Illustration by Cody Angel

As big stories go, the piece in yesterday's Arizona Daily Star hardly competes with the debate over Iraq or the latest from North Korea. But in a year dominated by tales of war and woe, the news that a potentially divisive group of local businesspeople, developers, and environmentalists had agreed on a plan to protect 55 desert species was a welcome respite from budget cuts, terror alerts, and shuttle disasters. While the agreement ÷ part of a group of proposed regulations drafted as part of Pima County's Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan ÷ might not look like much, it serves as a reminder that compromise and negotiation can reap fruit in even the most stubborn disagreements.

Phil Leckman

They may not be as storied as the Apache Wars or the showdown at the OK Corral, but the vitriol and bitterness of the decades-long struggle for the Southwest's environmental destiny equals either of those more famous conflicts. The battles in these environmental wars might erupt in courthouses or on op-ed pages, but the bad blood between the participants could rival any shooting conflict. Environmentalists paint their opponents as irresponsible anachronisms, or as money-grubbing capitalists incapable of seeing beyond their swollen wallets. Similarly, developers and ranchers demonize their foes as big-city idealists bent on depriving hard-working Americans of their livelihoods for the sake of a few rare owls. Based on rhetoric alone, the eco-wars look like an unlikely place for compromise and consensus to emerge.

In Tucson and many other cities across the Southwest, however, that's exactly what's happening. Faced with the stark realities of a weakened economy and an increasingly precarious water supply, the combatants in this most intractable of conflicts are slowly discovering that their interests are best served by finding common ground.

Many environmentalists, for instance, are realizing that ranchers unable to make a living from their land will most likely sell out to developers, especially in the areas near cities where habitats are the most vulnerable. As a result, many environmental groups are now working with ranchers to help develop sustainable, responsible rangeland management techniques.

Similarly, developers who once looked upon any land-use restrictions as an unfair and unnecessary burden are now recognizing the role healthy environments and livable communities play in making a place attractive to new residents. An increasing number of new developments now include sizable conservation easements, tighter clusters of homes, and more protection for key habitats

The positive effects of this increasing cooperation between one-time enemies are manifest in the Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan. To be sure, the plan represents a major victory for environmentalists: as currently envisioned, it would create over 200,000 acres of new mountain parks, protect riparian areas, and increase protection for ironwood forest and other threatened ecosystems.

But the plan also displays the marks of years of collaborative work and input from groups at every point on the environmental spectrum. It recognizes the fundamental connection between healthy ranchland and environmental protection, and

provides tax incentives and property-lease assurances so that ranchers on Tucson's fringes can continue to earn a living.

And although developers will bear an increased financial burden due to a brace of new impact and mitigation fees, the development community has had a voice in the proceedings from the beginning.

The effectiveness of this emphasis on cooperation and consensus can be seen in the species-protection initiative discussed in yesterday's Star. Species protection is often a dicey issue, and the proposal, which extends protection to 55 sensitive desert species, would seem to have the potential for controversy. The Conservation Plan working group that adopted the proposal, however, approved it almost unanimously, with only one member out of 11 objecting. While the plan's 45-member Steering Committee was somewhat less supportive of the measure, it still passed by an overwhelming majority.

It's important, of course, not to over-hype the proposal's importance. This is just one little piece of the plan, and numerous sticky issues still lie ahead. But Tucson's developers, environmentalists, and ranchers are agreeing on constructive steps to ensure a sustainable, healthy Sonoran desert for Arizona's future. It may not be peace in the Middle East or an agreement on Iraqi weapons. But it's an inspiring example that conflict is not always the only answer.