University of Arizona
Sense of Place
Geos. 195D
Tumamoc HillTumamoc Hill has been called the "Acropolis of Tucson." It is the prominent hill just west of downtown Tucson, just beyond "A" Mt. (Sentinel Peak). It is home to the famous and long-standing Desert Laboratory as well as various remnants of much more ancient civilizations.
Tumamoc, the top. Photo—Paul Sheppard, 2010.
Tumamoc rock art. Photo—Paul Sheppard, 2010.Tumamoc Hill is also a cherished spot for walkers, people who like to hoof it up and down the whole way to get exercise, see the great views, and socialize. This activity has been somewhat controversial because of access and protection issues. See the following links to the local newspaper for entries to this debate:
- 2/9/06: Desert Lab may shut Tumamoc to hikers: The director of the Desert Lab comments that the Hill might have to be closed to the general public in order to protect long-term research on the Hill.
- 2/13/06: West Side walk strains muscles and UA patience: An editorial asking for compromise on access versus closure.
- 2/16/06: Letters to the editor: The vox populi, letters to the editor, give a sense of the public on this issue. The first two letters in this link are about Tumamoc access.
- 2/19/06: Hilltop privy is a comfort to all: An editorial noting a compromise that has resulted in a portable toilet on Tumamoc Hill.
- 2/23/06: Careful who you call elite: A letter to the editor (5th one down) noting the lengthy research tradition of the Desert Laboratory on Tumamoc Hill.
- 4/24/07: Tumamoc Hill is too crowded: A letter to the editor (3rd one down) complains that Tumamoc Hill has so many walkers that there's no longer any solitude in the walk.
- 2/23/06: The Lost World: Paul Martin's look back at animal extinctions leads to some controversial ideas for the future. Paul Martin is a prominent figure recently of the Desert Lab of Tumamoc Hill.
Buffelgrass
A non native, introduced grass called buffelgrass is an ecological issue for Tucson specifically and the Sonoran Desert more generally. Click here for an overview of the issue, including pictures, or here for the Buffelgrass Information Center. Then cruise through the following news articles, op-eds, and letters to the editor.
- 3/22/06: Non-Native Weeds Get Whacked in Southwest: The issue of buffelgrass invading the Sonoran Desert was covered on NPR's "All Things Considered," including interviews with workers of Desert Lab of Tumamoc Hill. Audio available.
- 3/30/06: Bad Grass: A look at the effects of the buffelgrass invasion into the Sonoran Desert.
- 4/13/06: Buffelgrass Gets a Little Love: A letter to the editor (go to bottom of page) in response to the Tucson Weekly cover story about buffelgrass. Just remember, for every opinion, there's always an equal and opposite oh-pinion.
- 8/22/06: Scientists: Buffelgrass a threat: Enough is enough. Millions in funding called for to eradicate non-native, fire-fueling "noxious weed".
- 8/29/06: Buffelgrass criticism is misguided; plant's benefits receive short shrift: Another alternative view that buffelgrass in the Sonoran desert is a good thing.
- 9/2/06: Bigger problems than buffelgrass: A letter to the editor acknowledging confusion on the issue of buffelgrass.
- 9/3/06: Grass is a blight on the desert: A letter to the editor, with no confusion on the issue of buffelgrass. This one is by the Director of Natural History of the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum.
- 9/3/06: Fighting grass worth the effort: Another letter to the editor.
- 9/6/06: Grass has many beneficial uses: Golly, yet another letter to the editor, this one by a soil scientist.
- 9/13/06: Unchecked, buffelgrass will devastate our desert: Golly, golly, yet another op-ed piece on buffelgrass, this one by an ecologist from the Arizona-Sonora desert Museum.
- 2006: Battling Buffelgrass: From the UA Institute for the Study of Panet Earth, another over view on the buffelgrass issue.
- 2/25/07: Pull buffelgrass, help save our desert: An editorial from the AZ Daily Star.
- 2/25/08: Buffelgrass has potential to radically alter desert: An op-ed piece from the AZ Daily Star, exactly one year after the previous editorial.
- 7/20/08: A deadly fight our desert cannot afford to lose: Another op-ed piece from the AZ Daily Star.
- July 08: Buffelgrass Invasion: This is a 10-minute video on buffelgrass in Tucson. Well done. See it here easily on YouTube.
- 1/29/09: Beat Back Buffelgrass: The annual call for volunteers to pull up buffelgrass.
- 3/5/09: State of the Desert: A Tucson Weekly cover story on the Sonoran Desert, including buffelgrass.
- 5/6/09: We must not surrender to buffelgrass: Another AZ Daily Star op-ed piece reaffirming the fight against buffelgrass.
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