A New National Park for New Mexico?
By Steve Casimiro on February 14th, 2013
New Mexico’s senatorial contingent, Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich, want the 89,000 Valles Caldera National Reserve to become a national park. New Mexicans have seen this movie before, though. In 2010 their state’s senators also pushed for converting the land, north of Albuquerque, toward national park status but it never got to a vote. Presently the land’s in a bit of limbo. It was purchased by the feds for $100 million in 2000 but is co-managed by a presidential-appointed trust and a working ranch. You can hike, fish, ski, and hunt in the Caldera, but there are more restrictions than would be in place in national park. Another motive: Existing protections aren’t strict enough for the area’s ancient pueblo artifacts that would gain stronger management under the NPS. Via Albeuquerque Journal.
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Tags: national park