New Mexico Wilderness Alliance nonprofit org. P.O. Box 25464 U.S. Postage Albuquerque, NM 87125 PAID albuquerque, nm Do you need to renew? Check your membership permit no. 426 expiration date located above your name and address. The Newsletter of the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance

America’s Great Outdoors A promise for future Americans

Hardrock Mining Threatens Otero Mesa on page 11

Volume 8, Number 2—Summer 2011 from the executive director

The Newsletter of the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance summer 2011

Inside This Issue: The Summer of My Youth...... 2 The Summer El Rio Grande del Norte...... 4 Organ Mountains-Doña Ana County of My Youth Conservation Act...... 5 Hardrock Mining Threatens Otero Mesa...... 6 By Stephen Capra Rio Grande: An Untapped Resource ith summer comes a sense rope. On the beach, gulls would fly overhead; for Recreation and Education...... 7 of liberation. It is a time for pelicans glided low in squadrons, while shore- warmth and new life, a time birds danced on the undulating shoreline. The New Mexico Connection...... 8 for exploration. When I was In South Carolina in the 1960s and early young,W summer meant leaving the heat and in- 70s, going to the beach remained mostly some- Wilderness Rites of Passage for tensity of New York City to go and explore what thing for a select group of people. Being from Adolescents...... 10 was then a rather rural North Carolina. With my New York, I quickly noticed that there were no cadre of friends, we would search for tadpoles African-Americans at the beach. My aunt told Acequias: A Traditional Activity...... 11 and crawfish and build forts in the woods. In me that, although no laws prevented it, it was Otero Mesa: A Sacred Place those woods, time would stand still, as the hu- generally frowned upon. Several miles to the midity and heat kept us moving slowly; for us it north of our stretch of pearly sand, swimming to Apache...... 12 was a place for rumination. pools, and hotels, we would quickly drive past a FEATURE: Otero Mesa and the Today, those woods are part of an apartment decrepit sign saying Welcome to Atlantic Beach. complex; a large shopping mall towers to the Atlantic Beach was then the only beach that wel- America’s Great Outdoors south. My friends have grown and dispersed comed African-Americans. The town itself was Initiative...... 13 around the country, though many stayed in poor; it had no large hotels, no boardwalk, few North Carolina. There in the southern part paved roads—simply a beach, a few stores and The Crest of Montezuma...... 17 of the state, cities have sprung up, and large homes in need of repair. When we drove by, we Public Enemy No. 1...... 18 swaths of forests have been cut, replaced with were filled with fear, a fear of the unknown, sec- malls, apartments, churches, and schools. ondhand stories of drinking—the mythology of Wayward Wild Lands...... 19 People drive on the weekends to visit the moun- race, transfixed in time in the minds of children. tains or head south to the beach. Their sense of Atlantic Beach was for me an original blank spot Rare Earth Elements...... 20 wildness has been severely compromised. Wild- on a map, a place I at once feared yet wanted to Roads to Ruin...... 21 ness for them is a second home in the moun- explore, to understand. tains. Their repository of wild data is being lost, My aunt was not comfortable with Atlantic Federal and State Governments much like a traditional language, of which the Beach. She was not racist; she was God-fearing Partner to Preserve Wilderness...... 22 children speak less than their parents; in an- and welcomed all people. She was troubled by other generation, will the language—or in truth, the South she knew, but she understood the land Volunteer Wilderness Surveys...... 22 the connection—be lost? she was raised on, the soil that was tilled by hard As a child, I did not think in terms of wild- labor, the mind-set developed by fear, humidity, Rotten Tomatoes: ness; rather I thought in terms of the unknown. and intimidation. She prayed and made clear to 1872 Mining Law...... 23 The power of mystery was directly connected us that places like Atlantic Beach and concepts to empty places on a map. My curiosity was my such as segregation would, in time, change. The Mexican Wolf and a compass; the creeks, woods, and moonlit eve- On the beach I noticed the wondrous sense Congressman...... 24 nings were my guide. The frogs from my sum- of open space. Life in New York City was also What Would You Like Your mer adventures whom I kept in my city apart- wonderful and enriching, but it was life spent ment kept my spirit connected to what I con- in a deep canyon. Here on the beach, I began Legacy to Be?...... 26 sidered the outdoors; the concept of wilderness to sense space, the confluence of open land and New Mexico Educators Federal remained foreign for some years to come. sky. In New York, buildings, shadows, and a sky Every year, usually in July, my grandmother, carved by fabricated structures, threw my per- Credit Union...... 26 my aunt, and I would head to South Carolina, ception. So did the hurricane of humanity. On Cover photo: Mescalero Apache women at to visit some small beach towns. At the beach, this stretch of beach I could run, breathe, and Alamo Mountain, Otero Mesa. By Rich Beer I would wake early, searching for sharks’ teeth, feel free. I was learning a new language, but my starfish, and pleated shells, and watching crabs accent would take time to evolve. carve notes on the sand, only to watch their de- From that humble and frankly rather normal www.nmwild.org signs erased with the incoming tide. In the water, beginning, I began to wonder about the West. If I imagined an ocean full of life and wondered the beach offered such open space, what would how deep such vast waters could be. If I strained the Great Plains or the Rocky Mountains invite? my eyes hard enough, perhaps I could see Eu- In movies and in National Geographic, I was

2 New Mexico Wild! Summer 2011 New Mexico Wilderness Alliance afforded glimpses. Looking at an occasional map, In order for this to work, we must accept losing Main Office I wondered what defined such lands. Was it a wild control. For in all things wild is the desire not to be 505/843-8696 Fax 505/843-8697 and craggy mountain range? Would grizzly roam controlled. In the South, the desire for wilderness [email protected] www.nmwild.org P.O. Box 25464, Albuquerque, NM 87125 those lands freely? Where was the place of tall has largely yielded to the passion for growth. Here grasses and what of rivers that run wild? in the West, we too are seeing great expansion, not Las Cruces Field Office 275 N. Downtown Mall During college in the mountains of North Caro- just in towns and people, but also in the hunt for Las Cruces, NM 88001 lina, I began to explore wild areas. I found myself natural resources. Yet wilderness perseveres. 575/527-9962 feeling closed in by forests, thick with trees, and From Leopold to Murie, from Sig Olsen to Terry Santa Fe Field Office views that were often hazy and shrouded by the Tempest Williams, the voices of those who define 341 E Alameda St denseness of Eastern wilderness. the natural word have maintained a following; Santa Fe, NM 87501 That first drive west was a revelation of freedom. they have opened for us a window into the natural 505/216-9719 The land around me began to shed its humanity, world, one that allows us to define what we cannot Mission Statement The New Mexico Wilderness Alliance is dedicated to first becoming farmland, then even losing its sense control. It allows for our enrichment yet begs for the protection, restoration, and continued enjoyment of of ruminant animals, becoming that intersection our personal responsibility. Working in New Mex- New Mexico’s wildlands and Wilderness areas. of land and sky, that place at once familiar but ico, we follow in the footsteps of many who have NMWA Staff seemingly so long in coming. The mountains were helped define and direct the modern conservation Albuquerque Office teeming with beauty; the long days and star-filled movement. Yet, we continue to debate issues that Stephen Capra, Executive Director nights made life seem perfect. Over time, the desert seemingly were settled generations ago. Nathan Newcomer, Associate Director became a playground of canyons, hoodoos, sand There remains something about land, wildlife, Tisha Broska, Development Director Roxanne Pacheco, Finance Manager dunes, and grasslands. During these times, getting and water that stirs the souls of most people. Trisha London, Membership & Grassroots Assistant to the place was as much an adventure as the hikes Some see wilderness as a place to exploit. Oth- Craig Chapman, Special Events Coordinator or backpacks themselves. ers feel in their hearts a desire to allow it to be Judy Calman, Staff Attorney Hitchhiking to Alaska via the Yukon was long. free. In my many sojourns across this land we call Carlsbad Office The scale of the land was magnified; we crossed New Mexico, and the West, I have come to be a Steve West, Staff Scientist rivers that seemed to be the size of oceans. The strong believer in wildness, or self-willed land, Las Cruces Office bears, moose, wolves, and bighorns broke the as my friend Dave Foreman calls it. When I hike Jeff Steinborn, Southern Director silence of scale and generated blood flow to the in the Gila, my mind intuitively seeks out the Nathan Small, Wilderness Protection Coordinator heart. In Glacier Bay, we kay- Santa Fe Office Demis Foster, Community Partnership Director aked amongst humpbacks, Northern New Mexico seals, and killer whales. We John Olivas, Northern Director saw Muir Glacier, when it was Silver City Office still a beautiful glacier. I awoke Kim McCreery, Outreach Coordinator to a grizzly leaning hard on Board of Directors the right side of my tent, a Bob Tafanelli, Las Cruces, NM (Acting-Chair) bear full of gas—a smell and Nancy Morton, Albuquerque, NM (Secretary) sound that is hard for anyone Tripp Killin, Albuquerque, NM (Co-Treasurer) to forget. After a month of Gary Glenn Hartwick, Roswell, NM (Co-Treasurer) Joe Alcock, Albuquerque, NM steady rains, my pack and my Rick C. Aster, Socorro, NM body seemed to be generating Doug Chinn, Albuquerque, NM a layer of verdigris, one that Ken Cole, Albuquerque, NM only the southern sun could Claire Long Cote, Questa, NM Esther Garcia, Questa, NM wash away. Jim Hickerson, Cedar Crest, NM In those days, summer was Todd Schulke, Silver City, NM not the midpoint of the year; David Soules, Las Cruces, NM rather it was one long season Brooke Williams, Moab, UT of adventure. During my per- Advisory Council egrinations, I met many peo- capra s tephen Jim Baca, Albuquerque, NM Dave Foreman, Albuquerque, NM ple who worked the land in the West. They were prints of a grizzly, in hopes that perhaps by sheer Randy Gray, Missoula, MT loggers, miners, stockmen, and we shared stories, will they may have returned. In my heart, I seek Bob Howard, Santa Fe, NM food, drink, and laughter. Though our differences to find a means to enlarge the boundaries of this John Kavanaugh, Albuquerque, NM were pronounced, there was a camaraderie we wilderness, a place Aldo Leopold referred to as the Rick Wiedenmann, Carlsbad, NM shared, and it centered around the land. Somehow, “cream of creation.” Newsletter Staff in such settings, away from people, with a moun- The joy of summer continues, while cities con- Nathan Newcomer, Managing Editor Paula Eastwood, Design Editor tain or a river as a backdrop, we seemed to find tinue to translate the culture of man. Prejudice and Hilary Handelsman, Copy Editor common ground. fear remain part of our human condition, but the Since these days of youthful indulgence, I have maps that define our earth grow more crowded, What is Wilderness? moved to New Mexico and worked to preserve the with less blank space. Wilderness remains an es- The Wilderness Act of 1964 established the National Wilderness Preservation System to preserve the last lands we all care so deeply about. My lessons have sential part of clean water and healthy wildlife hab- remaining wildlands in America. The Wilderness Act, as been many. They began with the custom and cul- itat. What is often less understood is its intrinsic federal policy, secures an enduring resource of wilder- ture of our landscape. I have come to understand value to our human condition. ness for the people. Wilderness is defined as an area a culture that permeates the lands of the West For more than fifty years, my summers have seen that has primarily been affected by the forces of nature with the imprint of humans substantially unnoticeable. and New Mexico. It is the constant battle between a lot of hiking and camping. Through that pro- It is an area that offers outstanding opportunity for “managing” the land and allowing its wildness to cess, I have explored the West and myself, learn- solitude or a primitive or unconfined type of recre- dominate. It is a battle between machine and those ing along the way the importance of protecting ation, and an area that contains ecological, geological, who will hike or ride a horse. Perhaps a battle be- land, respecting people, and defending the notion or other features of scientific, educational, scenic, or tween the culture of the stockman and the freedom that our earth is a shared inheritance, one that we historical value. of the wolf. The frontier West has yielded to the ought to pass along far better than we received it. modern West, but the prolonged fight for control Not simply passing it along to people, but sharing continues. Finding a balance remains elusive. it with the bear, the wolf, and the other creatures Wilderness within that realm is an attempt at who define wilderness. In the end, that means los- sensibility in a modern world. It reflects, in its own ing control, in order to share. In so doing, we as a small way, our understanding, as humans, that we people may finally live up to our responsibility to share the land and water with more than ourselves. sustain a healthy planet.  www.nmwild.org 3 campaign update Rio Grande del Norte by John Olivas, Northern Director Designation Acres he Land of Enchantment” is a term tion Area Establishment Ute Mountain NCA (Total) 303,400 that perfectly describes New Mexico’s Act. This 235,876-acre (includes Wilderness) rich history, culture, and beauty. New area would protect BLM 235,876 Mexico offers a glimpse into ancient this mostly high mesa State 38,603 Thistory and delights you with its present-day art, sagebrush grasslands Private inholdings 28,921 culture, and natural beauty. It is home to places and piñon-and-juniper such as Chaco Canyon National Historic Park— woodlands from road Ute Mountain Wilderness 16,233 a hub of trade and distinct architecture for the building, mineral ex- BLM 15,636 ancient Anasazi—and the Gila Wilderness, the ploration, and develop- Private inholdings 597 nation’s first Wilderness area. ment. The NCA would San Antonio Wilderness 8,618 New Mexico has a rich history of protecting its also protect recreational BLM 7,322 cultural treasures, wildlife habitat, and diverse opportunities such as State inholdings 1,296 landscapes. In 1924, thanks to Aldo Leopold’s hiking, camping, hunt- perseverance, the Gila became the world’s first ing, fishing, mountain designated Wilderness. Today its rolling hills, biking, rafting, and more. It would protect yet This national conservation area would also year-round rivers and streams, sheer cliffs, and another place for visitors from around the world include the upper reaches of the Wild and Sce- high mountains are a destination for hikers and to visit and enjoy. nic Rio Grande Gorge, which are elk wintering backpackers. Fast-forward eighty-five years to Within this NCA, two wilderness areas would grounds and a migratory corridor. It is also a New Mexico’s newest wilderness, the Sabinoso also be protected. The San Antonio Wilderness part of the Rio Grande Migratory Flyway, one of Wilderness in northeastern New Mexico, which Study Area would be permanently designated the great migratory routes in the world. Eagles, was designated in 2009. It is a rugged landscape as Wilderness. Its unique character is shaped by falcons, and hawks make the basalt walls of the with narrow mesas, steep cliffs, and deep can- the 200-foot-deep canyon formed by the waters gorge their homes, while ospreys, hummingbirds, yons surrounded by New Mexico’s plains creating of the Río San Antonio, which bisects the Wil- herons, and merlins all traverse the gorge. The un- a striking contrast over otherwise flat terrain. derness area. The acquired Ute Mountain lands forgettable sound of migrating sandhill cranes can From its borders with Mexico to the south and would be designated the Cerro del Yuta Wilder- be deafening on an October hike through the area. Colorado to the north, New Mexicans today are ness. Ute Mountain is a forested, extinct volcano The economy in north-central New Mexico is hard at work to protect wild places across the that rises to more than 10,000 feet from an eleva- dependent on wilderness. It feeds the rivers and state. One of these areas lies in north-central tion of about 7,600 feet at its base. The ancient enhances New Mexico’s rural lifestyle by creating New Mexico and is a vast landscape with wa- volcano provides critical foraging and nesting a tremendous economic development opportu- tersheds that shape the magnificent Sangre de habitat for many wildlife species, including a nity. Most important, perhaps, is that it nurtures Cristo Mountains. On the western slopes of this variety of raptors like the peregrine falcon, the the people of north-central New Mexico, around mountain range near the Colorado border is the golden eagle, the bald eagle, the prairie falcon, the country, and the world. Efforts to protect proposed Rio Grande Del Norte National Conserva- and the great horned owl. this area date back to the late 1980s and early 1990s when then Representative Bill Richardson introduced legislation to protect the area. Unfor- tunately, his legislation never passed Congress. In recent years the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance, the New Mexico Wildlife Federation, San Antonio de Rio Colorado Land Grant, the Village of Questa, and many other organizations and communities have advocated for the passage of the proposed Rio Grande del Norte National Conservation Area Establishment Act. The sup- port list for establishing a National Conservation Area is vast and diverse. The Taos County Com- mission, the Taos and Mora Chambers of Com- merce, and over one hundred Taos County busi- nesses as well as thousands of individuals signed on as supporters of the Rio Grande Del Norte National Conservation Area Establishment Act. On March 29, 2011, New Mexico’s Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) and cosponsor Tom Udall (D- NM) introduced legislation to establish the Rio Grande Del Norte National Conservation Area in the state of New Mexico (S. 667). Congressmen Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM) and cosponsor Martin Heinrich (D-NM) introduced similar legislation on the House side of Congress (H.R. 1241). We want to thank our Democratic congressional del- egation for their continued support in champion- ing conservation in New Mexico. The dedication of New Mexicans and their members of Congress d u should be applauded, as Wilderness designation

