Most Santa Fe residents recently got a mailing from a group called “The Forest Advocate” which discusses forest management around Santa Fe. While I appreciate the spirit of the publication, …
Category: land management
Lightning Fire, Wild and Free
In mid-June lightning struck a remote slope in the Pecos Wilderness east of Santa Fe. The bolt started a fire that ignited dry fuels in a spruce-fir forest and quickly …
Planning the Valles Caldera National Preserve
The Valles Caldera in northern New Mexico is a vast collapsed volcano now coated with forests and grasslands. People have been coming to the Caldera seasonally for centuries, making paths …
Ranching is Driving the West’s Water Crisis
At some point, Americans need to come to grips with the fact that the cattle ranching industry is using far too much water in the American West. Ranching damages almost …
New Gila Wild and Scenic Bill an Empty Gesture
What do you imagine when you think of a wild and scenic river? Do you think of a deep clear stream running among thick grasses with flowers bobbing, deer grazing …
Chaco Canyon and the Trampling of Hooves
At the turn of the century (1900), a man named Richard Weatherill ran a horse ranch right next to Pueblo Bonito inside what is now Chaco Canyon National Historic Park. …
Capitol Attack Threatens Our Public Lands
The events of January 6 in Washington pose a direct threat to our public lands and the survival of our forests, deserts, parks, wildlife, clean air and water. Those of …
Will Ponderosa Pine Forests Disappear?
Two forest fires ravaged the Jemez Mountains near Los Alamos, New Mexico in the last 20 years. These fires are famous among land managers, scientists, politicians, and conservationists because they …
Pushing for More Prescribed Burning
“This is the first bill related to wildfire that I’ve seen in Congress that actually has fire in it!” exclaimed Tim Ingalsbee, Director of Firefighters United for Safety Ethics and …
Getting Cows out of Wilderness
Many people are unhappy when they find livestock grazing inside designated wilderness areas on national forest lands. People hiking the Continental Divide Trail encounter cattle in the Colorado national forests …
