2/20/20 The Board of Directors of Caldera Action voted unanimously to oppose a bill introduced into the US Senate to change the designation of Bandelier National Monument to Bandelier National Park. The group’s opposition was transmitted in an open letter to New Mexico’s US Senators today. We oppose the legislation for the following reasons:
The main purpose of the bill is to stimulate the local economy by placing the “national park” brand on Bandelier National Monument. Though the new name would attract more tourists to the region, Bandelier National Monument cannot cope with additional crowding because of inadequate and crumbling infrastructure and inadequate staffing. Bandelier National Monument is managed by the National Park Service.
The bill would open 4300 acres of land that is fully protected now to hunting and trapping, taking wildlife management away from the National Park Service and giving it to the New Mexico Fish and Game Department. NMGFD allows virtually unregulated trapping on lands where it has wildlife management jurisdiction. Currently Bandelier lands are a refuge for a wide range of wildlife including beaver, bobcats, cougar and other animals that face threats on most lands in the Jemez Mountains. We are opposed to all trapping on National Park Service lands in the Jemez Mountains.
Caldera Action is calling on Congress to address severe funding shortfalls for the National Park Service at Bandelier and nationally before promoting National Park Service managed properties as economic development tourist attractions. Decaying and inadequate infrastructure, deficient staffing, staff housing shortages, and the delicacy of the cultural and natural features that attract the public, all argue for leaving Bandelier a National Monument. The bill directs the National Park Service to facilitate tribal cultural practices within the Monument and to consult with tribes on National Park Service management actions. Bandelier staff has facilitated tribal cultural activities at Bandelier for decades and it already carries out detailed consultations with tribes over all substantial management actions at Bandelier.
Though Caldera Action is grateful for the work of Senator Heinrich on behalf of the Valles Caldera National Preserve, we do not think this bill serves the interests of the American people, the National Park Service, or the natural and cultural resources of Bandelier National Monument. There are elements of the bill we hope can be passed in another context, such as boundary adjustments for the Valles Caldera National Preserve.
Bandelier National Monument was designated a national monument under the Antiquities Act in 1916 to protect the significant cultural features of the area. Plundering of cultural artifacts in the Bandelier area helped inspire the passage of the Antiquities Act in 1906.
The monument encompasses 33,677 acres of rugged volcanic plateau land. The Monument adjoins the Valles Caldera National Preserve (also managed by the National Park Service) to the west, Los Alamos National Laboratory to the north, and a mix of tribal and National Forest lands on other boundaries.
Caldera Action Announces Opposition to Bandelier National Park Bill
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