iller is an important part of New Mexico’s long and s Rio Grande/Taos Gorge rich history of protecting the vast and beautiful

collin landscapes of northern New Mexico.  4 New Mexico Wild! Summer 2011 campaign update

The Organ Mountains – Doña Ana County Conservation and Protection Act

Organ Mountains la ea s twood u la pa

ntil June, Doña Ana County didn’t see rain for famous Pre-historic Trackways—and the Sierra de Las By Nathan Small, over 115 days. This intense drought following Uvas, which contains some of southern New Mexico’s Wilderness Protection last winter’s unusually cold temperatures did best Desert Mule deer habitat and hosts three different no favors for the wild lands surrounding Las quail species. Coordinator Cruces, New Mexico’s second largest city. Still, Direct efforts to undermine land protection are joined Ocotillos, Banana Yuccas, and Desert Wil- by other anti-conservation legislation that seeks to lessen Ulows bravely blossomed this spring. Just about the same or de-fund entirely programs like the Land and Water time, Senator Jeff Bingaman and Senator Tom Udall rein- Conservation Fund (LWCF). One of LWCF’s most recent troduced wilderness conservation legislation, the Organ successes was the purchase of land along Bear Creek, a Mountains-- Doña Ana County Conservation and Protec- tributary of the Gila River in the Gila National Forest. tion Act even as a host of anti-conservation bills were in- Other LWCF purchases have brought pristine lands in troduced in the 112th Congress. the Organ Mountains and Robledo Mountains into public The Organ Mountains – Doña Ana County Conserva- ownership, and hundreds of such stories exist throughout tion and Protection Act would permanently protect three the West. wild land complexes: the Organ Mountains, the Potrillo As of this publication, New Mexico’s monsoon season Mountains Complex, and the Broad Canyon country has begun to bring much needed moisture back to the which includes the Robledo Mountains and the Sierra de Land of Enchantment. Southern NM has seen a promis- Las Uvas. The legislation encompasses over 25 known ing start, and soon the mountains and grasslands outside Native American sites and cultural landmarks like the of Las Cruces might be green again. And, so far, the most Butterfield Stage Route and the Camino Real del Adentro. egregious assaults on wild lands and the Americans who Rare plant and animal communities are surrounded by treasure them have so far been held back. But, chang- thriving ecosystems left un-fragmented and full of high ing skies obscure an uncertain horizon ahead. Visit NM quality wildlife habitat. Over 25 local organizations and Wild’s Action Center to learn how you can help shape a hundreds of local businesses support the legislation, hav- conservation friendly future. ing built local agreements that are the foundation of the  Senator’s strong conservation proposal. Learn More: Anti-conservation legislation is littered throughout the http://www.nmwild.org/current-campaigns/organ-moun- 112th Congress. One of the most extreme efforts would tains-desert-peaks/dona-ana-county-wilderness-bill-rein- roll back Wilderness Study Area protections for mil- troduced-help-us-thank-our-us-senators/ lions of acres of lands throughout the West. It wouldn’t http://wilderness.org/content/groups-oppose-wilderness- spare Doña Ana County, abandoning current protections and-roadless-release-act in place for the Robledo Mountains—site of the world http://www.lwcfcoalition.org/

www.nmwild.org 5 campaign update Hardrock Mining Threatens Otero Mesa

By Drew Stuart

Hudspeth County, TX kaake jeff

I remember when I first saw lived near these mountains all their cruise missiles, the batteries of Rare Earth’s plan of operations for the Cornudas Mountains, lives, some whose families have electric vehicles, iPods, and com- exploratory drilling at Round Top, the thorny slopes of which rise up lived and worked around these puter hard drives. a plan that includes 12,000 feet of behind where I now live, in Hud- mountains for generations. These With their expanding centrality drilling and the removal of more speth County, Texas. Looking west people, I’ve found, are extremely in modern life, the demand for rare than one hundred tons of material from the desert flats below Guada- fond of the mountains too. earths is skyrocketing. By 2015 the from the mountain. In June, Texas lupe Peak, they appeared spectral, In February of this year, in my world is expected to consume 50 Rare Earth Resources announced a vision—this cluster of volcanic capacity as editor (and sole em- percent more of these metals than that it had raised $16 million to humps, domes, and spires— ployee) of our county’s weekly it did in 2010. China currently pro- fund its operations through 2012. wrapped or cloaked in a twilight newspaper (a part-time gig that duces almost all of the world’s rare If exploratory work confirms the haze, as if producing their own helps to underwrite my nearness earths, and the country has sig- company’s expectations, it may be atmosphere, gray and then brown. to the mountains), I found myself naled its intention to cut exports in that the only thing to delay a full- They seemed an essence, a concise writing about two plans to mine the order to preserve the elements for scale production mine at Round statement of the allure of desert region’s volcanic rock. domestic use, as well as a willing- Top would be the company’s in- mountains in general—that prom- First I stumbled on an online ness to use its near-monopoly as a ability to raise the hundreds of mil- ise, in Edward Abbey’s words, of press release from a company political tool. Some in the military lions of dollars such an endeavor “something intimate in the remote.” called Texas Rare Earth Resources, and in Congress are saying that the would require. But given the stakes When, a little more than two announcing its plan to develop a development of domestic sources involved, and the recent history years ago, I moved from the Texas major mining operation at Round of rare earths is a matter of vital of Wall Street investment in rare Big Bend to this spot near the Top Mountain, a 5,700-foot peak national security and economic in- earths, it’s highly unlikely they’d New Mexico state line, it was the some sixty miles south of the Cor- dependence. have any such problem. sense of mystery, of loneliness nudas in the Sierra Blanca Range. Though Geovic has declined to Geovic’s project on Wind Moun- and remoteness—despite the fact A little over a week later, I was told say what it estimates to be the tain and Otero Mesa might move that I was moving closer to urban that a company called Geovic Min- market value of the rare earths in more slowly. The company is seek- centers—that drew me here. I ing Corp had staked mining claims Wind Mountain, Texas Rare Earth ing to mine on Bureau of Land quickly took to the presence of the on Wind Mountain, the Cornudas’ Resources has not been shy. The Management property, in an Area Cornudas Mountains as the view, highest peak. Both companies company claims that, by remov- of Critical Environmental Concern, the main attraction, to the north hoped to extract metals called rare ing 1.6 billion tons of Round Top’s and it will face a far higher level and west of my home site. Igne- earth elements. volcanic rock, it could produce rare of environmental review and pub- ous forms are the norm in the Big Rare earths are not especially earths worth $128 billion. It ap- lic scrutiny than Texas Rare Earth Bend, and now I was looking out rare, I learned. Rather, mining pears that the region’s volcanic rock Resources. Nevertheless, Geovic at a landscape where evidence of geologists told me, what’s rare is has other, more marketable, values hoped to begin test drilling near volcanism was eclipsed by lime- to find them in sufficient concen- than its role in the ecosystem or Wind Mountain by mid-July—and stone—in particular, the spectacular tration for their extraction to be the admittedly subjective value that to be producing rare earths by 2015. face of the Guadalupe Mountains. commercially viable. The metals, my neighbors and I—and others The scope and nature of a pro- To have nearby these volcanic hills one of Texas Rare Earth Resources’ who appreciate this landscape— duction mine at Round Top are fair- and mountains—their rubbled and executives said, are “the vitamins find in it. ly clear. The company has indicated jagged forms, their color—felt like of modern technology,” with the The Round Top project is poised it would remove the mountain’s a kind of consolation: though I’d cut capacity, for example, to increase a to move forward quickly. Texas volcanic rock through a large-scale myself off from much by moving magnet’s power exponentially. The Rare Earth Resources has signed open-pit mine. Ultimately, the min- alone to this isolated place, certain metals make it possible for small a twenty-year lease with the Texas ing operation would likely level the well-worn pleasures wouldn’t be electronic devices to be small, General Land Office for 870 acres mountain. denied me. and rare earths have become es- at the site and holds prospecting Geovic’s founder, William Buck- In these two years, I’ve had the sential in consumer electronic and permits for an additional 10,000 ovic, says a mine at Wind Mountain opportunity to meet other people military equipment, in devices as acres adjacent to the mountain. In would have “minimal impact.” who live here, many of whom have diverse as night-vision goggles, late April, the GLO approved Texas While Round Top’s rock is shot

6 New Mexico Wild! Summer 2011 Building Community

An Untapped Resource for Rio Grande Recreation & Conservation Education New Mexico Needs a “Blue-Green” Trail Along the River By Dave Simon, President of Eco Think Former Director of New Mexico State Parks

xcept for some fabulous northern sections, completely avoid private property. of access points from north to south, which will the Rio Grande through New Mexico is Water in the desert is a major attractant and the benefit large and small communities. not what backcountry devotees would “blue” element of the RGT is also huge. And make no mistake; the RGT will benefit call “wild,” but the river has three things Despite low-flow conditions on the Rio during NM economically. Outdoor recreation is big Ein common with some of New Mexico’s most parts of the year, paddle sports—one of the fast- business and equals green jobs. Outdoor activi- remote areas: (1) it can be darn hard to get to, est growing segments of the outdoor recreation ties such as hiking, biking, camping, water sports (2) it’s worth it when you reach it, and (3) like industry—have great promise. The lack of river- and wildlife contribute $730 billion annually to wilderness designations, protecting the Rio side development supports a scenic and peaceful the U.S. economy and support nearly 6.5 mil- Grande is a conservation priority. paddling experience. Canoeing and kayaking are lion jobs. In NM, outdoor recreation contributes The Rio Grande is the heart of New Mexico: low-impact, healthy recreational activities with $3.8 billion annually to the state’s economy and the state’s primary drainage feature, most valu- wide demographic appeal. The Rio is a beginner- supports 47,000 jobs. The RGT will further build able natural and cultural resource, and a lifeline friendly river perfect for those who may not our green economy. that connects communities across millennia. Its have the interest, time, equipment, or expertise Surveys have shown strong public support for precious waters provide for human consumption, for whitewater in northern NM. Encouraging the RGT idea. Development and management of natural ecosystems, agriculture, industry, cultural recreational use of the river itself will lead to a land and water trails along the Rio will require ex- and religious purposes, and other uses. larger segment of the population that enjoys and tensive collaboration among local, state and fed- Conservation victories come about because ultimately cares about in-stream flow to sustain eral government, conservation groups, the private people save what they care about. Caring comes the river ecosystem. sector, etc.—and it will take time. Action must from understanding and, often, from personal ex- After keeping water flowing in the river, the also respect private lands and the wishes of tribes perience. If we want to save the Rio Grande as a most important action to encourage paddle and pueblos along the river corridor. But it can living river, it’s vitally important that we increase sports is improving access. Currently, quality and and should be done. Basic planning is in place, opportunities for people to experience and enjoy convenient public access to the river south of projects can be completed in phases, and local, the river—especially in the middle (Sandoval, Cochiti Lake is difficult or non-existent. The state and federal funds are available to leverage. Bernalillo, Valencia and Socorro counties) and Army Corps of Engineers will soon improve two And so I say to politicians at all levels of gov- southern (Sierra, Dona Ana counties) sections. river access sites in Albuquerque, but ernment, to agency bureaucracies, and to citizens The river corridor can support more recreation many others are needed. We need and community leaders up and down the Rio without compromising its natural values. A land to develop a seamless network Grande: Let’s get going! and water-based Rio Grande Trail (RGT)—tra-  versing the most state’s most populated areas— would expand recreation options, get families and youth outdoors to discover and appreciate the natural world, support community health- fitness strategies, increase tourism, and foster sustainable economic development. The RGT should be multi-use: hike, bike, equestrian, boating & paddle sports—but no OHVs. Recreation and environmental education would re-connect people to the river and build more support for protection and restoration. The best opportunities for now are on the river’s central and southern stretches. Studies have identified routes, which already exist in the levee systems of the irrigation districts and on publicly-owned land. The Mid-Region Council of Governments did a plan to extend the Paseo del Bosque Trail in Albuquerque north to Bernalillo and south to Belen. A NM State Parks plan for RGT from Belen to Sunland Park would connect seven state parks and other public lands, but

through with rare earths, at Wind remove the rock from within. spared any significant industrial that a place like this – where human Mountain the elements are con- No doubt there are some places development and that sustain activity is humbled by grandeur centrated in a band around the where this type of mining is ap- century-old family ranching opera- and vast open space – is rare earth mountain’s base, Buckovic says. propriate. Interstate 10 runs by tions. Mountain slopes in the Cor- indeed. Days before I began writing Buckovic says there are two ways Round Top Mountain, and another nudas are covered in profusions of this piece, geologists announced Geovic might mine Wind Mountain: mountain in the range is already prehistoric rock art, and the lands the discovery of a rare earth deposit the company could quarry for the the site of a large quarry. Maybe an are held sacred by the Mescalero off the coast of Japan, the scale metals, with a quarry initially 300 open-pit mine at Round Top—and Apache. of which dwarfs either the find at feet wide and 100 feet high, but that the ultimate removal of the entire To live here is, to say the least, Round Top or at Wind Mountain. Go could grow to follow the metals mountain—are appropriate. Maybe a blessing – and can inspire an dig that up, and leave the Cornudas around the base of the mountain; or not. Wind Mountain crowns mil- intense, even unreasonable devo- Mountains and Otero Mesa—this Geovic might dig a “portal”—a tun- lions of acres of desert grasslands tion. But I traveled enough of the blessedly forsaken corner of the nel underneath the mountain—and and mountains that have been world before settling here to know world—alone.  www.nmwild.org 7 Building community

