VOLUME VI NUMBER I SPRING 2004 Otero Mesa: Oil Development or www.nmwild.org National Conservation Area? New Mexico’s Gutsy Gov In a classic David and Goliath struggle, Governor Bill Richardson is standing firm against the Fed’s plans to drill New Mexico’s Otero Mesa. Needless to say, Goliath Is ...angry. NEW MEXICO WILDERNESS A Fond Farwell ALLIANCE Main Office To All 505/843-8696 • fax 505/843-8697 [email protected] • www.nmwild.org is primarily about people. It’s not about ideology, P.O. Box 25464 cartography, geology, biology, zoology, or mystical Albuquerque, NM 87125 insights into the nature of the universe. It’s really 202 Central Avenue, SE • Suite 101 Albuquerque, NM 87102 people who matter the most in this work. Las Cruces Field Office 275 N. Downtown Mall Second, we moved beyond talking to ourselves Las Cruces, NM 88001 in our familiar circles. The Otero Mesa campaign 505/527-9962 has been successful because we listened to and Mission Statement respected ranchers, sportsmen, Hispanic lead- The New Mexico Wilderness Alliance is dedicated ers and business owners. The key to success on to the protection, restoration, and continued enjoyment of New Mexico’s wild lands and Ojito has been a close and sincere alliance with Zia Wilderness areas. Pueblo. We shunned the phrase “nontraditional NMWA Staff allies,” a term used by too many environmental- Las Cruces Office ists to describe people different from themselves. Trisha London, Grassroots Organizer We replaced it with something much, much better: Albuquerque Office “Friends.” Tisha Broska, Membership Coordinator Steve Capra, Associate Director Third, we fought hard but compromised when Nathan Newcomer, Grassroots Organizer Roxanne Pacheco, Finance Manager necessary. That is how we succeeded in winning Dave Parsons, Executive Director unanimous and bi-partisan support for Ojito, and Michael Scialdone, Director of Wilderness Protection worked so effectively with Governor Richardson Board of Directors on Otero Mesa. Compromise is an essential part of Wesely Leonard, Chair, Albuquerque, NM Bob Howard, Vice Chair, Santa Fe, NM the political process. Being reasonable—and keep- Tom Mouck, Treasurer, Albuquerque, NM ing your word—signals key decision makers that Tom Wootten, Secretary, Albuquerque, NM they can work with and trust you. Credibility mat- Pam Eaton, Denver, CO Dave Foreman, Albuquerque, NM ters, a lot. Kathy Love, Albuquerque, NM Carlos Provencio, Bayard, NM Fourth, we must never forget that we can win. Melissa Savage, Santa Fe, NM In the past fourteen months, we have made great Never despair of the political process or our fellow Todd Schulke, Silver City, NM strides in wilderness protection: human beings. Avoid losses, for we cannot afford Bob Tafanelli, Las Cruces, NM setbacks. And when opportunity comes knocking, Rick Wiedermann, Carlsbad, NM • The Ojito Wilderness Act, New Mexico’s first wil- don’t walk but run to open the door. Seize every Newsletter Staff derness legislation in sixteen years, was introduced Tisha Broska, Managing Editor chance to win something for wilderness. Joe Adair, Design Editor in Congress. James Broska, Copy Editor Life does not always cooperate. That is also a • Thanks to you, Governor Richardson and his truism. In my case, I have to return to the prac- Art & Photo Credits capable Administration, and thousands of other tice of law and attend to family obligations. I have P2 photo by T. Broska, P3 photo by M. Scialdone, New Mexicans, not one drilling rig operates on P5 photo by G. Miller, P6 photo by M. Heinrich, P7 been honored to serve the New Mexico Wilderness illustration by Joe Adair, P10-11 photos by R. Watt, Otero Mesa--despite the fondest wishes of the Alliance, and distinctly privileged to work with P12 wolf photo courtesy of Arizona Game and Fish, Bush/Cheney White House. P13 Then photo by Captain C.E. Dutton Now photo the most dedicated, smartest and hardest working by W. Stone, P16 Otter photo by Diane Hargreaves staff of any wilderness group in the United States. (hargreavesphoto.com), P17 photo by S. Capra, P18 • Our membership has grown, NMWA’s finances photo by C. Hass, Various Photo-composites by Joe are healthy and we now distribute 40,000 copies of Steve, Scial, Tisha, Rox, Nate, Greta...I will remem- Adair. this newsletter statewide. ber you forever. Adios. Wilderness The Wilderness Act of 1964 established the • More wilderness legislation is on the horizon. -Jim Scarantino National Wilderness Preservation System to pre- Stay Tuned! serve the last remaining wild lands in America. The Wilderness Act, as federal policy, secures “an endur- I believe some simple principles guided us. Per- ing resource of wilderness” for the people. Wilder- ness is defined as an area that has primarily been haps this