Public Lands

This spring President Obama created the America’s Great Outdoors Initiative. This weekend leaders from the Department of Interior, Department of Agriculture, and the Environmental Protection Agency met with New Mexicans in Albuquerque to learn about our views of this program. This is my viewpoint on this issue.

• We should all increase our use of the world-class outdoors opportunities that exist here in New Mexico.
• The Federal government should provide new, expanded, and better protected public lands.
• Increase opportunities for youth in the Great Outdoors.
• Support local economies by investing in public lands.
• Manage all public lands to comprehend climate change.

New Mexico lost three of its most respected conservationists this year....Stewart Udall, Marilyn Cooper, and Gail Ryba.

In March, members of the Sierra Club, other conservation professionals, and representatives from six northern New Mexico counties met at the Oñate Center in Alcalde to discuss and strategize how to best prioritize and preserve key environmental and cultural lands in their counties. While this group focused on the north-central part of the state, the Multi-County Conservation Workshop can serve as a model for land-use planning in the rest of the New Mexico.

Stewart Udall died on this years Vernal Equinox. A persistent snowstorm blanketed Santa Fe, the final home of our great friend. This is one of the last pieces he published. We are all his grandchildren. Hope springs eternal.

Feb 2010 - Progress has been steady regarding the Rio Grande Chapter's efforts to protect the San Juan Basin Badlands. The most important new development is the Farmington BLM Field Office's enthusiastic endorsement of our San Juan Basin Badlands Initiative goals.

Sierra Club is sponsoring a "social networking site for those who care about designating more Utah Wilderness areas. The site includes a place for people to take part in the work of the Sierra Club’s National Utah Wilderness Team. This is an innovative effort, the first of its kind among national environmental organizations. You can check it out and join in at http://connect.sierraclub.org/Team/Utah_Wilderness_Team

Nov 13, 2009 - The Rio Grande Chapter of the Sierra Club met with BLM officials to propose creation of the San Juan Basin National Monument today.

The Rio Grande Chapter of the Sierra Club is seeking permanent protection of Otero Mesa from oil and gas development, through BLM administrative options and through federal legislation.

May 2009 -The Sierra Club believes that the San Juan Badlands are strong candidates for inclusion in the National Landscape Conservation System, and that all nine as a group could well form the BLM-administered “San Juan Basin Badlands National Monument."

April 2009 - The U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on litigation brought by the State of New Mexico, state agencies, and a number of conservation groups that stops oil and gas drilling on Otero Mesa.