The By Wayne Steffens New Mexico Connection

I’m sitting in a borrowed, I passed through the sprawling to wander at leisure through grass- few days, it should become apparent one-hundred-year-old cabin scrap yards and strip joints on the lands, mountains, and seemingly to all but the most barrel-headed oil in northern Minnesota, outskirts of El Paso and turned endless open desert space. I didn’t baron that Otero Mesa is not lack- looking over a small lake. north toward this mesa that is not have to pay a fee, buy a permit, or ing in oil wells or cobalt mines for The wind chases clouds of snow really a mesa. I drove a few miles, make a reservation. more cell phone batteries. If they across the frozen surface; the snow and the close hills dropped away, gaze through the Otero night into clouds vanish into the wooded shore. and grasslands rolled out almost as the bleak landscape of their own The cabin has been unheated all far as I could see. Large bands of an- But I was reminded of my hike in dim souls, they may realize it is winter, but the timbers are starting telope bolted across the broad sheet California a few days earlier, in a they who lack something. They may to creak and thaw. The wood stove is of golden desert. Several solitary place that was desolate and un- even realize they are in a damn good crackling, and the teapot is starting mountains jutted out of the plains known just a few years ago. It is place to find it. Unless that hap- to rattle and steam. Things are start- like nunataks in an ice field. Flat fifteen miles from the nearest paved pens, though, Otero Mesa National ing to happen outside too, despite Top Mountain. Wind Mountain. road. With federal Wilderness pro- Monument sounds like the best winter’s reluctance to leave. When I Alamo Mountain. tection came a trail guide telling alternative. Waiting and hoping that walked across the beaver dam to get I spent a couple of chilly days people where to go and encourag- oil and mining companies become to the cabin, I saw a blood-smeared and nights out there, not nearly ing them to come. And they came. conscientious and responsible might trail where a beaver dragged itself long enough to absorb the place What was a vague, hard-to-follow just be a fatal blunder for the place. over the dam last night. Soon my at- but enough to get a sense of it. I “route” just fifteen years ago and lit- For several years I have received tention will turn to such local signs climbed the side of Alamo through a erally forever before that is suddenly conflicting reports about risks to of spring, but I’m still following a jumbled chaos of boulders, prickly a trampled trail. When I neared the personal safety in the New Mexico different path, a trail of thought con- pear, creosote bush, cholla, and remote spring at the end, I discov- deserts south of I-10. Some people necting this place with my recent an astonishing profusion of petro- ered I was right behind someone and some agencies said it was fine, travels in New Mexico. glyphs. Humans, part humans, who had come in from another others said it was unsafe, others As I’ve been doing for years, I ar- sheep, snakes, turtles, a horse? Zigs direction, navigating with the GPS waffled and mumbled mixed sig- rived in New Mexico for a month or and zags, stemmed circles, angular, unit I could see in his outstretched nals. Being from northern Minne- two of camping, backpacking, and geometric shapes, weird lines—a hand. Wilderness protection sota, I had no way of deciphering hiking in late February, and my first dizzying display. brought visitation and loss of the reality, and I’m just not used to

I hope we can find the foresight to protect not only the majestic, beautiful, biologically diverse and unique places here, but also some of the bleak, barren, and boring spaces that bind them all together. destination was the southern des- And the best was yet to come. The solitude, and disturbance to the those sorts of concerns. Sure, we get ert around Las Cruces. But almost night. The night was black and huge desert springs that are critically im- the occasional Canadian sneaking as soon as I arrived, I saw several and still except for occasional coyote portant to the species that live there. south across the northern border for snowflakes falling, and I panicked. I cries. The darkness was unpunished That site is inching toward fees, per- our superior beer, but they are gen- headed to the California desert for a by artificial lights. There was only a mits, regulations, and reservations. erally not dangerous. Usually a swift week and worked my way back with faint glow from a distant ranch and It seems only fair and reasonable kick on the bum and a “get back, the returning warmth. I also re- over the distant horizon, El Paso. that anyone who wants to force eh” sends them packing. turned with a mysteriously swollen This volume of silence and darkness change on a place like Otero Mesa This year I bumped into a veteran knee, and my modestly ambitious is hard to find in the twenty-first should themselves be forced to Border Patrol agent, and after a long plans for backpacking were scaled century. It is an endangered resource. spend a few nights there. Alone. Let discussion with him I decided there back to day hiking. I think a lot about places such as them get intimately acquainted with wasn’t much to worry about be- I’d heard bits and pieces about the this and how best to protect them. the object of their destructive plans. tween Las Cruces and the Peloncil- place called Otero Mesa for years. I’d Protect them from what? From de- Drop them off with a map and com- los. So I headed into that unknown heard about possible oil wells and velopment, of course, but also from pass, some beans and a sleeping country. I suppose many people cobalt mines. I didn’t know much accelerated change of any kind. Ot- bag, and block the exits. No GPS. would find this part of the desert else, just tantalizing bits. Something ero Mesa is vast, quiet, and lonely No electronica to get between them barren and desolate. But one man’s about grass. A lot of grass. Some- now. It has an abundance of wild- and the land, no glowing screens barren is another man’s beauty, and thing about open spaces. Something ness and solitude, but it wouldn’t between them and the infinite, this open expanse of Chihuahuan about the only native antelope herd take much to change that forever. swirling sky. Give them a cell phone desert is muy hermoso. It was easy in the country. I made my way out Oil wells, cobalt mines, a Wal-Mart. in case they get scared. No need to to tell when I had arrived at my there for the first time with keen an- Or popularity. I didn’t see anyone tell them it won’t work out there. destination, the Aden Lava Flow ticipation of vast and desolate grass- else during my stay, except a ranch- If they can survive the harrowing Wilderness Study Area. I wandered lands. I was not disappointed. er passing by in his truck. I was able ordeal of their own company for a for hours through the maze of black

8 New Mexico Wild! Summer 2011 building community lava flows, through corridors of of that. Ascending to a small saddle, the late March sun. A warm spring corrugated lava. I contemplated gas I take a last look at the fragmented breeze blows through the oaks and Seventy miles from this frozen lake vesicles in the rock. Some cooled brown hills of the outside world be- pines and alligator junipers, a few a cell phone tower is at the center in place as round, rocky bubbles. fore dipping into the intact interior, nearly as wide as I am tall. The of a court battle. Opponents cor- Some merely bulged upward but the green fire canyons of the Gila. I slopes of the valley ahead are like rectly contend that it will be visible were frozen in time and rock. Some wander a sensible ways and stop to outstretched, green arms. I’ll go just from the Boundary Waters Canoe made mad, hopeful dashes for turn around, but I still can’t make one more mile, climb one more hill, Area Wilderness and will harm the the atmosphere above, only to be myself do it. Up ahead is where I round one more bend in the trail. wilderness experience. Even closer trapped anyway. Some launched surprised a bobcat last year. I came I can’t help it. I’m a moon-drunk to this old cabin, the same company themselves upward while the lava around a curve in the trail, and it moth. is building another new tower that groaned forward, leaving inclined, clawed desperately up a tree, bits of I’ve heard that our Southwest des- will bring cellular service to perhaps hopeless trajectories to nowhere. bark flying everywhere. Thinking I erts could provide 80 percent of the a few hundred residences and hun- I found lush lichen gardens on had it cornered, I reached leisurely United States’ current energy needs if dreds of moose, lynx, and wolves shaded slopes of lava, several drag- for my camera, but it sensed my their wind and solar energy potential that don’t need it, and, unfortunate- onflies, the bleached husks of giant slight hesitation, my weakness of were fully developed. I wonder what ly, to this small lake with less than millipedes, a lone but happy house mind. It glanced up the steep hill, the desert would look like in that fu- a dozen seasonal cabins on it. This finch. The dusky volcanic cones of and with no hesitation of its own ture world. Would there be anything mostly wild lake and everything the Potrillos Mountains beckon just launched itself in that direction, fly- left of all the unprotected desert around it will become a little less a few heat-shimmering miles away, ing twenty horizontal feet but falling places, or would there just be lonely wild. Nobody opposed that tower. ensuring that I will return to this only half that onto the steep slope, arks of protection adrift on silvery Most people in both of these new border country. legs scrambling. It was gone long seas of solar panels? I hope we can service areas will buy a cell phone, I wanted one last wilderness walk before my camera was ready. find the foresight to protect not only and then another and another. They before heading north again, and I And butterflies are coming out. the majestic, beautiful, biologically will be assimilated into the electron- could think of no place better for a Mourning cloaks, spring whites, diverse and unique places here, but ic consumer food chain. Most won’t last hike than our first national Wil- desert orangetips and others orange, also some of the bleak, barren, and ever think about where it all comes derness. I went to one of my secret white, and yellow are all boring spaces that bind from. The hidden cost of this con- places—all my places in the Gila flying and basking in them all together. venience may be paid for by Otero Wilderness are secret—and headed And I hope my cell Mesa, or some other wild place with cross-country for a sheer, rocky phone never works at oil and metal deposits, far away, out overfall, above which some clear Otero Mesa. of sight, out of mind. pools usually lie. This year the pools  were bone dry, and except for a blue- smeared, side-blotched lizard, wild visitors were scarce. I followed an- other wash downhill until I came to some active seeps and small pools. Horsehair worms twisted and writhed in the shallow, gentle current. I found the remnants of late-night carnage. Dead moths by the dozen floated facedown in the water, wings spread as if pinned in a glass case, gently spinning in the breeze. I imagined them coming in the night before, seduced by the moon, falling like snowflakes into its deadly reflection. The next day I drove an hour to take another ill-advised hike. The swelling in my left knee had subsid- ed a bit, but I was certain from the loud, snapping sounds that I had torn the meniscus. Having worked as a seasonal biologist for twenty- two years in support of endangered species, I don’t enjoy the robust health insurance of those who spend their lives endangering species. So I can’t even get covered treatment in New Mexico. But I can’t leave, either—not yet. And why not take one more hike? I’m here now, and so is the trail. I wrap the knee and climb up the trail past shattered rocks of apricot and peach and orange and pink and purple and burgundy. The gray- ing remains of last year’s century plants remind me that we only get so much time to do what we want to do, and that makes my foolish- ness more palatable. They may get a century or so. I’ve already had half

www.nmwild.org 9 building Community tockphoto.com s i Natural Transformation: Wilderness Rites By Michelle Apland of Passage for Adolescents

