet (AF) of water remaining in its Designated...
    218 views
    Water Woes VIII-Water Study Session Report Part A
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Aug 26, 2021
    • 2 min

    Water Woes VIII-Water Study Session Report Part A

    Hope you had the opportunity to attend or watch (video stream) the Water Study Session on Tuesday. Jing Luo, Marana's new Water...
    211 views
    Water & Flower Power
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Aug 22, 2021
    • 1 min

    Water & Flower Power

    Alamo Springs Trail-Chest High Grass Hiked the Wild Burro & Alamo Springs Trail this morning. The Wild Burro Wash was flowing strong...
    286 views
    TA Alert!  Water Study Session
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Aug 19, 2021
    • 2 min

    TA Alert! Water Study Session

    Marana Water Study Session Marana will be holding a Water Study Session in the Town Council Chambers on Tuesday, August 24 at 6:00 PM. ...
    141 views
    Marana Housing Chat
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Aug 11, 2021
    • 3 min

    Marana Housing Chat

    TA attended the Marana Town Council Housing Study Session (8/10/21). Click on the Button to View the Study Session PowerPoint. The...
    250 views
    Water Woes VII-Water Poker
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Jul 29, 2021
    • 2 min

    Water Woes VII-Water Poker

    Thanks to the many Tortolita Alliance (TA) members who wrote letters and attended last night's Marana Planning Commission meeting...
    308 views
    Water Woes VI-ARIDIFICATION
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Jul 25, 2021
    • 3 min

    Water Woes VI-ARIDIFICATION

    Aridification is the process whereby a region becomes increasingly drier (arid) over a long period of time. Climate change and the...
    245 views
    TA Alert! More Rooftops & H2O?
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Jul 22, 2021
    • 1 min

    TA Alert! More Rooftops & H2O?

    Camino De Oeste 34 Marana Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on Wednesday, July 28 at 6:30 in the Town Council Chambers...
    686 views
    Green Acres
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Jul 18, 2021
    • 1 min

    Green Acres

    Last week there were two nice rain events in the Tortolita Preserve (TP) with 0.7 inch on Wednesday and 0.3 inch on Friday for a total of...
    276 views
    Water Woes V-Tidal Wave
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Jul 12, 2021
    • 2 min

    Water Woes V-Tidal Wave

    There has been a tidal wave of significant news in the Arizona water world. Here is the skinny. ADWR Tells Pinal County No More...
    352 views
    TA Tidbits #25-TA Logo-Patches, Website Improvements & Something Called Rain
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Jul 11, 2021
    • 2 min

    TA Tidbits #25-TA Logo-Patches, Website Improvements & Something Called Rain

    TA Logo & Patches We are happy to announce that the beautiful Tortolita Alliance (TA) logo has received official Trade Mark (TM) status...
    248 views
    Water Woes IV-Plan For Worst Case
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Jun 25, 2021
    • 4 min

    Water Woes IV-Plan For Worst Case

    Salton Sea-Imperial County, California-2018 Over the last four months there have been at least three studies released regarding the...
    321 views
    TA Tidbits #23  Dried Fruit
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Jun 13, 2021
    • 2 min

    TA Tidbits #23 Dried Fruit

    Hiked the Upper Javelina Trail this morning at 5 AM to beat the heat. The saguaro fruit are beginning to ripen. See photo above that...
    228 views
    TA Tidbits # 22-Trails, Cows & Water
    Mark L. Johnson
    • May 26, 2021
    • 2 min

    TA Tidbits # 22-Trails, Cows & Water

    Saguaros Enjoying The Scenery Alamo Springs Trail Tortolita Preserve (TP) Natural Resource Survey TA met with Marana Parks & Recreation...
    292 views
    TA Tidbits #21-More Happy Trails
    Mark L. Johnson
    • May 18, 2021
    • 2 min

    TA Tidbits #21-More Happy Trails

    Jim Tripp Moving On Jim Tripp (TA Vice President) and family have decided to move back to the mid-west. Accordingly, Jim has resigned as...
    259 views
    Happy Mothers Day From TP!
    Mark L. Johnson
    • May 9, 2021
    • 1 min

    Happy Mothers Day From TP!

