Package includes bills to designate wilderness within New Mexico’s Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks and Río Grande del Norte national monuments
Albuquerque, NM (January 10, 2019) – This week, Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) reintroduced a public lands package that includes the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks Conservation Act, the Cerros del Norte Conservation Act, reauthorization of the Land and Water Conservation Fund, and dozens of other bipartisan public lands bills.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer pledged to bring the lands package up for a vote “shortly after the upper chamber returns in January,” and given that it was just reintroduced, a broad coalition is asking that Congress pass the bipartisan public lands package now.
Legislation to safeguard the wilderness in these two areas was first introduced by former Senator Jeff Bingaman in 2009 in the 111th Congress, and then again by Senators Udall and Heinrich in the 112th and 113th Congresses. In 2013 and 2014, President Obama established the Río Grande del Norte and Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monuments. Many of the proposed wilderness areas enjoy temporary wilderness status as Wilderness Study Areas (WSA), but only Congress can designate an official wilderness area through legislation.
The bills will designate roughly 261,500 acres of wilderness within the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks and Río Grande del Norte national monuments. The bills were championed by Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich, Governor Michele Lujan Grisham, and Congressman Ben Ray Lujá
Background on the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks Conservation Act
The Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks Conservation Act was introduced by Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich and would designate eight wilderness areas totaling roughly 240,000 acres within the 496,330-acre national monument. The proposed wilderness would give a higher level of protection to special lands within the monument.
Hunting, livestock grazing, hiking, camping, horseback riding, firefighting, and law enforcement and border security activities would continue in the wilderness areas. The Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument contains approximately 306 bird species and 78 mammal species, including golden eagles, mule deer, javelina, cougar, ring-tail cat, and quail. The proposed wilderness will strengthen the wildlife habitat for these species as well as protect the watersheds that they depend on.
Background on the Cerros del Norte Conservation Act
The Cerros del Norte Conservation Act would designate two new wilderness areas – Ute Mountain (Cerro del Yuta) and Rio San Antonio – within the Río Grande del Norte National Monument, totaling 21,500 acres within the 242,500-acre national monument. It was introduced by Senators Martin Heinrich and Tom Udall, and Congressman Ben Ray Luján. Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham was a co-sponsor when she was in the U.S. House of Representatives. People have been working to preserve these special areas for more than 25 years.
Grazing would continue in already-permitted areas, and water rights would not be impacted under the proposed legislation. Additionally, traditional activities like wood and piñon gathering would continue.
The proposed wilderness areas within the national monument serve as one of the world’s great avian migratory routes. These areas are also home to important game species like pronghorn and elk. Additionally, the legislation would safeguard world-class recreation opportunities already enjoyed within the national monument, including hiking, hunting, and fishing.