stand at a quiet turn of the Missouri River. ways of the world, ideally with the support and Through the lens of nature, everything looks Autumn olive bushes ripe with tart, pink guidance of wise and loving mentors. To live different. The magic of the heartbeat, the shivers berries line the shore, their leaves shimmer- the fullness of the human plan for transforma- that arise from hearing the howl of the coyote, ing silver in the midafternoon breeze. In the tion, adolescents need to know they are moving the exhilaration that comes from physical exer- thick heat of a South Dakota summer, I stop toward a future filled with inspiration, connec- tion to keep warm or to build a shelter, all re- to pick a berry, and a crane fly alights on my tion, and purpose greater than self. Traditional mind us that we too are animals. In nature, we Ihand. She is long and lithe, her body like a slim cultures counted for their very survival on the remember our animal needs: water, food, shelter, dragonfly’s, with a lengthy, threadlike tail. After emergence of their youth as valiant young men fire. Sometimes we see death, unencumbered admiring her intricate body, I try to place her on and women and understood the need for strong by human ideas or involvement—a bird-kill site each shrub I pass. She resists all attempts, hold- mentoring and guidance for the transition into with feathers and blood strewn about; a short- ing fast to the back of my hand. young adulthood. tailed shrew motionless in the path; a squirrel hit The crane fly’s intriguing stillness soon gives In the United States today, adolescents come by a car on the side of the road as it was merely way to a slow and rhythmic writhing. I wonder of age in the midst of cultural conditions that trying to survive. Death is present, and so is if she has come to me to die. To my amazement, pose great challenges to their healthy maturation. life—blue jays squawking and chickadees sing- I realize that she is moving out of her old skin, They need support and guidance as they navi- ing, countless trees and plants continuously con- creating distance between head and forebody gate through our culture’s mixed messages and verting our carbon dioxide to life-sustaining oxy- and the protective covering that had held her. often misguided ideals. Without appropriate, gen. There is beauty in intricacy and uniqueness. Slowly she works her way forward, leaving be- intentional challenges stretching their physical, Adolescents’ rites of passage in a wilderness hind the thin, translucent shell shaped like her setting can provide a palpable understanding of head, body, legs, and wings. With great effort, the relationship with the earth, and a connec- she emerges, the fine filament of her tail mov- Adolescents need deep tion to a story that is so much bigger than any ing out from the husk that had contained it. She individual human drama. The knowing of deep, rests, fragile from the exertion. To my further “soul recognition” from their peers meaningful purpose is a need that is hard to ful- astonishment, she is much longer than she was fill in our society today, and it can be found as moments before. Offering her shelter on a nearby and mentors, and a vision of a future the earth draws the senses outward and invokes bush, I walk on, full of wonder at this glimpse infused with inspiration and purpose a sense of mystery and belonging that help at- of transformation. How could a two-inch tail fit tune our beings to a richer reality. Wilderness into a shell one half its size? How can something greater than self. rites of passage help create a relationship with emerge larger than the container it was in? these gifts of the natural world, and help ado- I have come to know that this biologically pro- lescents learn to navigate through the complex grammed renovation has much in common with emotional, and/or spiritual capacities, adoles- world in order to be more alive, joyful, self-lov- the evolution of the human adolescent, whose cents are left feeling deflated. With this, their in- ing, and purposeful beings. blueprint for transformation lies within. Ado- tense energy—meant to drive transformation and Adolescents need deep “soul recognition” from lescence is a time when youth are full of energy, lead them to fly into new realms of life—may their peers and mentors, and a vision of a future potential, and passion, standing on the brink of implode and cause self-destructive behavior. infused with inspiration and purpose greater endless possibility. Body and brain are changing Looking to the ancients for guidance, we can than self. This is a time when youths become rapidly, and there is an innate need to push the create contemporary rites of passage that are familiar with their gifts and passions and grow edges of what is known. As with the crane fly, both community- and nature-based. Here, ado- to understand the necessity of offering these in there is a biological need to shed the shell of the lescents can find needed guidance internally and service to their community and world. Weaving child-self and emerge anew: larger, stronger, more externally for a truly fulfilling journey toward a culture that illuminates joyful interdependence capable than before. Humans have an innate need adulthood. The natural world is a great teacher, and supports youth in utilizing the potential and for transformation. Perhaps because of the com- and an ideal arena in which to explore the self passion inherent in this life stage, wilderness plexity of the social, mental, and spiritual realms, apart from our contemporary culture’s constant rites of passage can transform our society. They however, the human adolescent seeks external barrage of impossible ideals. Nature offers a per- do this by fostering the growth of young men support for this transition. Phenomenal growth is spective on life that invites self-knowledge, in- and women who know themselves as power- possible here, as well as self-destruction. terdependence, and the understanding that each fully, inextricably connected to nature and to the Adolescents need to test themselves and the life is part of a greater story. world community.  10 New Mexico Wild! Summer 2011 building Community Acequias in Northern New Mexico A Traditional Activity

By John Olivas

n the United States, tire Mora Valley had acequias, and Acequia de la Rito y la Sierra and acequias are an an- there was no shortage of work. its lateral, Acequia de la Joya in cient form of water We worked side by side and told Chacon, New Mexico. He headed governance unique stories from the past. On one par- this year’s annual acequia cleaning to New Mexico and ticular project, I met an individual, crew, otherwise known as peones southern Colorado. Eufracio Vigil, who was a second (hired individuals, day laborers, or The form of acequia cousin of mine on my maternal individuals who are responsible for Eufracio Vigil governance that endures today in side, whom I had never met. (If cleaning tierras, or assigned sec- NewI Mexico has been practiced for you spend enough time here in the tions of land on an acequia). Mr. hundreds of years in the historic Mora Valley, you will find that most Vigil provided a brief history to the communities of the state. In fact, of the community is related in one volunteers who worked side by New Mexico is the only New Mexico is the only state that way or another.) Mr. Vigil spent a side with each of us. At sixty-eight, has statutes dedicated to acequia couple of hours with me sharing Mr. Vigil did his share of the work state that has statutes governance for the many thou- stories about my grandmother’s and will continue to do so for years dedicated to acequia sands of miles of these irrigation family. He told me some stories I to come. canals, which feed communities had never heard about my great Thanks to Eufracio Vigil and governance for the throughout rural New Mexico. grandparents that will be recorded Benancio Trujillo (the majordomo of When we talk about building soon. Mr. Vigil shared stories with the Acequia del Rito y la Sierra) for many thousands of community, we think of the Annual me about when he was a child and all their hard work over the years! miles of these irrigation Chacon Cleaning Service Project. his memories of spending time A special thanks to Dr. Estevan On April 29–May 1, 2011, volunteers with my grandparents in my cur- Rael-Galvez, who provided a his- canals, which feed from the New Mexico Wilderness rent house, which is over 200 years tory of the acequias in New Mexico Alliance and Voces, Inc. went into old. Memories like these are what at Saturday’s matanza. Thanks to communities through- Carson National Forest, above the make the culture and traditions of Arturo Sandoval for providing community of Chacon, to assist in this area so fascinating. great music for the evening’s out rural New Mexico. the annual cleaning of the acequias Mr. Vigil is a local parciante in activities. (which included three miles each  of Acequia de la Joya and Acequia del Rito y la Sierra), which have priority water rights dating back to 1865 and 1870, respectively. With the support of these environmental organizations and local community members (parciantes), there were over forty individuals helping clean the two acequias. “This effort by the conservation community gave our parciantes a moral boost that had been miss- ing for a very long time. We look forward to having you all back next year. Our acequias have not been this clean in a very long time, and we would like to thank all individu- als involved in this year’s cleaning of the acequias,” said Eufracio Vig- il, the majordomo of the Acequia de la Joya. As a New Mexico Wilderness Al- liance staffer and resident of the Chacon Valley, I can recall the tra- ditional acequia day for our ditch here in Holman, New Mexico. As a youngster in the community, I as- sisted on many acequia cleaning projects. Sometime I got a small fee for my services, but most of

the time I was a volunteer. The en- q u inn kelly

www.nmwild.org 11 nathan newcomer Otero Mesa A Sacred Place to Apache

By Ted Rodriguez, Alfred LaPaz, Larry Shay, fascinating and mystical petroglyphs in America. Here, Styve Homnick, and Houston Murphy— rising majestically out of the Mesa floor, Alamo Moun- tain harbors our ancestral rock paintings which attest to Mescalero Apache Advocates For Otero Mesa our fears, our struggles, our joy and our religious faith. National Monument We made seasonal villages on Otero Mesa. We hunted and gathered medicinal herbs, celebrated in ancient ntil a few months ago only a handful of the song and dance, intermarried with other Apache bands curious knew of the importance of Otero Mesa and we worshipped Usen, the creator of the heavens to the Apache. Otero Mesa is one of the most and the earth. sacred of places, if not the holiest, to us Apache. We are a proud monotheistic people. To us Apache, UFrom time immemorial we have had profound ties to Otero Mesa is our cathedral. this enchanted land. No other ethnic people in North American history Historically, Apache country spanned from western have suffered so much from stereotypes as the Apache Texas to eastern Arizona and deep into northern Mexi- We were described as “bloodthirsty savages” for co. We shared all of New Mexico with the pueblos. defending our land from invaders who respected Otero Mesa is centrally located in the heart of all this, neither our culture nor our faith. Today we live on forty miles south as the crow flies from the Mescalero reservations hidden away from what is left to us of our Apache Indian Reservation. Our ancestors lived here beloved mountains and plains. Still we struggle. peacefully for many hundreds of years. Our people For most of the past decade, a coalition of groups were nomadic and we left very few traces, with Otero has worked successfully to safeguard the grasslands, Mesa being the exception. wildlife and freshwater resources of Otero Mesa from In our language, we call ourselves N’dé, “the people,” full-scale oil and gas drilling. Now, however, a new and we left behind—as nowhere else—some of the most even more volatile threat has emerged for this sacred land—hard rock mining. A plan to mine for so-called “rare earth” minerals has the potential to significantly alter this landscape, but what is rarer than this earth that we hold so sacred? Just sixty miles south of Otero Mesa in Hudspeth County, Texas, a rare earth mine is already in the early stages of what will likely become a vast open-pit mine. Something of that magnitude has absolutely no place in the heart of Otero Mesa, and this is why it is our mis- sion to support the movement to preserve Otero Mesa as a national monument and ensure that our ancestral homelands are protected. Our advocacy group is comprised of Mescalero Apache traditional elders and community leaders. Collectively, we have experience serving on the tribal council and various tribal committees and youth pro- grams. We are employed by our local school system and serve in law enforcement. We maintain a Mescalero Apache Mountain Spirit Dance group. As concerned citi- zens, we wish to share the sacred nature of Otero Mesa with not only our children but also with youths from all cultures and nations. From World War I through the present, thousands of Apache men and women fought as U.S. soldiers to pro- tect not only America, but foreign lands from invasion. Now we respectfully ask President Obama, through the American Antiquities Act of 1906, to protect this pre- Ted Rodriguez and Larry Shay cious piece of land as a national monument. Let us take you there! It is a beautiful land!  12 New Mexico Wild! Summer 2011 stephen capra America’s Great Outdoors Initiative Albuquerque. Sincethattimetherehave in session listening administration an to out turned Mesa Otero protecting June of2010, supporters of over 400 America’s In Initiative. GreatOutdoors Obama the into perfectly Administration’s fits grassland beautiful and wild this point-by-point howthecampaigntosave following report, Oter In permanent protection. By protecting Mesa campaign presents to the administration for to express the ideal opportunity that the Otero Otero Mesa and the work of the Coalition, in order AGO report willbediscussedthrough thelensof Outdoors Initiative. The individual sections of the and recommendations of the America’s Great paign to protect Otero Mesa embodies the goals AGO report since2002. grassland byfocusingonthecore valuesofthe has beenworkingtoprotect this1.2-million-acre outlined thisyear, theCoalitionforOtero Mesa America’s Great OutdoorsInitiativewere just Although thegoalsandrecommendations ofthe goals oftheAGOInitiativeforalmostadecade. tion; theCoalitionforOtero Mesahasmetthe the idealchoiceforprotection bytheadministra- This wildandlargely untrammeledlandscapeis the America’s Great Outdoors(AGO)Initiative. provided bytheObamaadministrationaspartof guarded forfuture generations. order forthisuniqueNewMexicolandtobesafe- west. Otero Mesaneedspermanentprotection in great naturalmonumentoftheAmericanSouth- development thatwouldirrevocably destroy this historic resources, Otero Mesaisthreatened by character andawealthofnatural,cultural, lands intheUnitedStates.Despiteitspristine huahuan Desertgrasslandremaining onpublic NewMexico,isthelargestern andwildestChi- Otero Mesa,anundevelopedlandscapeinsouth- Abstract: GoalsofThisPaper Thisdocumentwilldemonstratehowthecam- Permanent protection forOtero Mesashouldbe A P e a o Mesadeveloped het r l y 2011, y t romise for F h Otero M e C e oal which details iti on

fo r esa andthe uture Americans http://americasgreatoutdoors.gov/ please visit: America’s Great OutdoorsInitiative, T protected. Southwest deservestobepermanently why thiscrownjewelofthe American and Mesa, Otero of values the about Cruces, alldesignedtoeducatethepublic in Las Alamogordo, and Albuquerque, held forums public other several been oteromesa.org. about theseorganizations, pleasevisit Otero Mesapermanentlyprotected. To more learn last decadetoachievethecommongoalofseeing and nationallevelshavejoinedtogetheroverthe America’s naturalheritage. to protect permanentlyauniqueportionofNorth Mesa represents thesinglegreatest opportunity ecoregion are inNewMexico.Inshort,Otero The majorityofpubliclyheldlandswithinthe of theentire desertisunderformalprotection. Texas.Mexico andwestern Only2.5percent United States–Mexicoborder New insouthern Chihuahuan Desertecoregion liesnorthofthe untapped freshwater resource. grasslands, isconsidered tobethestate’s largest Basin Aquifer, whichunderliestheOtero Mesa back atleast1,500years.Furthermore, theSalt iconic Wind Mountain,where petroglyphs date on AlamoMountain,FlatTop Mountain,andthe cal sitescanbefoundinOtero Mesa,including New Mexico.Thousandsofancientarchaeologi- ing itthelargest potentialWilderness area leftin Mesa qualifyforWilderness designation,mak- in theUnitedStates.Over500,000acres ofOtero and wildestdesertgrasslandleftonpubliclands native wildlifespecies,Otero Mesaisthelargest At 1.2millionacres insizeandwithover1,000 Introduction accomplish itsgoalsasoutlinedintheAGOreport. Otero Mesa,theadministrationwillsuccessfully o read more aboutthe A numberofgroups from the local,regional, Approximately 30percent of theentire

continued onnextpage www.nmwild.org

13 Otero mesa and the America’s Great Outdoors Initiative

ness Alliance (NMWA) alone has organized close to seventy-five public outings to Otero Mesa since the campaign began in 2002. Volunteer work on these public outings has included plant and wildlife inventories, Wilderness surveys, scientific research, and petroglyph documentation on Alamo Mountain (with results filed through the State Archaeological Archives). We estimate that total volunteer service time on NMWA outings to Otero Mesa since the beginning of the campaign is in excess of 100,000 hours. Other Coalition members also lead service-related efforts in the area. With the permanent protection of Otero Mesa, the land will be incorporated as part of the National Landscape Conservation System (Conservation Lands). The Conser- vation Lands has a rich tradition of support- ing volunteer work, and volunteers each year put in hundreds of thousands of hours of work to bolster the many national monu- ments and other designations of the Con- servation Lands. In fact, in 2010, volunteers contributed over 380,000 hours of time to tephen capra s tephen units within the Conservation Lands, in- America’s Great Outdoors and Otero Mesa: cluding over 65,000 hours in New Mexico. Protecting Otero A Chapter-by-Chapter Analysis Mesa would increase service opportunities and experiences for The AGO Report sets forth specific objectives in three chap- youth and others living in the nearby urban areas of Alamog- ters. The overarching objectives of AGO will be examined ordo and Las Cruces, New Mexico, and El Paso, Texas. within the context of the work of the Coalition for Otero Mesa. The following will show that by permanently protect- Enhance Recreational Access and Opportunities ing Otero Mesa, the administration will accomplish its top- Recreational opportunities abound in Otero Mesa. The tier goals for the America’s Great Outdoors Initiative. natural vistas, cultural sites, and wildlife are unrivaled in the region. For those seeking hikes in the last wild American Chapter 1: Connecting Americans to the Great Outdoors Chihuahuan desert, the Coalition has led trips to Otero Mesa Provide Quality Jobs, Career Pathways, and for ten years. The Coalition has worked over the last decade Service Opportunities to protect the 1,500-year-old archaeological sites in Otero A significant portion of Otero County’s growing service Mesa from vandalism so visitors can experience the amaz- economy is tied to tourism; the industry relies heavily on ing cultural resources—there are over 20,000 petroglyphs on the outdoor recreation opportunities of the region, especially Alamo Mountain alone. Wildlife-watching enthusiasts have related to White Sands National Monument, Guadalupe no greater opportunity for recreation in southern New Mexico National Park, and the Sacramento Mountains. A study by than Otero Mesa, where over 1,000 native species can be Headwaters Economics estimated that travel and tourism found. The hunting community in New Mexico, represented jobs accounted for 11.5 percent of all private employment by groups like the New Mexico Sportsmen for Fish & Wildlife in 2006. Creating an Otero Mesa National Monument would and the New Mexico Wildlife Federation, is among the most add jobs to this growing sector in Otero County. outspoken supporters for the protection of Otero Mesa be- Otero Mesa represents a huge service opportunity for those cause of its top-notch hunting opportunities. Specifically, the living in southern New Mexico. The New Mexico Wilder- native pronghorn herd that resides in Otero Mesa is one of the rtez de jone s de O rtez tina K ri s tina

