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Sunday, April 04, 2010
Keep Valles Caldera Management Local
By Jose Varela Lopez
La Cieneguilla
In response to the March 21 commentary on the Valles Caldera National Preserve:
Only when the government is involved could a group of people be given a magnificent piece of northern New Mexico property, teeming with natural resources, and be unable to meet the gift's one caveat — make it self-sustaining within 10 years. Worse yet, rather than searching for ways to make money, all involved seem content to throw up their hands in defeat and turn the property over to the National Park Service (NPS) or U.S. Forest Service (USFS) to manage.
We were given a unique opportunity when New Mexico's Congressional delegation led the charge to purchase what was then known as the Baca Ranch for the benefit of the public. It was to be managed locally, by a board of directors who have been mainly New Mexicans. People were excited about the potential for scientific research, fishing, hunting and just access to this beautiful piece of land.
Livestock production and ranching are a huge part of the economy, history and tradition in northern New Mexico. In recognition of that history, and since the property, now known as the Valles Caldera National Preserve (VCNP), had been a working ranch for hundreds of years, the legislation required that the VCNP remain a working ranch.
Instead of opening up the new preserve to the public, allowing tourism, hunting, hiking, camping, and any number of activities that would get people on the land, showcase the property and bring in money, preserve management has been mired in bureaucratic red tape and endless analysis before it could even begin to meet its mandates. This is a huge piece of northern New Mexico, with so many possibilities, but the board of directors and staff have had little ability to change policies in the face of constant criticism and attack by those who see the preserve solely as a recreational playground without addressing the very real need to conserve resources while properly managing them.
The Valles Caldera is rich with natural resources and opportunities for revenue. The land is such a showplace, compared with neighboring Forest Service and park land, precisely because it has been privately and properly managed for generations. The forest is healthy because of timber harvest and grazing. The vast grasslands, clear streams and diverse, healthy wildlife exist because of grazing, timber harvest, and prescribed burns. Why do you think the huge herds of elk are found on the preserve rather than neighboring forest land?
Rather than continue the tradition of that private management, implementing sound management policies and caring for the land and turning a profit, preserve management is being pushed to do the opposite. The "ranching" program falls far from the spirit of the law because of endless environmental analysis and public input. At one time, the ranch ran up to 10,000 yearling cattle. Under preserve management, up to 1,000 cattle per season have been allowed on the range for a short few months. Resources are going to waste, and rancher participation is low because of the difficulty of participating in the program, and frustration with the system.
Turning the Valles Caldera over to the USFS or NPS would be a disaster. Both agencies do manage land in the area — but just take a look at their land compared to the VCNP: overgrown forests, no grasslands, erosion, wildfires, and closures due to fire danger every summer.
Is that really what we want? Instead, let's put policies in place that truly meet the intent of the legislation and save this beautiful landscape.
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