Check out this New Times article published on May 21, 1998 regarding the death of "eccentric country lawyer" Deborah Ham.
The article reports that Ms. Ham led an uphill battle to keep the Carlota copper mine out of Pinto Creek. Over 10 years after her death, the battle continues.
In the December prior to her death, Ms. Ham filed suit in federal court against the U.S. Forest Service after being approached by a local group called Citizens for the Preservation of Powers Gulch and Pinto Creek. The suit asked for an injunction to keep the forest service from authorizing any work on the Carlota Mine.
The New Times article reports that Ms Ham's efforts to stall the mine project "earned her the enmity of the mining community in Miami and Globe...But she never lost her temper or her nerve."
When questions were raised whether the creek actually flowed year round, Ms. Ham found out for herself... by hiking the 20 mile length of the creek in the month of July - No small feat in the Arizona summer.
Since the death of Deborah Ham in 1998, some say that Pinto Creek has been lost to the Carlota Mine. Indeed, the mine has had it's impact on the creek. But is there anything left worth "saving"?
Maybe it's time to repeat Ms. Ham's 20 mile walk.