14 New Mexico Wild! Summer 2011 Otero mesa and the America’s Great Outdoors Initiative

country’s last genetically pure herds, and it is a huge draw for a few of the publications that have highlighted Otero Mesa’s the hunting community. Furthermore, the recent “State of the unique values in recent times are: Alamogordo Daily News, Birds 2011” report, presented as part of the America’s Great The Albuquerque Journal, The Denver Post, The New Mexico Outdoors Initiative, listed twelve species of grassland birds Business Weekly, The New York Times, The Taos News, The San- needing greater protection. Otero Mesa is critical habitat for ta Fe New Mexican, Ruidoso News, and Las Cruces Sun–News. ten of those species. The Coalition has discussed the values of Otero Mesa with By protecting Otero Mesa, the administration would ensure a wide variety of groups and communities, and many non- that outdoor recreation of many types would continue to be traditional alliances have been made through that process. To available to New Mexicans and Americans. highlight one, the Mescalero Apache people, who have rich historical ties to Otero Mesa, formed a group in November Raise Awareness of the Value and Benefits of America’s 2010 to advocate for permanent protection of Otero Mesa as Great Outdoors. a national monument. Part of their mission statement reads, The Coalition for Otero Mesa has made it a central mis- “Our mission is to support the movement to preserve Otero sion to raise awareness of the value and benefits of the unique Mesa as a National Monument and insure that the history of grassland that is Otero Mesa. The Coalition has not only par- the Mescalero Apache People’s sacred connection to Otero ticipated in rallies and forums to talk about the importance of Mesa is recognized.” Otero Mesa as a protected landscape, but has also held its own events specific to Otero Mesa and the protection campaign. Engage Young People in Conservation and the Great Outdoors The Coalition’s first public forum was held in 2004, in Members of the Coalition for Otero Mesa have engaged Albuquerque. A crowd of 800 citizens, including hunters, classes across New Mexico in discussions about the wild ranchers, conservationists, Native Americans, elected of- and beautiful natural resources of Otero Mesa. Lectures on ficials, and other locals listened to presentations about the the values of Otero Mesa as a wild land have been held at values of Otero Mesa as a wild land and watched Governor numerous state universities and colleges, including the Uni- Richardson sign an executive order onstage mandating that versity of New Mexico, New Mexico State University, Santa all state agencies work together to conserve and protect the Fe Community College, Eastern New Mexico University, and resources of Otero Mesa. In 2010, during the administra- Western New Mexico University. At the secondary school jeff kaake jeff

tion’s Albuquerque, New Mexico, listening session as part of level, members of the Coalition have presented to public the AGO Initiative, 400 people voiced their desire to see Ot- schools in Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Las Cruces, Taos, Silver ero Mesa permanently protected. More forums are planned City, Truth or Consequences, Carlsbad, and Alamogordo. in 2011 and 2012. In addition, the University of New Mexico has developed a A public forum organized by the Coalition for Otero Mesa Land/Art Program that takes urban college students out of and sponsored by the New Mexico Wildlife Federation in the classroom and into wild places like Otero Mesa. The pro- Alamogordo in 2010 focused on the economic benefits of gram draws on the inspiration of the landscape and focuses national monuments and other conservation lands and at- discussions around art concepts and land protection. tracted one hundred local residents. Lecturers describing the Furthermore, many of the groups that make up the Coali- benefits of protected lands to their local communities includ- tion are committed to getting youth outdoors and have led ed a business owner living adjacent to Grand Staircase-Escal- youth-oriented trips to Otero Mesa. The mission statement ante National Monument in Utah and the former Republican of the Apache Advocates for Otero Mesa reads, “We envision mayor of Taft, California, who talked about the benefits his Otero Mesa as a place for Apache youth programs that will town saw from tourists visiting nearby Carrizo Plain National educate and inspire them by the unique lifestyle of their an- Monument. Las Cruces City Councilor Gill Sorg discussed cestors.” Ted Rodriguez, Headman of the Mescalero Apache the economic impact of birders traveling to Prehistoric Traditional Elders Council has said, “I view Otero Mesa as a Trackways National Monument outside the city of Las Cru- 1.2-million-acre classroom.” ces, telling the crowd that because of Otero Mesa’s impres- A recent trip of Mescalero Apache youth to Otero Mesa sive variety of native bird species, he believed Alamogordo inspired them to say they were ready to fight for Otero could capitalize similarly on the protection of Otero Mesa. Mesa’s future in the face of the threat of hard-rock mining For a decade, countless articles, letters to the editor, development. The Apache Advocates for Otero Mesa are editorial endorsements, and guest commentaries have been planning a blessing ceremony in Otero Mesa with members written by members of the campaign and its supporters in of the Mescalero Apache Tribe, as well as members of papers across New Mexico and throughout the country. Just several Mescalero Apache Mountain Spirit Dance Groups.

www.nmwild.org 15 Otero mesa and the America’s Great Outdoors Initiative

Such a blessing ceremony has not oc- curred in Otero Mesa in over 250 years.

Chapter 2: Conserving and Restoring America’s Great Outdoors Establish Great Urban Parks and Commu- nity Green Spaces Otero Mesa is less than one hundred miles from the large urban centers of Las Cruces and Alamogordo, New Mexico, and El Paso, Texas. These fast-growing cities of the American Southwest would greatly benefit from a nearby permanently protected area managed for the public. If protected as a national monument, Otero Mesa would become a part of the Na- tional Landscape Conservation System, a

collection of wild lands that exist for the capra s tephen American public. Otero Mesa would join the ranks of other national monuments source due to potential hard-rock mining by the Geovic including Agua Fria and the Santa Rosa–San Jacinto Moun- Corporation is a very serious concern for the Coalition for tains, stretches of accessible public land serving as community Otero Mesa, and should be for all of southern New Mexico. “spaces” for the nearby urban centers of Phoenix, Arizona, and Congressman Martin Heinrich voiced his concerns about Ge- Palm Springs and Los Angeles, California, respectively. ovic’s staking claims on Otero Mesa in a letter to the BLM in the spring of 2011. The Coalition for Otero Mesa urges the Conserve and Restore our National Parks, Wildlife Refuges, For- administration to protect Otero Mesa, which would in turn ests, and Other Federal Lands and Waters protect this vast freshwater resource for the rapidly expand- As discussed earlier, the conservation of Otero Mesa pres- ing population in the region. The “Threats” section of this ents an excellent opportunity for the administration. The document goes into greater detail, outlining the threats fac- America’s Great Outdoors Initiative seeks to connect Ameri- ing one of America’s last remaining undeveloped grasslands. cans with our natural heritage and protect the places, values, and resources that make our country unique. This document Chapter 3: Working Together for America’s Great shows how protection of Otero Mesa would accomplish the Outdoors top-line goals of the AGO report, and the Coalition for Otero Make the Federal Government a More Effective Mesa is thrilled to see a specific call to conserve nationally Conservation Partner significant federal lands. The Coalition has long worked with the legislative branch The Coalition for Otero Mesa urges the administration of the federal government to keep Otero Mesa wild. In a bi- to follow through with its goals in this section of the AGO partisan collaboration with New Mexico congressional repre- report to protect Otero Mesa. Specifically, the Coalition calls sentatives, the Coalition has worked with elected officials to for the administration to realize “Goal B” of this section, help give Otero Mesa supporters a voice. Most recently, the execute Recommendation 8.4, and advance this national, Coalition worked with Representative Heinrich (NM-1st Con- regional, and community-supported effort to preserve Otero gressional district) to express concerns to the BLM over min- Mesa by using the Antiquities Act to create an Otero Mesa ing claims staked by the Geovic Corporation in Otero Mesa. National Monument, while keeping the local public involved In the past five years, Governor Bill Richardson, Senators in the proclamation process. Jeff Bingaman and Pete Domenici, Senator (and previously House member) Tom Udall, and House member Martin Hei- Protect and Renew Rivers and Other Waters nrich have all publicly stated their support to protect Otero Underneath Otero Mesa sits the Salt Basin Aquifer, be- Mesa from development. lieved to be New Mexico’s largest untapped freshwater aqui- The Bureau of Land Management is also an important part- fer. A 2006 U.S. Geological Survey report on the hydrology ner in conserving the lands of Otero Mesa, and protective of the Salt Basin estimates that “as much as 57 million acre- designation will give the BLM an opportunity to fulfill its role feet of groundwater may be stored within the New Mexico as a conservation partner. To date, the BLM has been evaluat- part of the Salt Basin of which 15 million acre-feet are poten- ing other opportunities for protecting the natural and cultural tially potable and recoverable.” The report further notes that values of Otero Mesa. For instance, in the ongoing land-use “recent works suggest that the volume of groundwater stor- plan revision, the BLM is considering designation of the Ot- age within the New Mexico portion of the Salt Basin may be ero Mesa Desert Grasslands Wildlife Area of Critical substantially greater than 57 million acre-feet.” Environmental Concern, which has been proposed by the The value of the Salt Basin Aquifer for New Mexico led Coalition. In preliminary management alternatives released in Senators Pete Domenici (R-NM) and Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), November 2006, the BLM indicated that it was considering and Congressman Tom Udall to ask the Bureau of Land Man- management of portions of Otero Mesa to protect its wilder- agement (BLM) in 2007 to delay federal oil and gas activi- ness characteristics; and the BLM is also updating its inven- ties on Otero Mesa. Furthermore, the importance of the Salt tory of the area’s wilderness characteristics. The BLM’s recog- Basin Aquifer was a major reason that the U.S. Court of Ap- nition of the conservation opportunities on Otero Mesa is an peals for the 10th Circuit invalidated a BLM plan amendment important step toward partnership with the public and other that would have opened the majority of Otero Mesa to oil agencies to conserve wildlife, plants, and wilderness values. and gas leasing and development in 2009. The Coalition is glad to see that the administration is com- Despite the importance of the Salt Basin Aquifer to south- mitted to being an effective conservation partner through the ern New Mexico, the contamination of the aquifer remains America’s Great Outdoors process. In order to protect Otero a real threat. Geovic Mining Corporation has staked more Mesa permanently and conserve its abundance of natural, cul- than 150 mining claims in Otero Mesa in the last year alone. tural, and historic resources, the Coalition will need the federal The potential for contamination of this vast freshwater re- continued on page 25

16 New Mexico Wild! Summer 2011 the d.c. connection The Crest of Montezuma

By U.S. Representative Martin Heinrich (NM-1)

he Sandia Mountains have al- ways been a critical part of my family’s life here in central New Mexico. Not only did I start my children off hiking in the San- dias when they were still small enough to ride on my back, but my wife Julie evenT spent her due date hiking in these moun- tains just before our oldest son was born. While I served on the Albuquerque City Council, I was lucky to be a part of several efforts to protect hundreds of acres of Open Space that formed a critical buffer to the Sandia Mountain Wilderness and helped to connect its wildlife to populations in the nearby Manzano Mountains. This area is important to many New Mexicans dating back to indigenous populations, including the nearby pueblos and the heirs of the San Antonio de las Huertas Land Grant. That process, of giving these great mountains their due has been just that, a process—and it continues to this day. To back up just a bit, eight years ago Kewa Pueblo bought 900 acres of ridgeline that extend north from the Sandia escarpment, known as the Crest of Montezuma. This treasured land- scape just northeast of the village of Placitas and adjacent to the Cibola National Forest was transferred to the Bureau of Land Management through an exchange four years later. It is clear that the people of central New Mexi- co know well the value of these 900 acres. Many local residents have shared their concerns with me about the future of this land. Most concern- ing to them are the ways in which access could be restricted for recreational uses and that a criti- cal corridor for wildlife would be endangered. Gravel quarries or development could replace the trails, junipers, and mule deer that use oc- intend that our natural resources shall be ex- cupy the area now. The fear is that without the ploited by the few against the interests of the proper management we could lose the backdrop many…for our aim is to preserve our natural re- to the historic and beautiful Placitas village. sources for the public as a whole, for the average That is why I recently reintroduced legislation man and the average woman who make up the to shift management of the Crest of Montezuma body of the American people.” from the BLM to the U.S. Forest Service and to Transferring the management of the Crest of withdraw the Crest from development for min- Montezuma to the Forest Service could improve ing or quarrying. The Forest Service currently the quality of life for all who enjoy recreating, manages thousands of similar acres in the Sandia for all who benefit from the tourism dollars it Mountains for recreation and conservation pur- brings, and for all who pass down New Mexico’s poses. By shifting the management of the Crest outdoor traditions to their children in such a of Montezuma to the Forest Service, New Mexi- spectacular setting. cans can be sure that the land is not sold to pri- vate interests or developed for mineral resources. United States Representative Martin Heinrich Particularly in New Mexico, families have (NM-1) is a fighter for New Mexico’s working families long histories of using public lands for hiking, and a champion for our state’s burgeoning clean camping, hunting and other traditions, both energy economy and treasured public lands. Martin new and old. The Crest of Montezuma, which derives his inspiration and passion for public service is adjacent to the Sandia Ranger District of the from his working class upbringing, his wife Julie, his Cibola National Forest, should be a place for lo- two young sons, and the community of New Mexico’s cal residents to enjoy and for mountain wildlife First Congressional District that his family calls home. to flourish. Learn more at http://Heinrich.house.gov or call As Teddy Roosevelt said in 1912, “We do not (505) 346-6781.  www.nmwild.org 17 from the legal room BY JUDY CALMAN, staff attorney

