Group makes progress in protecting Chaco Canyon

Activists from www.dont-pave-chaco.com are celebrating a small victory in the fight to protect Chaco Canyon from increased tourism and misuse. As a result of their efforts, the Federal Highway Administration has agreed to run an Environmental Assessment of the project to pave roads to Chaco Canyon. Learn more at www.dont-pave-chaco.com

Mark your calendars for a public meeting in Albuquerque regarding Chaco Canyon.

Why is Chaco Canyon so important to New Mexicans?

According to www.dont-pave-chaco.com:

Chaco Culture NHP in North-Central New Mexico is a very special place. It was inhabited for many hundreds of years and its culture peaked a millennium ago - before that of the more widely known Mesa Verde site. It is located in San Juan County, New Mexico and is accessible via US Highway 550, County Road (CR) 7900 and finally CR7950. Chaco is a World Heritage site and to those of us who have spent time there, it is a gem that is not duplicated anywhere else in the United States.

What is under threat?

According to www.dont-pave-chaco.com:

Because CR7950 is currently unpaved, the number of visitors to Chaco remains moderate. The result is that those who do make the effort have an experience that cannot be duplicated at highly impacted sites such as Mesa Verde. There is no need to sign up for "tours". One can drive their own vehicle on the park roads, hike or bicycle. Permits for backcountry walks are readily available, free with Park admission and unencumbered with quota systems.

All of that may soon change! Federal money has been allotted to improve (pave) the sixteen mile dirt road (three miles of the sixteen have already been paved using New Mexico funds). A 2005 NPS study indicates that visitation levels could soar more than five fold, overwhelming the infrastructure and staff while putting sacred sites at risk. The quality of the visitor experience will also be irrevocably altered. The unpaved road has long protected the canyon. Immediate public outcry is needed now to save the park from becoming a tour bus turnaround.

Chaco needs our protection from oil and gas leasing and development. In March of 2007, Cimarex Energy Company, a natural gas company out of Denver, Colorado, proposed two natural gas pads with 4 wells on the southern boundary of Chaco Culture NHP on state of New Mexico Trust land.