Since moving to Phoenix in 2008, one thing I can appreciate is the efforts by its communities to preserve the desert landscape. With the industrialization of the 21st century, Maricopa Country has seen the fastest growth in the nation with a majority taking place in the west valley. As a result, much of the desert landscape throughout the valley has been replaced by this new industrialization. Not that I think this is a bad thing but we still need to preserve what identifies Phoenix, Arizona as a desert.

On April 15th, 2021, several west valley cities came together to proclaim April 22, 2021, as "White Tank Wild Day" in an effort to support the White Tank Mountains Conservancy's initiative to preserve the natural heritage of the White Tank Mountains. The proclamation outlines the mountain range as “The Crown Jewel of the West Valley” and explains its importance to the area as a regional destination of 38,000 acres and 46 miles of recreational trails for nearly 700,000 annual visitors. April 22 was chosen for “White Tank Wild Day” to coincide with Earth Day and several west valley mayors plan to adopt this proclamation which included Mayor Eric Orsborn (Buckeye), Mayor Skip Hall (Surprise), Mayor Cathy Carlat (Peoria), and Mayor Georgia Lord (Goodyear). 

To celebrate this historic proclamation, the White Tank Mountain Conservancy hosted an event at Skyline Regional Park in Buckeye, AZ. The event started at 8:00 AM and began with a welcome message, followed by a student reading of the Pledge of Allegiance, and proceeded with the reading of the proclamation. The event also featured breakfast catered by Chef RaShon Smith of Fresh Fitness Kitchen. Ebb and Flow Coffee, located in Verrado, donated proceeds from sales from 6 AM - 3 PM that day to the White Tank Mountains Conservancy.  

To learn more about the White Tank Mountains Conservancy and its initiative, go to https://www.wtmconservancy.org/

Fresh Fitness Kitchen https://www.freshfitnesskitchen.com/

Ebb and Flow Coffee https://ebbandflowcoffeeco.com/

Gear Used

Camera:  Sony a7III

Lens:  Tamron 28-75, f/2.8 with a Tiffen .3 ND Filter