Once upon a time, way back in 1993, a al forests from every single environmental law. Republican named Richard Pombo went to One bill was especially disconcerting. Pearce, serve in Congress from the 11th District of along with twenty-one other Representatives, California. Congressman Pombo spent the next introduced House Resolution 1581 in April. It’s fourteen years attacking every environmental called the “Wilderness and Roadless Area Re- law in the United States, including attempting lease Act of 2011,” and it would remove protec- a total elimination of the Endangered Species tions for over forty million acres of federal pub- Public Act. Assisting in his crusade was a man named lic land across the country. It would allow Todd Willens, a well-known “natural resources” vehicles in areas that have been left alone since lobbyist for businesses. Willens encouraged the 1970s, a move that would surely cause Enemy Pombo’s pillage; it fit in nicely with his own devastation to large stretches of habitat and biography and ambitions, and toward the end open spaces. Even areas with no existing roads of Pombo’s tenure in Congress, Willens was would be open to motorized “recreation” (i.e., appointed by President Bush to be the Deputy off-road vehicles). No. Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and New Mexico contains over 1.6 million acres of Parks in the Interior Department. He spent his Roadless Areas, including over 150,000 acres in time in government bullying federal employees the Pecos, and over a million in the Gila. There into recommending the delisting of endangered are fifty-seven Wilderness Study Areas on BLM species without scientific backing and altering land and four on Forest Service land, compris- agency documents to remove federal protec- ing almost a million acres. Over 1.5 million tions for the Everglades—like something right people recreate outdoors in New Mexico every out of a Carl Hiaasen novel. year, which contributes over four billion dol- In 2010, when Congressman Pearce was re- lars per year to the state’s economy. Areas like elected, he hired Willens to be his chief of staff. the Organ Mountains, the Columbine–Hondo, Willens seems to want Pearce to be the Pombo and the Lower San Francisco could all be at risk of the future, and Pearce has been only too under the bill, and, while these places are im- happy to oblige. As soon as Pearce was back portant to New Mexicans, they apparently don’t in Washington, he began an anti-environment concern Congressman Pearce. crusade of his own, filled with corporate dollars, The bill would also terminate the Wild Lands fear, and downright lies. Pearce was of course Policy, although this became a moot point with never particularly in favor of federal environ- the budget’s continuing resolution, which con- mental protections, but he has been using this tained a rider removing funding for the policy, Congressional term for extreme attacks, from and which has now been almost entirely rescind- holding rallies against the Forest Service’s Gila ed by the Department of Interior. A similar bill to Travel Management Plan and the listing of the H.R. 1581 has been introduced in the Senate (S. Dunes Sagebrush Lizard, to attempts to 1087), but neither has yet been called to a vote. 1 remove wolves unilaterally from the Endan- While most of Pearce’s recent eruptions have gered Species Act and exempt logging in nation- been fairly localized, this bill is far-reaching. It signals his comfort with large-scale environ- mental ruin, not only in New Mexico, but in the rest of the country as well. NMWA recently met with the Congress- man, who indicated in no uncertain terms his adamant resolve to op- pose all federal public land protections, as well as his unwilling- en ness to negotiate. We m ta encourage our readers n l o to contact their Repre- r l i a sentatives to let them

v w know that their constit-

n uents do not support

E the degradation of New Mexico’s open spaces through the deliberate diminution of federal environmental protec- tions. There is no doubt there will be more bills like 1581, and the soon- er Congressman Pearce realizes that New Mex- ico does not support his extremism, the less

time.com opportunity he’ll have s to follow in Pombo’s

dream footsteps.  18 New Mexico Wild! Summer 2011 from the legal room

Rep. Pearce’s Environmental Record Since his 1st term in Congress in 2003, Rep. Steve Pearce has introduced legislation that undermines pro- Wayward tections for public land and endangered wildlife.

1. HR 1202 (3/17/2011) – Waives all environmental regulations within forests to allow unfettered logging. Wild Bill would take Mexican Spotted Owl and place into a “sanctuary.” 2. H. Amendment 40 (2/16/2011) - An amendment to Lands reduce funding for the “Department of the Interior, Construction and Land Acquisition” by $239,045,000

3. HR 3824 – (2005) Weakened the Endangered Spe- cies Act (sponsored with former Rep. Pombo) Proposed sweeping changes to ESA including a repeal of the authority of the Secretary of Interior to designate critical wildlife habitats.

4. HR 6300 (June 18, 2008) – Released ALL Wilderness Study Areas in Dona Ana County and replaced with new Rangeland Management Areas. Legislation also mandated a sell off of 65,000 acres of public land in Dona Ana County

and established a “Land Disposal Advisory Board” (This 5833 P oint was the rancher off- roader counter proposal to the Citi- zens Wilderness and NCA proposal) 5. HR 1581 (4/15/2011) Wilderness and Roadless Area Release Act of 2011 – Releases all Wilderness Study Doña Ana Peak

Areas (WSA) not recommended for Wilderness by BLM. su mmitpo s t.org www. Also releases many roadless Forest Service land from being managed as roadless. Legislation strongly sup- he Federal Land Policy and Manage- turning the 2004 agreement. ported by Off Road Vehicle community. ment Act (FLPMA) directs the Bureau NMWA had high hopes for the new policy. 6. HR 3918 (9/27/2005) Outer Continental Shelf Energy of Land Management (BLM) to keep Along with other environmental organizations, Relief Act - Mandated that all funds related to outer an inventory of areas on its lands with we saw Wild Lands as a new way to protect open and T“wilderness characteristics.” What qualifies as spaces on public lands. It reiterated the BLM’s continental shelf natural gas drilling be expended nullified all presidential “withdrawl” areas from drilling. wilderness characteristics is defined in the Wil- obligation to manage public lands not just for re- derness Act of 1964 and includes the area’s size, source development but for recreation and habi- 7. HR 4808 (7/9/2004) HR 486 (2/1/2005) – Transferred naturalness, and opportunities for solitude. His- tat as well. We began the long process of updat- sensitive BLM land at foothills of Sacramento Moun- torically, when the BLM identified an area with ing our own wilderness inventory of BLM land tains to a private developer and supporter of Pearce in wilderness characteristics, the agency would to match more closely the Wild Lands guidance. exchange for lands owned near Holloman AFB. classify it as a Wilderness Study Area (WSA). It We were planning on using our own inventory to would manage the WSA to protect its wilderness help the BLM designate more lands as protected. 8. HR 2386 (6/5/2003) – National Monument Fairness Act qualities, and the agency would then make rec- These hopes faltered during the budget crisis – would essentially nullify the Antiquities Act allowing ommendations to Congress about whether or not in Congress. A stalemate was reached in passing the President to unilaterally establish National Monu- the WSA should become an officially designated even a continuing resolution to get the budget ments. Legislation would require Congress to approve Wilderness area. through the next six months. Several members new Monuments within 2 years after designation or In 2004, after a long disagreement between of Congress took great issue with the new policy, they would be nullified and revert back to previous land the State of Utah and the Department of Interior, and part of the six-month deal that was eventu- designation. an agreement was reached that essentially took ally reached included several riders; one of them 9. HR 1049 (3/11/2011) - ROAD to Jobs Act of 2011 – away the BLM’s ability to designate new WSAs. removed funding for the Wild Lands policy. Amends NEPA to require the Council on Environmental Old WSAs could still be managed as such, rec- We thought the policy would simply be on Quality produce an annual report about all pending en- ommendations could be made to Congress, and hold until September, when the budget is re- vironmental and denied environmental permits and the technically the BLM was still obligated to inven- hashed again. The BLM said it was still looking amount of jobs those projects would create if approved, tory its lands for wilderness characteristics, but for ways to implement it without specific fund- the impact on the affected industry, and the economic the agency was prevented from making new land ing. However, on June 1, Secretary Salazar an- value of the proposed action. designations, and land protection seemed to slip nounced that he was rescinding the policy entire- by the wayside. ly, as a result of negotiations between the Depart- 10. HR 4717 (6/24/2004)- Small Community Options In December of 2010, Interior Secretary Salazar ment of Interior and the members of Congress for Regulatory Equity Act of 2004 – Amends the Safe issued a directive called the Wild Lands Policy. who opposed the Wild Lands. Salazar reiterated Drinking Water Act to exempt water systems serving It ordered the BLM to inventory all its lands for the BLM’s obligation to inventory the lands under 10,000 or fewer people from national primary drinking wilderness characteristics, make sure the inven- its jurisdiction and said the Department would water regulation for naturally occurring contaminants, tory is current (doesn’t conflict with past inven- continue to talk to members of Congress about including arsenic, radon, radium, uranium, and speci- tories), and manage those lands with wilderness designating Wilderness Areas. We are disap- fied disinfection byproducts if stated to be economically characteristics as “Wild Lands.” Wild Lands was pointed in the Secretary’s decision, regret that we infeasible to address. to be a new agency-level land designation. It will be unable to protect additional public lands 11. HR 6298 & 308 / rs 2477 (9/29/2006 & 1/5/2007) would differ in small ways from a WSA designa- through Wild Lands designations, and regret that Rights-of-Way Recognition Act – Validated old roads tion; for example, WSAs are automatically placed an executive agency would bend to political pres- in public lands. This legislation was strongly pushed by in the National Landscape Conservation System, sure from Congress, a separate branch of govern- the off-road vehicle community as a means to invali- while Wild Lands would not be. The new des- ment. To read the June 1 press release, please vis- date millions of acres of public land for a wilderness ignation may have been a way for the agency to it http://www.doi.gov/news/pressreleases/upload/ allow for a similar system without explicitly over- Salazar-Wilderness-Memo-Final.pdf designation.  www.nmwild.org 19 Rare Earth Elements By Criss Swaim, MS in Natural Resources

Over the past ten years, Chi- na controlled the REE market by flooding the market with product to suppress develop- ment of competing sources. During this time, it was building the infrastructure for downstream processing. Now China is reducing exports to force companies to bring their manufacturing plants to China if they want the raw materi- als. By controlling the supply of rare earth elements, China achieves a disproportional in- fluence on global business and international policies. Environmental Impacts The mining of rare earth elements is a mix of economic and environmental impacts. A single rare earths mineral is rarely concentrated enough to be the primary product of an operation. Rare earth elements are generally by-products of other mining operations or part of multimineral process- ing. When economically vi- able concentrations are found, the extraction of the rare earth elements requires involved, n a January 2011 edition of the Santa (2010), China announced a policy to restrict complex chemical processing that consumes Fe New Mexican, Thomas Guengerich export of rare earth elements by 30 percent in water and leaves toxic, and in some cases, ra- answers “yes” to the question “Might 2011, citing dwindling reserves and increased dioactive wastes. New Mexico be a major source of rare- demand internally. The increasing global demand Water usage in the mining process is generally earth minerals?” Since the publication and reduction of China’s export of these miner- intense and degrading. Not only does the process of this article, over 180 mining claims als has driven up the prices of some materials by create toxic lakes and expose aquifers to con- for the exploration of rare earths have been 400 percent since 2009. Dependence on single- taminants; the extraction of water affects rivers, Istaked in the Otero Mesa area alone. What are source suppliers of raw materials challenges glob- spring flows, and subsoil moisture. Rarely are rare earth minerals? How are they used? What is al industries, since China uses its dominance to these costs recognized by the mining operation. the potential impact of mining these minerals? control price and influence international policy. Rather, they are passed on to the communities And why are they called earths? There are other producing mines outside of around the mines. China, but they are few. In California, Molycorp Mining does not occur without landscape deg- What Are Rare Earth Elements? is reopening the Mountain Pass Mine, where radation. Even the best mitigation appears sterile Rare Earth Elements (REE) or minerals refers to operations were suspended in 2002 after waste- when compared to the ecosystems the mine a group of seventeen elements that are, in fact, water escaped a retention pond and damaged the displaced. There is nothing to be said in defense somewhat common. However, the extraction surrounding environment. This reopening is par- of the large-scale destruction of the landscape. and processing of these elements are economi- tially the result of Japan’s Sumitomo Corporation Once the land is opened up, graded, leveled, and cally challenging and thus, as refined products, investing $100 million in Molycorp and arrang- replanted, it is forever changed, and future use they are uncommon. These elements are referred ing another $30 million in operating financing. and utility are compromised. to as earths because this was the term used for Production should come online this year (2011), Mining does bring jobs and economic activity minerals at the time of their discovery in the and the reopening of this mine is viewed as a test to communities. These positive impacts cannot 1700s. These minerals are widely used in green case for launching a domestic rare earths industry. be ignored, especially when few alternate eco- technologies and common consumer products. A nomic activities exist. However, the economic sampling of products incorporating these ele- Political and Economic Impact benefits of mining are often overstated, as they ments would include cell phones, LCD monitors, An example of the problems created by the lim- do not include the full cost of the operation to satellites, batteries, electric motors, magnets, ited supply of raw materials is seen in the recent the community. Therefore, the economic claims wind turbines, and photovoltaic cells. Rare earth interactions between China and Japan. The auto should be carefully evaluated. elements are considered strategic for defense ap- industry uses about 40 percent of the world’s plications and emerging technologies. supply of neodymium, and Toyota buys more The Future than any other company. In late November 2010, The history of mining in New Mexico is often a Production China stopped shipments of rare earth elements story of discovery, uncontrolled development, Today, production of rare earth elements is to Japan and, in effect, to Toyota. While the exact economic collapse of a market, and local com- concentrated in China, which claims 93 percent reason for the stoppage is debated, the impact munities left to clean up the damage. Stories of of the total world production of this group of was to send prices higher for critical components scarred landscapes, polluted groundwater, toxic minerals and as high as 99 percent of the supply of the Prius, leaving Toyota no viable alternative tailings, and communities left with no means to of some of the most valued minerals. Last year to paying the higher component price. mitigate these effects are common.

