Protect the ONLY 60 Acres of Chert Glades in the World

Tell the City of Joplin, Wildcat Glades Conservation & Audubon Center and the Missouri Department of Conservation to stop public fishing and swimming at Wildcat Glades park because of dangerous levels of Lead, Cadmium and E. Coli it's unsafe and irresponsible to contiue to encourage these activities.

This petition was initially about Joplin South Baseball field and it's removal from the Chert Glades, but I felt the more pressing issue now is the Lead and Cadmium levels that's why this petition reads a little different now, but let us not forget all the range of injustices going on at the park, like the removal of the baseball field, and "No New Development" at Wildcat Glades Park period. Because they now plan on adding a new Observation/Fishing Deck and Parking Lot at Grand Falls, and carve out a new trail from Grand Falls all the way to Low-Water Bridge in Joplin, Missouri. Again encouraging the public to fish from known polluted water!

There is only 60 Acres of Chert Glades in the Entire World, a globaly unique ecosystem found only in the SW Missouri area.  Missouri's own desert system. 

A Chert Glade an open area of land with little to no trees, and is very rocky terrain with very shallow soil and plant root systems. It is home to some rare and hard to grow lichens and mosses, in 2002 a new speices of lichen was discovered,  and the glades are home to some amazing lizards and insects like the collard lizard, the lichen grasshopper.   Chert is what makes this glade unique, it is the underlaying bedrock, extremely rare and beautiful, it's the hardest rock on earth second only to the diamond, and is only found like this in SW Missouri. 

Past mining operations have distroyed most of our Chert Glades and what remains Must be protected, that is also partly why the lead and cadmium levels are so high a lack of proper management. And the baseball field and the litter associated with it has no place in this endangered ecosystem! And adding in more Parking Lots and Observation Deck is out of the question.  This can Not Be Allowed to happen.

Don't allow the City of Joplin to make these important decision for the world, let our voices be heard, from far and wide, from every corner of the world, because this land doesn't belong to just Joplin alone, but the entire world, but they feel that they can get away with ruining it without your say. And I say No! It's time we fight back! Because once this land is gone, it's gone forever, and it's disappearing at a rate of approx. 1 acre a year, mainly due to new development.

Thank You,
Michelle Short
founder of Wildcat Warriors Conservation Group

Tell the City of Joplin, Wildcat Glades Conservation & Audubon Center and the Missouri Department of Conservation to stop public fishing and swimming at Wildcat Glades park because of dangerous levels of Lead, Cadmium and E. Coli it's unsafe and irresponsible to contiue to encourage these activities.

This petition was initially about Joplin South Baseball field and it's removal from the Chert Glades, but I felt the more pressing issue now is the Lead and Cadmium levels that's why this petition reads a little different now, but let us not forget all the range of injustices going on at the park, like the removal of the baseball field, and "No New Development" at Wildcat Glades Park period. Because they now plan on adding a new Observation/Fishing Deck and Parking Lot at Grand Falls, and carve out a new trail from Grand Falls all the way to Low-Water Bridge in Joplin, Missouri. Again encouraging the public to fish from known polluted water!

There is only 60 Acres of Chert Glades in the Entire World, a globaly unique ecosystem found only in the SW Missouri area.  Missouri's own desert system. 

A Chert Glade an open area of land with little to no trees, and is very rocky terrain with very shallow soil and plant root systems. It is home to some rare and hard to grow lichens and mosses, in 2002 a new speices of lichen was discovered,  and the glades are home to some amazing lizards and insects like the collard lizard, the lichen grasshopper.   Chert is what makes this glade unique, it is the underlaying bedrock, extremely rare and beautiful, it's the hardest rock on earth second only to the diamond, and is only found like this in SW Missouri. 

Past mining operations have distroyed most of our Chert Glades and what remains Must be protected, that is also partly why the lead and cadmium levels are so high a lack of proper management. And the baseball field and the litter associated with it has no place in this endangered ecosystem! And adding in more Parking Lots and Observation Deck is out of the question.  This can Not Be Allowed to happen.

Don't allow the City of Joplin to make these important decision for the world, let our voices be heard, from far and wide, from every corner of the world, because this land doesn't belong to just Joplin alone, but the entire world, but they feel that they can get away with ruining it without your say. And I say No! It's time we fight back! Because once this land is gone, it's gone forever, and it's disappearing at a rate of approx. 1 acre a year, mainly due to new development.

Thank You,
Michelle Short
founder of Wildcat Warriors Conservation Group