    An early morning hike in the Tortolita Preserve on Mothers Day 2021 revealed continued dry conditions and tree/cactus/plant stress. Palo...
    137 views
    TA Tidbits #20-TA In Action
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Apr 30, 2021
    • 4 min

    TA Tidbits #20-TA In Action

    TA Presentations Tortolita Alliance (TA) made presentations to the Del Webb Dove Mountain HOA (2/11), Dove Mountain Civic Association...
    201 views
    Water Woes III-Shortages
    -
    • Apr 25, 2021
    • 3 min

    Water Woes III-Shortages

    This is the third part of the Water Woes Series which describes how the Drought Conservation Plan (DCP) Shortages are implemented. Lake...
    231 views
    Guild Wash EA
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Apr 15, 2021
    • 2 min

    Guild Wash EA

    Some Tortolita Alliance (TA) members might have received a postcard invitation (see invite left) to comment on the Guild Wash-Santa Cruz...
    249 views
    Dry Tiers! Five Months To Next Water Shortage?
    -
    • Mar 30, 2021
    • 1 min

    Dry Tiers! Five Months To Next Water Shortage?

    The US Bureau of Reclamation predicts a Lake Mead level of 1071.59 ft in January 2022, which would trigger a Tier 1 water shortage for...
    290 views
    Alamo Spring-less
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Mar 28, 2021
    • 1 min

    Alamo Spring-less

    Went to the U of A Baseball game yesterday and stopped by Lindys On Fourth on the way home for a gigantic specialty hamburger and fries. ...
    223 views
    Water Woes II-Sustainable not Assured
    Mark Johnson & Jim Tripp
    • Mar 24, 2021
    • 2 min

    Water Woes II-Sustainable not Assured

    Did you read the recent water articles in the Arizona Daily Star by Tony Davis? Lets take a look: Article 1: Climate change could reduce...
    234 views
    TA Tidbits #19-Current Events
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Mar 19, 2021
    • 2 min

    TA Tidbits #19-Current Events

    Tortolita Preserve (TP) Field Visit With Marana Officials TA Board members met with Terry Rozema (Marana Town Manager), Jackie Craig...
    257 views
    Dust Bowl
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Mar 10, 2021
    • 1 min

    Dust Bowl

    Tortolita Alliance (TA) attended the Local Drought Impact Group (LDIG) Meeting via Microsoft Team today (March 10, 2021). LDIG is a...
    226 views
    UnLittered
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Mar 7, 2021
    • 1 min

    UnLittered

    Thanks to Tucson Clean & Beautiful and Tortolita Alliance (TA) Board Member David Howe for organizing today's Santa Cruz River Trash...
    161 views
    TA Tidbits #18-Owl-Water-Fire-Grass & Trash
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Feb 28, 2021
    • 1 min

    TA Tidbits #18-Owl-Water-Fire-Grass & Trash

    Pima County Pygmy Owl Monitoring Pima County Newsletter Vol. 6 No. 3 (2/12/21) provides a nice description and update of the County's...
    241 views
    TA Alert! Marana CIP
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Feb 23, 2021
    • 1 min

    TA Alert! Marana CIP

    The Marana Town Council meets tonight (2/23/21) in a Study Session to discuss the proposed 2022-26 Capital Improvement Program (CIP). TA...
    187 views
    Water Woes I
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Feb 19, 2021
    • 3 min

    Water Woes I

    Lake Mead-41% Full White Paper 6-Alternative Management Paradigms for the Future of the Colorado and Green Rivers casts doubt on the...
    321 views
    TA Tidbits #17-Hot Local News & Events
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Feb 5, 2021
    • 3 min

    TA Tidbits #17-Hot Local News & Events

    Sun-Moon-Earth Upper Javelina Trail TA Meets With Marana Town Manager TA Board members Mark Johnson, Dave Barker and Jim Tripp met via...
    236 views
    Santa Cruz River Cleanup
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Jan 31, 2021
    • 1 min

    Santa Cruz River Cleanup

    Tucson Clean & Beautiful and other agencies/groups are sponsoring a Santa Cruz River Cleanup on March 7. The Tortolita Alliance is...
    310 views
    TA Tidbits #16-Rare Plant, Marana Stuff & Volunteer Opportunities
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Jan 16, 2021
    • 2 min

    TA Tidbits #16-Rare Plant, Marana Stuff & Volunteer Opportunities

    Amanda and Trevor Switzer make a stop at Strong Arm Saguaro Cactus in the Tortolita Preserve. Amanda and Trevor were visiting from Texas...
    300 views
    Dry and More Dry
    Mark L. Johnson
    • Nov 21, 2020
    • 3 min

    Dry and More Dry

    This is our 4th Quarter 2020 Drought Update The western US drought shows no signs of improving. A recent Cronkite News Drought Article...
    244 views

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