20 New Mexico Wild! Summer 2011 Having experienced the impact of the boom- bust cycle of the extractive industry, many New Roads to Ruin By Judy Calman Mexico communities demonstrate a certain resistance to participating in another enter- prise that can so quickly be shuttered. A single During the Bush administration, a Travel not the plan NMWA would have liked to see provider can flood the market with product Management Rule was issued to the implemented, but it was also not the plan the and make domestic production uneconomical Forest Service. It ordered the agency to ORV users wanted to see implemented. overnight. Yet, we promote moving to green conduct surveys and studies of all roads and With a huge road and trail maintenance technologies and products that will certainly routes through national forests, establish backlog, the preferred alternative called for the require continued consumption of these rare which were essential, and close all others. The closure of 27 percent of the Gila’s routes and earth elements. This boom-bust cycle creates remaining roads and trails would be solidified roads. This would still leave over two thousand a very challenging business environment and as the “official” forest road system. The Forest miles of road open to public use, despite the poses difficult choices for communities as the Service has a limited budget and an enormous Forest Service’s acknowledgement that it can balance of cost-effective mining is set against maintenance backlog (the Gila National For- only maintain about six hundred miles of road expensive mitigation. est’s current annual maintenance budget of per year. The roads that are closed in the pre- From a land-management perspective, wilder- 1.2 million dollars would only allow them to ferred alternative are closed to protect vital riv- ness and mining do not make great neighbors. maintain 22 percent of the routes in the forest), ers and habitats for listed species. The current mining regulatory environment does so closing unnecessary routes seemed like an Despite this very modest road closure, there not fairly recognize the long-term impact of the efficient way to solve part of the problem. was an uproar among ranchers and ORV users extractive industry and loopholes tend to favor Because the agency is understaffed, they are about the Forest Service “closing the forest to business over environment and communities. also often unable to fully enforce laws or their the public.” This opposition was inflamed by Today’s natural resource management needs to own regulations in the forests. This has created Congressman Steve Pearce (R-NM), who held view the landscape with a new ethic. The min- a problem over the last several decades where rallies in Silver City and spread falsities about ing industry cannot continue to view the land Off-Road Vehicle (ORV) users travel through what the Travel Management Plan would mean. as a resource to be harvested without regard to the forests and “make” their own roads by When he introduced a bill in Congress that the legacy of the operation. Likewise, the eco- trespass. These are called user-created routes. would exempt logging in national forests from nomic life of communities cannot be captured Some of these would also be subject to closure environmental protections, it became clear why by industry interests at the expense of long-term under the Travel Management Rule. he had such an intense interest in the process. environmental health. Earlier this year, the Gila National Forest is- NMWA submitted extensive comments, written Communities should learn from China and sued a Draft Environmental Impact Statement and compiled with other environmental organi- require the establishment of high-value manu- for their Travel Management Plan, which, when zations. We urged the Forest Service to choose facturing jobs in the region where the mining is finalized, will be their plan for complying with Alternative E, which closed the most miles of allowed. By breaking the dependence on a single the Travel Management Rule. Following the roads, and also pointed out to the agency is- economic driver, a better balance of economic National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), sues with the preferred alternative. power is achieved. the agency outlined several other plans, all The Forest Service is currently in the process of which were analyzed for potential environ- of reviewing comments received during the Where from Here? mental impacts. One of the alternatives was public comment period. It should be releasing The issue of rare earth element mining will be titled “preferred,” meaning it is the alternative its final decision within the next six months. a difficult issue for New Mexico, as it tends to toward which the agency is leaning. More information about the Gila Travel Man- be framed with short-term views of jobs now The preferred alternative was essentially a agement Plan, including the document, can be versus environment later. Unfortunately, the first middle ground between the most environmen- found by visiting www.fs.usda.gov/gila/ and conflict over REE mining is being positioned as tal alternative considered and the least envi- clicking on the link “Travel Management Rule” a matter of jobs, national security, and economic ronmental alternative considered. Thus, it was at the right-hand side of the screen. security versus wilderness protection.  The pressing issue in New Mexico is whether Otero Mesa should be a mine or a wilderness. The first option excludes accomplishing the latter, so a conservative approach would be to choose the latter. Protecting Otero Mesa now al- lows time to develop a framework to address the long-term concern of balancing REE mining with community livability and sustainability. When there are other options, wilderness should not be mined. The best way to address REE mining develop- ment is to stay informed. It is impossible to be an expert on every topic, but a few minutes a week can keep you informed on the status of mining in wilderness areas. Monitor the Otero Mesa (www.oteromesa.org) website and the NM Wilderness Website (www.nmwild.org) by sign- ing up for the e-news and action alerts at www. nmwild.org/take-action/. As the extractive industry has adopted the lan- guage of sustainability and environmental sen- sitivity, communities are being verbally assured that the lessons of the past have been learned. Only a measured response to these claims is ap- propriate. REE mining is only a part of the larger, extractive industry that needs regulatory over- haul. Your action can encourage and empower

your representative to tackle this issue. capra s tephen  www.nmwild.org 21 Federal and State Governments Partner to Preserve Wilderness ew Mexico State Land Commissioner Ms. Rundell said, Ray Powell celebrated a land exchange “We’re very apprecia- with Linda Rundell, State Director tive of the State Land of the Bureau of Land Management Office’s willingness N(BLM) recently. The Signing Ceremony was held to work with us to at the NM State Land Office in June and was one consolidate the lands of Linda Rundell’s last official acts as the State within the Bisti/De- Director of the BLM before retirement. Na-Zin Wilderness The exchange involves State Trust Land in Area and the Ah- She- northwestern NM in and near the Bisti Wilder- Sle-Pah WSA. This will ness and within the Ah-Shi-Sle-Pah Wilderness allow us to provide Study Area for BLM lands in San Juan County. additional resource New Mexico Public Schools are the beneficiary protection to these two of revenues generated from these newly acquired special areas that are State Trust Lands that are appropriate for the managed by our Farm- extraction of oil and gas. The exchange of State ington Field Office.” trust land in northwestern NM will maximize Both the surface es- s tone income for the State Land Office while improving tate and mineral estate Ah-shi-sle-pah Wilderness Study Area the ownership pattern and manageability in the are being exchanged william two federal units. to the BLM for property that is also located in elected state official responsible for administering Commissioner Powell said, “This exchange pro- San Juan County, but outside the Wilderness and the state’s land grant trust. Thirteen million acres tects spectacular and geologically unique lands WSA. The State Land Office is exchanging 1,280 of land were granted to New Mexico in 1898 and while providing working lands to the State Land acres of mineral, 4,231.32 acres of surface, and 1910. Each tract is held in trust for the public Office. These lands will help support our public 3,162.54 acres of both surface and minerals for schools, universities, as well as special schools schools and keep our tax payers bills lower. I a total of 8,673.86 acres. The Bureau of Land and hospitals that serve children with physical, greatly appreciate the efforts of the professionals Management will exchange 960 acres of surface, visual, and auditory disabilities. In fiscal year at the State Land Office and the Bureau of Land 1,040 acres of both surface and minerals for a 2010, the trust lands and permanent funds pro- Management who have made this important total of 2,000 acres. duced more than $420 million in income for the trade a reality.” Note: The Commissioner of Public Lands is an beneficiaries.  Volunteer Wilderness Surveys

ew Mexico Wilder- We began collecting field data ness Alliance mem- in March 2011. Since March, N bers are hiking the thirty volunteers have collected New Mexico Wilder- Sandia Mountain Wilderness data in the Sandia Mountain ness Alliance is the and the Withington Wilder- Wilderness, logging over 260 proud recipient of a ness searching for evidence of hours. Already, we have found Wilderness Stewardship 74 campsites, 69 other loca- human impact. We are look- Challenge award from ing for four things: campsites, tions of human impact, eight the National Forest encounters (other people in the stands of cheatgrass, and wilderness the same time we encountered 117 other hikers. Foundation. are there), any other human- And we are only half done! The National Forest caused changes, and non-native Two stalwart volunteers from Foundation, chartered by invasive plants. 2011 is the Socorro have been collecting congress, engages Amer- second year we have the honor data in the Withington Wilder- ica in community-based to participate in this National ness. Don’t know where the and national programs Forest Stewardship Challenge Withington is? Neither did I, that promote the health inventory funded by the and I have lived in New Mexico and public enjoyment of National Forest Foundation. since 1965. So far, the volun- the 193-million acre We use six bright yellow data teers have found ten campsites National Forest System, collection units (little hand- there. If you volunteer with us, and accepts and adminis- you too can help to further ex- held computers with built-in ters private gifts of funds GPS and digital cameras bought plore and inventory this seldom and land for the benefit with grants from ESRI and visited wilderness. the Jeniam Foundation). With We stopped data collection of the National Forests. these nifty little devices we on 6/19/2011, as the entire for- collect GPS locations, fill in the est was closed because of database fields and take photos extreme fire danger. We will Contact: that are linked to the GPS loca- start up again as soon as the Lynne Uhring tions. The data we collect in Forest Service opens the forests. GIS Intern the field is then directly linked There are still miles and miles NM Wilderness Alliance to the mapping software on of trails to explore. Sound 505-843-8696 ext 110 NMWA’s GIS computer. We are interesting to you? Please come 505-452-7036 cell la ea s twood u la

pa high tech! join us for a day or a weekend. [email protected]

22 New Mexico Wild! Summer 2011 By Nathan Newcomer federal land. Those royalties range Although reviews of other devel- and has been updated frequently Associate Director from 8 to 18.75 percent. Since 1920, opment projects that come under through legislative action. Com- the coal industry has paid more the act’s provisions—including oil mon minerals such as sand and than $10 billion in federal royal- and gas drilling, coal mining, road gravel are regulated under the ties, including more than $6 billion building, and dam construction— Mineral Materials Act, which be- It’s almost unimaginable to think from 2001 through 2010. Federal generally give the option to deny came law in 1947. Under both laws, that a Civil War–era law govern- royalties generated from oil and or take “no action,” assessments the federal government retains title ing how America’s public lands are gas topped $6 billion in fiscal 2009 of proposed hard-rock mines gen- to the public land where the miner- managed is still on the books today. alone, with additional monies from erally do not include this choice. als are located and the authority It’s like forgetting to clean out your rents and bonuses bringing in an- Thus, the public has little power to to approve or deny operations refrigerator, even though every other $2.2 billion to the Treasury stop a project and has a say only in after weighing public needs. With time you open it an unbearable the same year. how environmental impacts might hard-rock mining, however, the law stench fills your kitchen. Under the mining law’s “open ac- be mitigated. gives federal agencies little discre- Yet, the General Mining Law of cess” policy, the mining industry As government data show, tion to stop a valid claim from be- 1872 is still stinking up the Rocky is allowed to conduct large indus- therefore, claims are being staked ing developed, even in the face of Mountain West like a batch of rot- trial operations and dump waste adjacent to national parks and public opposition. ten tomatoes. According to the on millions of acres of public land, monuments, inside national forest In the twenty-first century, the 1872 Mining Law, hard-rock mining regardless of conflicts with other roadless areas, within Wilderness United States can no longer af- activities are viewed as the “high- public uses. Certainly, not all claims Study Areas, near Wild and Scenic ford to manage its public lands est and best use” of public lands, become full-fledged mines. But Rivers, and in federally recognized and resources with an antiquated regardless of the impacts to water, the industry has long argued that Areas of Critical Environmental nineteenth-century law and, as wildlife, or wild lands. the law guarantees a right to mine Concern. Recently, for example, the recent proliferation of claim Almost a quarter of our nation, that prevents public land manag- Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack staking highlights, the threats to or some 270 million acres, is open ers from weighing the benefits and approved a dozen exploration America’s irreplaceable natural to hard-rock mining claims. Public impacts of mining or considering plans for new hard-rock mines in treasures make speedy action an land is in jeopardy as never before, objections from communities near- the undeveloped national forests of imperative. due to soaring mineral prices. In by or downstream. Once a claim Nevada, Utah, and Washington, cit- In 2009, President Obama said, the past six years, gold prices have is deemed valid, with discovery of ing “supremacy” of the mining law “[W]hen we see America’s land, doubled, and the global demand a valuable mineral deposit, public over the 2001 Roadless Area Con- we understand what an incredible for nuclear fuel has spiked the price land managers who want to protect servation Rule that was issued to bounty that we have been given of uranium ore by a factor of ten. a particular area from mining activ- limit most commercial road build- and it’s our obligation to make sure The United States of America is ity have few options. ing and industrial development in that the next generation enjoys that the only country in the world that Also undercut is the National such areas. same bounty.” Almost 140 years does not tax the mining industry Environmental Policy Act, the In contrast, oil and gas op- after the 1872 Mining Law was a royalty fee for developing our landmark law that requires federal erations and coal mining are gov- enacted, it is time for Congress to public lands. This preferential treat- agencies to determine the environ- erned by the Mineral Leasing Act, throw these particular rotten toma- ment gives mining interests the mental effects of their decisions. which Congress passed in 1920 toes away.  Rotten Tomatoes legal right to take what the govern- ment estimates is at least $1 billion Yellowjacket Mine, Nevada, 1870’s worth of metals each year from publicly owned property without compensating taxpayers or pay- ing a fair share of the cleanup costs for abandoned mines. The Environmental Protection Agency has found that hard-rock mining releases more toxic pollutants than any other industry. And the EPA es- timates that reclaiming abandoned and existing hard-rock mines will cost up to $50 billion. New Mexico alone has over 21,500 active mining claims, in addition to an estimated 15,000 abandoned mines. Most of these abandoned mines have not been inventoried to document potential threats to water quality caused by toxic leakage, despite the fact that 40 percent of Western watersheds have been contaminated by mining activities. For decades, oil, gas, and coal industries have been required to pay royalties to the U.S. Treasury on the resources they extract from

