N.M. Delegation Responds to Trump Administration’s New Actions to Undo Protections for the Greater Chaco Region

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), U.S. Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), U.S. Representative Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.), U.S. Representative Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.), and U.S. Representative Gabe Vasquez (D-N.M.) released the following statements regarding the Trump administration's new actions to eliminate protections for the Greater Chaco Region that safeguard the area from new oil and gas leasing, undoing a 20-year mineral withdrawal that has kept public lands surrounding Chaco Culture National Historical Park off-limits to new development.

Yesterday, the Trump administration committed to conducting an environmental assessment within 90 days and finalizing Tribal consultation on historic preservation within 30 days. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is only granting seven days for organizations and individuals to submit scoping comments before proceeding with the environmental review.

"Chaco Canyon is a living cultural landscape that holds deep historical meaning and is a sacred space for many of our New Mexico Tribes," said Heinrich, Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and co-founder of the U.S. Senate Stewardship Caucus. "It is not just one more place to drill. The disrespect shown by the Trump administration toward New Mexicans seems to know no bounds."

"Allowing just seven days for public comment on the fate of a 1,000-year-old sacred site is inadequate and disgraceful. I've spent my career working to secure lasting protections for Chaco Canyon and the Greater Chaco Region through real consultation and meaningful public input," said Luján, a member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. "The Trump administration is doing the opposite - jamming a comment period into Holy Week and limiting public participation to online-only access, all while Pueblos are in the midst of preparations for sensitive cultural activities. This is unacceptable, and I will continue pushing back against this administration's attempts to undermine Tribal sovereignty."

"Chaco Canyon is not just a place on a map, it is a sacred, living landscape that carries the history, culture, and identity for many Tribal communities," said Leger Fernández, Ranking Member of the House Subcommittee on Indian and Insular Affairs. "We secured the protections for the Greater Chaco Region, which includes over 4,700 archaeological sites, through a thorough and inclusive process. The Trump administration's rushed attempt to roll back the protections blatantly disregards the careful consideration that such a sacred and historical site like Chaco Canyon deserves. The administration is willing to destroy irreplaceable artifacts for a molecule of gas that could be found on other federal lands across the San Juan Basin."

"Chaco Canyon is sacred. As the Trump administration rushes to push through oil and gas leasing in the greater Chaco Landscape, we know that today's court decision is insufficient to protect this sacred place alone," said Stansbury, Member of the House Committee on Natural Resources and Democratic Vice-Chair of the Congressional Native American Caucus. "We need your voices and support to protect Chaco Canyon. This administration's attempt to push leasing without comprehensive tribal consultation, the dismantling of lawful buffer zones, and a lack of meaningful engagement with communities threatens a landscape that has been home to Pueblo and Diné people for thousands of years, since time immemorial. That's why we will continue to fight to ensure it is protected for generations to come."

"This administration continues to show its deep contempt for Indian Country, this time seeking to undo protections for the Chaco Canyon landscape, going against the will of New Mexico's Pueblos. Chaco is an irreplaceable and sacred landscape, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and a place that deserves protection. There are appropriate places to develop oil and gas, and this is not one of them," said Vasquez.

Located in northwestern New Mexico, the Greater Chaco landscape is a region of great cultural, spiritual, and historical significance to many Pueblos and Tribes that contains living sacred sites. Chaco was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987 and is one of only 24 such sites in the United States.

The New Mexico Congressional Delegation has worked tirelessly to permanently protect Chaco Canyon.

Last November, Heinrich, Luján, and Stansbury hosted a press conference with Pueblo leaders on the steps needed to be taken to permanently protect the landscape. Earlier that same month, the N.M. Congressional Delegation sent a letter to the U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, urging the Trump administration to reverse course on its decision to initiate the process to fully revoke Public Land Order (PLO) No. 7923, which currently protects the area around Chaco Canyon from oil and gas drilling.

Last September, the N.M. Delegation hosted a press conference in front of the U.S. Capitol with 20 Governors and leaders from the Santa Ana, Picuris, Cochiti, Zia, Tesuque, Acoma, Santo Domingo, and Laguna Pueblos to demand the Trump administration permanently protect Chaco Canyon, and to invite U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to visit the Greater Chaco landscape before deciding its fate. Watch the video of the full press conference here.

Last June, the N.M. Delegation sent a letter initially inviting Secretary Burgum to visit Chaco Canyon before deciding its fate and engage directly with Tribal leaders and local communities to hear directly about the profound cultural and spiritual significance of this sacred landscape. Secretary Burgum issued the directive to begin revoking the protections and decided the fate of Chaco Canyon without experiencing it firsthand. Following Secretary Burgum's directive, the N.M. Delegation sent a letter urging the Trump administration to reverse course on its decision to initiate the process to fully revoke Chaco Canyon's protections.

Last April, the N.M. Delegation reintroduced legislation to protect Chaco Canyon and the greater sacred landscape surrounding the Chaco Culture National Historical Park. The legislation was led by Luján in the U.S. Senate and Leger Fernández in the U.S. House of Representatives.

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