New Mexico Delegation Celebrates House Passage Of Permanent Chaco Canyon Protections

Statement

U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich, along with U.S. Representatives Ben Ray Luján, Deb Haaland, and Xochitl Torres Small, joined Tribal leaders and conservation advocates Wednesday to celebrate the House passage of the Chaco Cultural Heritage Area Protection Act, a bipartisan bill to prevent future mineral leasing on federally-owned lands around Chaco Canyon.

Introduced in April by the New Mexico Delegation, the Chaco Cultural Heritage Protection Act would withdraw 316,076 acres of minerals owned by the federal government from future leasing and development located within the Proposed Chaco Protection Zone, an approximately 10-mile protected radius around Chaco. It does not affect the mineral rights of an Indian Tribe or member of Indian Tribe to trust or allotment land.

Earlier this year, Luján, Udall, and Heinrich secured a one-year moratorium on oil and gas drilling near the Chaco Culture National Historical Park. As Vice Chair of the House Natural Resources Committee, Haaland guided the bill through the committee in September.

"The greater Chaco region is sacred land that has significant religious, cultural, and linguistic value to the original peoples of the southwest. The House passage of the Chaco Cultural Heritage Protection Act is a major victory for New Mexico and significant progress toward establishing permanent protections for Chaco Canyon. For at least a decade, drilling and extraction have threatened the sacred, ancestral homelands of the greater Chaco region, putting this treasured landscape at risk of desecration," Luján said. "I'm extremely proud to have worked alongside the New Mexico Delegation, Tribal leaders, and every day New Mexicans who fought tirelessly for this progress. It's time for the Senate to protect Chaco so that future generations inherit their spiritual homelands intact."

"Today, the House has taken a major step forward for Chaco Canyon, passing our legislation to protect an irreplaceable landscape that is sacred to Tribes and holds deep meaning for people in New Mexico and around the country," Udall said. "The greater Chaco region is a New Mexico treasure with thousands of visitors each year who come to explore its singular history and natural beauty. Despite overwhelming support from Tribes, New Mexicans, and the American public-- Chaco is still at risk from expanding energy development, including recently proposed leasing inside this long-standing buffer zone. I began working on this legislation nearly two years ago with Tribes and the New Mexico delegation and I applaud my colleagues in the House for passing protections for Chaco Canyon to protect its sacred and fragile landscape from further development. Now it is time for the Senate to pass legislation that respects and preserves Chaco's natural, historical, and cultural importance. I will work tirelessly until we get this done for our Tribes, our communities, and future generations."

"The Chaco region holds deep meaning to New Mexico's Pueblos and to the Navajo Nation, whose history and traditional knowledge live on in its thousands of ancestral sites, and whose lands and communities surround Chaco Culture National Historical Park. We are one step closer to protecting these sacred landscapes for future generations," Heinrich said. "This is about listening to tribal leaders and all of the New Mexicans who are calling on us to preserve the integrity of Chaco's irreplaceable resources. I will continue to work to create a productive, bipartisan path forward in the Senate to get our legislation over the finish line."

"Chaco Canyon is a sacred place that future generations should be able to experience and learn from, but we've seen time and again how extractive industries threaten special places like Chaco. I'm incredibly blessed to work with colleagues who recognize the value of Chaco Canyon and has worked so hard to pass a bill that will protect Chaco, so that the future generations of Pueblo people will have access to the place where our ancestors are buried, and New Mexicans will be able to take pride in having this pristine site in our state for years to come," Haaland said.

"The passage of the Chaco Cultural Heritage Area Protection Act is the result of years of hard work and collaboration between New Mexico's Congressional delegation, tribal leadership, and other stakeholders. The joint effort ensures Chaco Canyon and its sacred lands are protected for generations to come. The legislation works together with tribal communities to honor our trust responsibility and protect sacred, ancestral lands like Chaco Canyon," Torres Small said.