Why Does So Little Management Get Done at the Valles Caldera?
Caldera Action has long been frustrated by the lack of action by the National Park Service on many fronts at the Valles Caldera. When we pushed Congress to transfer the Preserve to the NPS, we assumed the Park Service would create a true national park experience within a few years. The NPS has managed the VCNP since 2014 and yet the place has changed little in those years with only rudimentary public programs.
For example, though Congress mandated that the NPS deliver a science education program to the American people, the VCNP staff has never done so. Likewise, recreation facilities, interpretation programs, nor a plan for the Rim Trail which Congress calls for in the legislation that transferred the VCNP to the National Park Service. Many aspects of Preserve management don’t meet National Park Service standards.
It turns out that a little loophole in S.285, the legislation that transferred the VCNP to the National Park Service in 2014, that allows Preserve managers to continue management practices established by the Trust. A “Trust” managed the Preserve between 2000 and 2014. According to the loophole (S.285 Sec 4 (2)) the NPS is allowed to continue past practices until they have a General Management Plan in place (just so they don’t violate the National Park Service General Authorities Act). The legislation, S.285, also requires a “General Management Plan” but the NPS has only recently started to write such a plan.
Why? Because there was a fiction circulating in the VCNP office that the Park Service no longer uses General Management Plans but instead uses newer ideas that apparently didn’t fit congressional intent. Apparently when the Bandelier Superintendent was given authority over the Valles Caldera this planning error was corrected and now the VCNP is busy writing a General Management Plan.
Perhaps we can attribute this error and the substantial delay it caused in park development to the inexperience of some of the employees held over from the Trust experiment. Perhaps not. In any case, Caldera Action has been urging the NPS to develop a wide range of educational programs, ranger guided walks, trails with signage, workable opening hours, compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, development of a Research Learning Center etc. for years. We see light at the end of the tunnel, but we don’t know how long the tunnel is.
We can only hope that the General Management Plan is finished soon so we can get on with having a state-of-the-art Preserve. Hopefully the staff can make up for lost time. We are happy to help in any way we can.
“A national preserve is an area protected by the government, which shares many similarities with a national park, but with fewer limitations on activities. Preserves often allow hunting, trapping, and oil and gas exploration and extraction, though laws vary at each preserve.”
The Valles Caldera limits access through policies such as those for a special use permit. First, no camping, except for hunters. If you do want a grazing permit or an equestrian permit, or even a permit for a running race, you have to do the following: (1) pay a non-refundable application fee (ok); (2) provide insurance to cover the event (ok); (3) provide a $10,000 bond; (4) agree to cover any costs accrued for “monitoring” an event; and (5) agree to any costs to repair “damage” from the event. This is an egregious and intentional policy that excludes users.
Users are not allowed to drive into Banco Bonito, which was a popular hiking, bike riding, and equestrian area. The area is closed at night, despite this being a dark sky-designated area and the public is instructed to park along side State Road 4 to observe at night. Back Country Horsemen are not allowed to camp overnight on work parties to clear trail. Corrals are being removed at the entrance station and Antonito Creek, which are areas that both could support overnight camping. A long-standing runner’s ranch is no longer allowed. Endurance competitions (which were held three times in Trust days) are no longer allowed (or are precluded by permit rules. Hunters can camp and corrals are provided at Banco Bonita.
Bottom line is that we east the public have more access to our national parks than at the Valles Caldera National Preserve. No, I do not feel welcome and have met with management. No changes have taken place. In fact, there are more restrictions and I do not expect this to change.