Liz Saxe, staff writer
TAOS
— Hundreds of concerned citizens attended the first of several open
houses the Carson National Forest will host in the coming months on the
Valle Vidal to help gauge public opinion on the future management
direction of the unit.
A majority attending
the Thursday night, Feb. 10, meeting at the Taos Convention Center
supported statements in opposition to proposed oil and gas drilling.
Acting
Forest Supervisor Kendall Clark opened the presentations by laying the
scene for the long Forest Plan Amendment process ahead. “This is a
marathon,” she said. “All of us are still gathering at the starting
line.”
According to Clark, the purpose of
amending the forest plan is to provide a “clear management direction
for the Valle Vidal.” She emphasized the Forest Service has not
proposed oil and gas drilling in the unit but that a proposal to drill
by El Paso Corporation initiated a mandatory review process.
The
Forest Service commissioned a study by New Mexico Tech, which found
potential for mineral development in the eastern third of the Valle
Vidal unit.
In closing, Clark reiterated, “Our current focus now is developing a vision for the whole Valle Vidal.”
Citizens speaking focused on the varied uses of the Valle Vidal and most voiced opposition to oil and gas drilling in the unit.
Joe
Torres, president of the Valle Vidal Grazing Association, emphasized
the Valle Vidal belongs to the public and should be managed in its
interest. “Pennzoil donated the Valle Vidal not to the Forest Service,
not to the government, but to the people of the United States. It’s not
government land, it’s your land,” he said to applause.
“Certain lands are more important for their scenic beauty than for extracting minerals,” he concluded.
Bill
Brown spoke for the Coalition for the Valle Vidal, which includes over
100 organizations and 4,000 citizens of Northern New Mexico. Brown said
the coalition’s position is that the Valle Vidal is a national treasure
and should be protected accordingly.
Echoing
Torres, Brown declared, “The Valle Vidal should be managed for the
benefit of the people — all the people. It is a grave mistake to
exploit this special place for the benefit of the energy industry.” He
emphasized the value of the watersheds, its potential as a sustainable
resource for Northern New Mexico, recreational values and its unique
wildlife habitats.
Mark Anderson, program
manager for Philmont Scout Ranch, discussed how thousands of Boy Scouts
use the Valle Vidal. Every summer, 22,000 visitors, 5,000 participants
in Boy Scout training facilities and 1,016 seasonal staff descend upon
Philmont. Anderson said this summer, Philmont expects about 2,000 Boy
Scouts will visit the Valle Vidal.
The Valle
Vidal provides Scouts with unique training and educational
opportunities. “We practice ‘leave no trace’ principles,” Anderson
said, “What a great place to learn that practice.”
Additionally,
every Scout who uses the Valle Vidal must volunteer at least 3 hours on
conservation projects in the unit. To date, Anderson estimated Scouts
have dedicated 69,000 volunteer hours to projects including fire
rehabilitation efforts, streambed and watershed improvements and
erosion barriers.
Scouts who visit the Valle
Vidal have the opportunity to participate in educational programs at
three staff camps in the unit, including mountain biking, astronomy,
environmental awareness and search and rescue.
According
to Anderson, “Our partnership with the Forest Service has been a
positive one. The Valle Vidal has become an important part of the
Philmont experience.” He added, “The chance to see that elk herd is a
life experience.”
Andy Romero, an avid horseman,
described his family’s long history as homesteaders in the region and
recalled taking his first horse into the Valle Vidal. “I stand here in
solidarity with anyone who doesn’t want the Valle Vidal drilled,” he
said. “The area is beautiful — words can’t describe it. We shouldn’t be
able to put a dollar value on it.”
Taylor
Streit, an angler, guide and outfitter, argued the Valle Vidal provides
unique angling experiences that are becoming harder to find throughout
the nation. “The Valle Vidal is still one of the only easy access
public fisheries that’s good enough to guide on,” he said. “It is one
of the very few wild and unspoiled areas accessible to the public.”
After
arguing the values of the Valle Vidal for fishing, Streit added, “The
Carson Forest should be commended for its fine stewardship of the land
thus far.”
David Delling of Renewable Energy
Resources, who has worked in the mining industry, provided the lone
counterbalance. He spoke to the potential benefits of strictly
regulated and environmentally conscious drilling in the Valle Vidal.
Referencing
a recent article in The Albuquerque Journal, Delling said money from
oil and gas royalties that comes into New Mexico goes directly to
public education. “Extractive industries contribute to the New Mexico
education system over $1 million a day,” he said.
Delling
agreed with other presenters that the Valle Vidal is valuable for a
number of reasons. “I believe National Forests are truly Lands of Many
Uses,” he concluded.
History of Valle Vidal
According to forest planner David Seesholtz, the Valle Vidal became
public land in 1982 when Pennzoil donated 101,794 acres to the American
people. Carson National Forest has been steward of the land since the
donation. After an environmental analysis, the Forest Service
determined it should pursue a policy of multiple use management for the
area.
The
special warranty deed for the land conveys all improvements on the
land, includes the road easement through Vermejo Park Ranch and
includes coal royalties in the area, but does not otherwise restrict
land use.
Carson National Forest has a
Memorandum of Understanding with New Mexico Game and Fish and Vermejo
Park Ranch that emphasizes the diversity and high quality of wildlife
and fishing in the unit.
Besides emphasizing
wildlife, the multiple use management policy stipulates three to four
million board feet of timber may be removed from the unit every year.
Additionally, approximately 60,000 acres of coal rights in the Valle
Vidal are privately owned.
Seesholtz also
outlined the timeline for amending the forest plan. Carson National
Forest hopes to issue a Notice of Intent to amend the plan in May,
which will be followed by a 90 day public scoping and comment period.
The
forest plans to release a draft environmental impact statement in about
a year. Another 90 day public comment period will follow. The process
is expected to be completed by a record of decision in September 2006.
Finally,
Seesholtz addressed the leasing process for public lands. Public lands
can be automatically closed to leasing if they are reclassified as a
wilderness study area by the Secretary of Agriculture, if they are
withdrawn from leasing by an act of Congress or the Secretary of the
Interior, or by an executive order. None of these methods have been
applied to the Valle Vidal.
The Forest Service
may thus consider three leasing options for the unit. The Valle Vidal
may be open to development with standard stipulations, with special
stipulations, such as regulating surface infrastructure, or it may be
closed to leasing entirely.
The Forest Service
is planning future open houses in Raton and Santa Fe to provide
citizens additional opportunities to comment on the management
direction of the Valle Vidal.