is counter-intuitive, but the most impor- affected by the forces of nature with the imprint of tant principle I observed is that wilderness work humans substantially unnoticeable. It is an area that offers outstanding opportunity for solitude or a primitive or unconfined type of recreation, and an area that contains ecological, geological, or other features of scientific, educa- tional, scenic, or historical value. Put New Mexico First 3 William Stone Photography 13 Organ Mountains 4 Morgan X 13 El Malpais 5 Texas Energy Giant Wants Valle Vidal 14 Mt. Riley 5 Poems 15 Stop Reading and Get Out There 6 River Otters 16 Ojito Update 6 Off-Road Vehicles 17 Letters to NMWA 7 Young Voices 18 Visions of Greed and Destruction 8 Remembrances of Fallen Members 19 Thank you, WILD OATS, for your support! New Mexico WILD! is available at all Kimo Event for Otero Mesa 10 Upcoming Hikes 18-20 WILD OATS stores in Albuquerque. Wolf Hearing Needs Your Presence 12 New Mexico WILD! Page 3 Putting New Mexico First: NMWA Welcomes Governor Bill Richardson New Executive ernor Bill Richardson and his desire $6 million. Currently in New Mexico, to see Otero Mesa protected. Of the state spends about $129 per stu- Director: course it should be noted that dent to heat and cool our schools, the Governor’s resolve was bol- while spending only about $77 per David Parsons stered by the fervent sup- student on educational materials.1 port of thousands of New Mexican’s from However it has not been a com- all walks of life who pletely smooth ride for environmen- understand why it is tal legislation at the State level. Sev- important to pro- eral proposals the Governor pushed tect wild places. in the legislature died, including a bill that would have created a bonding But the Gov- mechanism to promote energy-effi- ernor has not cient upgrades, which pay for them- stopped with just selves in lower utility bills. his efforts on Otero Mesa. He Further, not every bill or action has made it clear the Governor has worked on has that Wilderness pleased the conservation commu- nity. Recently, he asked that oil and is welcomed by I am very excited to be the new gas drilling be doubled on the Jicar- his Administra- Executive Director of the New Mexico illa Indian Reservation portion of the tion. Unlike other Wilderness Alliance. Western Governors Carson National Forest; and efforts who seem intent on to work towards truly cleaner stan- A wildlife & conservation biolo- destroying the wildest dards and enforceable guidelines for gist by training, my passion lies in the parts of their states, our oil and gas development across our preservation of wildlands and the des- Governor wants to see ignation of wilderness for the myriad our wild lands protected. BLACK BART: reasons that these places are impor- He understands the value Thinks Otero Mesa Should Be tant for the well being of people, crit- of wilderness and its rela- Hole-y Ground ters, and ecosystems at local, regional, tionship to our qual- and continental scales. ity of life. He also sur- mises that companies I served on NMWA’s Board of that support good Directors from 1998-2003 and fully paying jobs are gen- support the formal mission of the Alliance, which is “to protect, con- by Steve Capra erally more attracted to communi- serve and restore wilderness in New hough he has only been ties that make quality of life a prior- ity. In this regard, the Governor wrote Mexico.” This mission is perfectly in Governor for a little more tune with my personal philosophy than a year, Bill Richard- President Bush reaffirming his com- mitment to the Roadless Area Con- and ethics regarding humans’ rela- son has sent a clear message tionship to Nature. Tto New Mexicans and our Congres- servation Rule, a rule that would per- sional delegation that New Mexico’s manently set aside 58.5 million acres As is evident from Jim’s farewell environment counts! Nowhere is this of U.S. Forest Service roadless lands. address, much progress toward our more apparent than his efforts to pro- And the Governor has urged the mil- mission has been made, and we are on tect one of America’s wildest grass- itary to keep trails open in the Otero the cusp of some very important wil- lands - Otero Mesa. The Governor has Canyon area south of Albuquerque. derness victories. I promise to bring state have been limited. But with these made a good, clean environment cen- these campaigns to a positive conclu- Another area that the Governor has few exceptions, the Governor has cre- tral to his efforts to diversify our econ- sion for wilderness and to seize new worked hard on is alternative energy ated a new standard for Western Gov- omy and energy base; and he contin- opportunities to protect and pre- sources. Following the recent NM leg- ernors.