www.nmwild.org 23 wildlife protection

ince the reintroduction of the Mexi- creased transmission of intestinal parasites from can Wolf in 1997, it seems that the Science tells us clearly that we must baboons to humans as the primates were forced livestock industry and their friends in to forage closer to human settlements. congress have been looking for a way keep our top predators, if the land • As large ungulates recovered from devastating to destroy the program. Perhaps no one rinderpest epidemic in the Serengeti in Africa, has been as vocal as New Mexico’s is to thrive. Science is the tool that herbivory increased, and the frequency of wild- Scongressional representative from the second fire in the region declined in that region. Wildfire should guide policies that protect district­—Stevan Pearce. frequency increased following the Pleistocene/ Since the early days of the program, the con- and enhance our forests, early Holocene decline of megaherbivores in Aus- gressman, whose background in the oil and tralia and the northeastern United States. gas business, has left him somehow delusional grasslands and rivers. • Industrial whaling in the 20th century resulted enough to think he is a biologist. in the loss of large numbers of plankton-consum- Sadly, it is not the case, and despite his oft- ing great whales, which are now known to seques- times heated rhetoric, his facts (or clear lack of) ter, and marine ecosystems. The paper claims that ter carbon in the deep sea through deposition of never quite jive with scientific reality. Nowhere the loss of apex consumers from ecosystems “may feces. The result has been the transfer of approxi- is this clearer than with his bitter fight to remove be mankind’s most pervasive influence on nature.” mately 105 million tons of carbon into the atmo- the Mexican wolf from the wild. What makes this paper so important is that it sphere that could have been absorbed by whales. There remain today less than 50 Mexican shows that losing large apex consumers from na- As Dr. Pikitch made clear “ We must assume wolves in the wild. Recently in the Journal ture like wolves, big cats, bison, sharks and great moving forward that significant changes to the Science, Dr. James A. Estes, professor of ecology whales causes extensive cascading effects in eco- ecosystem are occurring when large predators and and evolution at the University of California, systems worldwide, especially when exacerbated herbivores are removed from the top of the food Santa Cruz and Dr. Ellen K. Pikitch co-authored by things such as land use practices, climate web, and thus, that efforts to manage and con- a review paper titled, “Trophic Downgrading of change, habitat loss, and pollution. serve nature must include these animals. An old Planet Earth.” The paper published July 15, 2011 Some of the findings included: paradigm has shifted, and those who question this concludes that the decline of large predators and • The reduction of lions and leopards from theory now have the burden to prove otherwise.” herbivores in all regions of the world is causing areas of sub-Saharan Africa caused baboon I mention this paper because it flies in the face substantial changes in earth’s terrestrial, freshwa- populations to swell. This unexpectedly in- of everything Congressman Pearce would have you believe about the envi- ronment in general and spe- cies that share this planet as a whole. The Congressman is intent on pushing a new concept of wildlife genocide by pushing the concept of removing species from the wild (Mexican spotted owls with HR 1202) and placing them into zoo’s or sanctuar- ies for life. His reasoning is so we can move forward with logging, mining, oil and gas development or any- thing that generates income and can be used to subju- gate existing federal laws. Time and again, when the congressman is pressed, his facts never quite add up to reasoned biology or any type of environmental review, yet when he speaks he does so with the religious fervor of a wandering missionary; his zeal always designed to us fw s blame wildlife species and environmental regulation for By Stephen Capra the loss of jobs and the sti- fling of the economy. Yet the The facts he presents are based on propaganda, often from oil and gas industry sources or Koch Brothers think tanks that simply want to demigod the environment to increase corporate profits. Following his re-election Mexican Wolf in 2010, one in which he received more money from oil and gas companies than and a Congressman any other congressional

24 New Mexico Wild! Summer 2011 wildlife protection Otero Mesa and the America’s Great candidate (more than Outdoors Initiative $264,000). According to Opensecrets.org, from 2002 to 2010, Congress- continued from page 16 man Pearce received more government’s help in creating a national monu- than $400,000 from PACS ment, and it is committed to helping the admin- and individuals associated istration move forward with a robust process to with energy companies. use the Antiquities Act to protect Otero Mesa. The This included $48,000 Coalition understands the importance of public from Koch Industries, the input in that process and will devote its energy to largest privately owned helping the administration hold public events to Energy Company in the discuss protecting Otero Mesa. U.S., which constantly works to weaken environ- Conclusion mental regulation. Con- Despite the numerous natural, cultural, and his- gressman Pearce’s Chief of toric values that Otero Mesa offers to New Mexi- Staff, is veteran Washing- cans and Americans, and despite the work that ton lobbyist Todd Willens. the Coalition for Otero Mesa has done to protect Mr. Willens is a former these values over the past decade, achieving per- lobbyist for Vitello Con- manent protection for the landscape has been sulting, which works on elusive. The America’s Great Outdoors Initiative, natural resource issues however, presents a compelling opportunity for businesses. However, for both the administration and Otero Mesa. As

it was Mr. Willens role as us fw s previously illustrated, by permanently protecting legislative director for for- Otero Mesa in its natural condition, the admin- mer congressional representative and anti-envi- tion and reminded them that we do not have to istration would address each and every one of its ronmental whipping boy, Richard Pombo, which “harm livestock or risk the lives of our children” desired objectives discussed in the AGO report. sent the clearest message about Pearce’s legislative while calling for a new plan. At a recent congres- Conserving Otero Mesa would help ensure that and rhetorical direction. sional hearing on the Endangered Species Act, conservation jobs and volunteerism continue to Mr. Willens also held the job of Assistant Sec- the Congressman was quoted as saying “nothing be a part of the working landscape of southern retary for Fish, Wildlife and Parks at the Interior is more attractive to a wolf, than the sound of a New Mexico. It would create a great new edu- Department during the Bush Administration. crying baby.” cational and recreational setting both for youth After one year on the job, the Government Ac- It is also clear that the Congressman’s Chief and for urban communities. It would protect countability Office released a report alleging that of Staff holds a special desire to destroy the En- an abundant clean-water resource, and it would Mr. Willens and three other appointees had ap- dangered Species Act and has profited person- illustrate the administration’s commitment to be- plied political pressure on employees who were ally, over his years as a lobbyist, with this goal in ing an effective conservation partner. making decisions on endangered species listings. mind. It is more than a coincidence that the man We, the Coalition for Otero Mesa, urge the ad- Mr. Willens also caused trouble in 2007 after be- who worked for Richard Pombo and now Stevan ministration to commit to the goals set forth in ing appointed as the head of the U.S. delegation Pearce has been able to mold his representatives the America’s Great Outdoors report and work to sent to the World Heritage Committee meeting in into one man zeitgeist’s for the bitter few that protect Otero Mesa permanently. Specifically, we New Zealand. Despite the fact that the National want to blame wildlife or the planet for their suggest that the administration follow up on Rec- Park Service had sent a report suggesting that the personal failings. ommendation 8.4 and use the Antiquities Act to Florida Everglades remain on an endangered list Perhaps worse, have been the miserable failings protect Otero Mesa as a national monument for by the committee, Mr. Willens altered the report of the mainstream press to cover these stories the enjoyment of future American generations. In to ask for a delisting of the report. fairly. In the past year, Congressman Pearce has doing so, the administration will protect a part of Which brings us back to wolves and the Con- been granted lots of editorial space in the Albu- America’s heritage that will otherwise be lost. gressman Pearce. It begins with his strident op- querque Journal, thus seemingly lending cred- Looking forward, the Coalition for Otero Mesa position to the Gila Travel Management Plan, ibility to his haboob of facts on conservation. He continues to plan events and educate civilians one in which the Forest Service proposed closing has been granted airtime on television and the and government officials about the importance some of the hundreds of miles of roads that reach radio all to sell people on a philosophy – not on of Otero Mesa as a protected landscape. Two like arteries into the Gila backcountry. These true science. large campouts in Otero Mesa are planned for roads are flash points for wolf interactions and The Mexican Gray wolf is hanging on; the fires September 2011. A blessing ceremony led by the potential areas for illegal killing. They also cost that spread deep into the Blue Range likely affect- Mescalero Apache is also planned in Otero Mesa taxpayers millions every year in general upkeep. ed some important habitat. They continue to fol- during the month of September. This ceremonial The Congressman held a four-wheel rally and, low the footsteps and memories that have guided event has not occurred in 250 years, but the re- used false science and fear in his attempt to cre- them for millennium in this dry, sparse county. cent threats to the wildness of Otero Mesa by the ate opposition and blame the economy on spe- They ask only for a chance, not a handout. Geovic Corporation have moved the Mescalero cies like Mexican wolves. He has placed riders Science tells us clearly that we must keep our Apache to act, and they are committed advocates into the stopgap budget bill designed to elimi- top predators, if the land is to thrive. Science is for Otero Mesa’s permanent protection. In early nate funding for the Mexican Wolf program. He the tool that should guide policies that protect 2012, the Alamogordo Chamber of Commerce, quickly co-sponsored a bill (HR 509) that elimi- and enhance our forests, grasslands and rivers. with the help of the Coalition, will hold an event nated protection for all gray wolves under the However, science must be heard, over the noise in Otero Mesa as part of its New Mexico state- Endanger Species Act. President Obama allowed created by those who are motivated by the sense hood centennial celebration. The Coalition for that to be attached to his budget bill, thereby that—earth and its creatures were created for the Otero Mesa will continue to build support for making a mockery of the Endangered Species Act benefit of man. permanent protection in the face of potentially and placing the Gray wolf in further peril. Such thinking has created the steady stream devastating threats. We raise our collective voice Recently, when the newly reconstituted New of environmental problems we face today. For for protection and ask that the administration Mexico Game Commission voted 6-0 to sus- the sake of our land, water and the future of the respond and fulfill its goals of the America’s Great pend the wolf reintroduction program in New Mexican Gray wolf, we must stand strong and Outdoors Initiative by using the Antiquities Act Mexico, it was Congressman Pearce that was only united for a land and wildlife ethic—one that be- to protect Otero Mesa permanently as a national too quick to praise the commission for their ac- gins with sharing. monument.   www.nmwild.org 25 Are you passionate about the wild landscapes Mexico Wilderness Alliance through their will or and wildlife of New Mexico? Do you want to estate plans. Becoming a New Mexico What be sure that nature, as it was meant to be, is Wilderness Alliance Steward can be as simple preserved for generations to come? Your legacy as including a bequest to our organization in gift to the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance will your will or designating our organization as one Would You ensure that the wilderness, wildlife and water of of the beneficiaries of a retirement plan or life the Land of Enchantment are protected forever. insurance policy.

Become a New Mexico Wilderness Please contact me if you would like to include Like Your Alliance Steward today. New Mexico Wilderness Alliance in your will or If you are planning to create a new will or up- retirement plan. date an existing one, we hope you will consider Legacy a future gift to protect and safeguard New Tisha Broska Mexico’s wilderness, water and wildlife. New 505-843-8696 ext.102 Mexico Wilderness Alliance Stewards are indi- [email protected]. to Be? viduals who have included a future gift to New

Please help New Mexico Wilderness Alliance receive a significant, renewed CHALLENGE GRANT from EARTH FRIENDS CONSERVATION FUND supporting our critical work to protect New Mexico’s wild public lands, water and wildlife. Our goal is to raise $100,000 by September 30, 2011.

YES! I support the efforts of New Mexico PAYMENT OPTIONS Contributions to NMWA are Wilderness Alliance. ❑ Enclosed is my check payable to New Mexico tax deductible to the full ENCLOSED IS MY GIFT OF: Wilderness Alliance extent of the law. ❑ $25 ❑ Other $______❑ Please charge my Visa, Mastercard, AmEx, ❑ $30 Family ❑ $500 – Lifetime (Single) Discover (circle one) Go to www.nmwild.org to make your donation ❑ $50 ❑ $750 – Lifetime (Couple) Card #: ______on-line today! ❑ $100 ❑ $1,000 – Lifetime (Family) Exp. Date: ______❑ Sign me up for Monthly Giving. I pledge Mail to: Signature: ______$______per month, charged to my New Mexico Wilderness credit card. Alliance ❑ Please send me information on making a GIVE a gift membership to the NEW MEXICO PO Box 25464, bequest to New Mexico Wilderness Alliance. Albuquerque, NM 87125 WILDERNESS ALLIANCE! Name______Please send a Gift Membership to: Address______Name______City, State, Zip______Address______E-mail: ______City, State, Zip______Phone:______

New Mexico Wilderness Alliance Members Now Eligible for Credit Union Membership As a member of New Mexico Wilderness you select a community and category for your Alliance, you are eligible to join New Credit Union’s annual gift-giving: Environment Mexico Educators Federal Credit Union. and Wildlife, Education, Healthcare, The Arts, New Mexico Educators Federal Credit Union is or Community Support. Whenever you make the state’s largest not-for-profit financial co- signature-based purchases (just say “credit”), operative with over 115,000 member-owners you’ll earn 0.25% cash rewards that are de- and 14 full-service branch offices from Taos to posited to your checking account each July. Socorro. Thanks to its large membership, the Then each year, New Mexico Educators Federal Credit Union offers a full-range of financial Credit Union makes a matching contribution to services at low cost or no cost...what they call your designated area of support. Detailed infor- “The Power of WE.” You’ll find checking and mation about this valuable membership benefit savings options; mortgage, equity and auto is available at the Credit Union’s website, loans; credit cards and investment services. www.nmefcu.org. Free Internet Banking, Bill Payer, Mobile and New Mexico Educators Federal Credit Union Text Banking are available, and all members maintains the safety and soundness principles receive free Identity Fraud Resolution service and values that have been part of the inter- and a full-color educational newsletter four national credit union movement for over two times a year. hundred years. BauerFinancial has ranked New New Mexico Educators offers an exclusive Mexico Educators Federal Credit Union as five Community Rewards Program that can benefit stars for financial strength and security. You both you and the Wilderness Alliance. You can can join New Mexico Educators Federal Credit change your world, one purchase at a time – by visiting any of their branch offices (location all you need to participate are a Credit Union information at nmefcu.org) or by calling 889- checking account and a Visa® Check Card. 7755 (800-347-2838 from outside the When you enroll in Community Rewards, Albuquerque area) Monday through Saturday.

26 New Mexico Wild! Summer 2011 WE CARE ABOUT THE EARTH AS MUCH AS WE CARE ABOUT YOUR CLOTHES. OUR REVOLUTIONARY GREENEARTH CLEANING PROCESS WILL NOT POLLUTE OUR WATER, SOIL OR AIR WHILE MAKING YOUR CLOTHES FEEL SOFTER, LOOK BRIGHTER AND SMELL FRESHER.

NO HAZARDOUS CHEMICALS. ODOR FREE. SAME DAY SERVICE. DRIVE THRU SERVICE SANTA FE LOCATIONS: 1019 ST. FRANCIS DR. 505-982-8603 400 N GUADALUPE 505-988-2455 2801 RODEO RD. 505-473-4396 913 OLD PECOS TRAIL 505-982-9259 ALBUQUERQUE: 5809 JUAN TABO BLVD NE 505-299-3335

Do you donate to the United Way through your employer? Ask that your gift gets directed to the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance to help support our work to protect New Mexico’s Wild Public lands. Does your employer have a donation-matching program? Your donation to New Mexico Wilderness Alliance could be eligible for matching donations from your work.

Petaca Pinta Wilderness Study Area la ea s twood u la pa