© 2024 KRWG
News that Matters.
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

New Mexicans condemn Secretary Zinke's assault on our national monuments

mike groves

Commentary: Las Cruces and Taos, New Mexico – New Mexicans of all walks of life, including local elected officials, veterans, sportsmen, small business owners, Hispanics and Tribal leaders, are expressing outrage at Secretary Zinke’s recommendation that the federal government remove protections for some national monuments. This recommendation comes from the review Zinke conducted this summer as a follow-up to an Executive Order issued by President Trump this past April.

Zinke visited Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument in New Mexico in July and culminated his review today byannouncing several national monuments on public lands in the West will be reduced in size.  No specific details were provided by the Department of Interior. 

New Mexico’s Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks (OMDP) and Rio Grande del Norte (RGDN) national monuments are still in the crosshairs despite the Department of Interior receiving overwhelming support for them and other monuments during the Interior’s public comment period. Of the over 2.8 millioncommentssubmitted to Interior, 99 percent of all comments expressed support for maintaining/expanding national monuments.  93 and 98 percent the comments that mentioned OMDP and RGDN, respectively, requested that those monuments not be altered.

Community members had the following to say in response to Secretary Zinke’s announcement and comments today.

After decades of community advocacy for the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks and fourteen local government resolutions of support, we are shocked that the Trump Administration is considering harming our National Monument. The City of Las Cruces and its citizens have benefited greatly from the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument and we stand ready to defend it from unprecedented attacks,” said Las CrucesMayor Ken Miyagishima.

"The Doña Ana County Commission has passed four resolutions supporting Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks because protecting this land protects our culture, boosts our economy, and protects antiquities valuable to the entire country,” said Doña Ana County Commissioner Billy Garrett. “Weakening our National Monument protections weakens our community, so we will continue to defend Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument.”

"Hunters and anglers fought for Rio Grande del Norte because it protects the wildlife habitat and waters that our way of life and livelihoods depend on. The same goes for sportsmen who worked to get other national monuments established. Any rollback to our National Monuments hurts all sportsmen and threatens our hunting and fishing traditions, whether that’s locally or nationally,” saidJohn Olivas, owner of JACO Outfitters, based in Holman, New Mexico. “The Rio Grande del Norte monument designation has benefitted many local businesses, including mine.  Any changes to our monuments would threaten our livelihoods and is unacceptable.” 

“This is the land where our ancestors walked. For the many that have moved on to the next world, may we be their voice to protect the land that was once theirs,” said Rafael Gomez, Jr., Tribal Council member for the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo. “Resizing Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument would be a direct affront to Ysleta del Sur Pueblo and Native American culture and heritage.”

“The designation of Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument has put a star on the map, and Las Cruces is now a destination,” said Russell Hernandez, co-owner of restaurant Salud! de Mesilla. “Weakening our national monument will hurt businesses and tourism that depend on protected public lands. I’m very concerned that businesses in our region will suffer because of Secretary Zinke’s decision.”

“Changing any National Monument will harm local businesses and jobs. Rio Grande del Norte National Monument has benefitted Taos County tremendously. It attracts over 200,000 people annually, a 45 percent increase since before the monument was designated,” said Jamie Tedesco, owner of ZAP Marketing in Taos. “We hope the Trump administration will leave our monuments intact and instead work to support our economy.”

“Like Secretary Zinke, I am a veteran, and I depend on the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks for my well-being. Many other southern New Mexico veterans do as well,” said Las Cruces resident Andrea Sandoval, a U.S. Army veteran who served in Iraq in 2003-2004. “And like Secretary Zinke, I fought to protect all that makes America what she is, and that includes our shared natural treasures. I am urging President Trump to listen to the people of Doña Ana County, and leave Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks the way it is today.”

The Rio Grande del Norte and Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks national monuments have proven to be economic boons to both northern and southern New Mexico.  After RGDN was designated in 2013, Taos County quickly experienced an increase in visitation and local tax revenues, benefits that continue to be felt today. Visitation to OMDP increased by 102 percent from 2015 to 2016, and Las Cruces was recently included in Lonely Planet’s “Top 10 Places to Visit.” And next month, Doña Ana County is holding its 2nd annual “Monuments to Main Street” month-long festival where residents and visitors can explore Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks among other cultural treasures.

The OMDP and RGDN monument proclamations specifically recognize that grazing permits and leases shall continue.  Manyranchers applauded the designation of both monuments, specifically because they knew they would be able to continue grazing, continue their way of life, and not have to worry about the public lands they use being opened up to drilling or mining or sold off to the highest bidder.  A recent Congressional Review Service memo looking at grazing in OMDP found that “there have been no changes to livestock grazing on the ground as a result of the establishment of the [OMDP] monument.” 

Despite all of the longstanding public support, Congressman Steve Pearce remains the lone member of New Mexico’s congressional delegation opposed to Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks.  Rep. Pearce has repeatedly made misstatements about the national monument and is the out of step with the surrounding communities.

Statement from the Sierra Club Rio Grande chapter:

The Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks and Rio Grande del Norte national monument supporters from across New Mexico urge President Trump to look at the facts and leave our national monuments intact.

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke on Thursday issued a report to President Trump containing recommendations on possibly shrinking recently designated national monuments. The contents of the report have not been released, though a Zinke statement indicates some protections will be removed, in opposition to the lion's share of public input.

 

Below is a statement from Howie Dash, Sierra Club Southern New Mexico Group's outings leader, in reaction to the news:

 

“A whopping 99% of the 2.7 million public comments asked the Interior Department to keep these special places intact. It’s clear what the communities surrounding Organ Mountains Desert Peaks and Rio Grande del Norte want. His vague statement makes clear that Secretary Zinke doesn’t care.

 

“Why won't Secretary Zinke say what’s in his report? Are his recommendations so unpopular that he can’t make them public?

 

"The current monument designations protect our public land for use by all of us -- hikers, sportspeople, ranchers, veterans and so many others. The Trump administration’s actions would expose them to fossil-fuel executives — risking irreversible damage to places that hold centuries of history, culture and benefits.”

 

 

 

CVNM Statement on Potential Changes to New Mexico’s National Monuments:

Santa Fe, N.M. – Today, Department of Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke sent a report to the White House “which included his findings and recommendations on national monuments that were under review.” The report summary included no details of what those recommendations were. The full report must be made public immediately.

In addition, Sec. Zinke hinted at potential changes in an interview with the Associated Press. Of grave concern here in New Mexico, are his specific comments about Rio Grande del Norte and Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monuments. In response, Conservation Voters New Mexico Executive Director Demis Foster released the following statement:

“The spectacular Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks and Rio Grande del Norte national monuments are important because they protect important archeological and cultural sites and irreplaceable lands and wildlife,” said Demis Foster, Executive Director of Conservation Voters New Mexico. “Earlier this year, more than 2500 Conservation Voters New Mexico members and supporters joined nearly 2.8 million people across the country in calling on Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to keep our national monuments as they are. It appears Sec. Zinke is ignoring the will of the people by abolishing protections for any part of Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks or Rio Grande del Norte national monuments. But we won’t know unless the full report is released to the public.”

“Not only is it important to protect these lands and keep them public, our national monuments are critical to the economy of rural communities in New Mexico,” added Foster. “In New Mexico alone, the Outdoor Industry Association estimates the annual economic impact of outdoor recreation is $9.9 billion in consumer spending, plus $2.8 billion in wages and salaries; $623 million in state and local tax revenue; and 99,000 jobs. It couldn't be clearer – monument status does more than protect the land; it also supports local jobs and economies.”