A Passion For Beavers
I’m Susan Allen, Open Range is a joy, on any given day I get to speak with a host of passionate people, some care deeply about the environment, others horses, cattle, fishing, hunting, etc.. but I had yet to meet anyone until my next guest who, (forgive the pun) gave a dam about beavers. Heidi Perryman works hard to educate people about the environmental importance of beaver colonies. In 2007 Martinez California city officials felt the only option they had was to kill a colony of beavers whose dams they believed held the potential to flood the city. Heidi got involved and not only saved the beavers but created a movement and just four years latter the city has reaped a wealth of unforeseen benefitsHeidi “ What happened when we allowed the beaver to stay and they built a series of dams is they created habitat for new species of wildlife , like otter, mink, heron, egrets and a host of new fish species”. Heidi's cause to save that one colony in Martinez California has grown into a mission to create national awareness beavers and their benefits. wwwmartinezbeavers .org has become a general clearing house for any thing people want to learn about beavers, from how to manage beaver problems to what kind of benefits beavers bring to an area when they come or are transported in. Its a tapestry of people and their causes that makes for such an interesting world.
