By BEN NEARY
NMWF Conservation Director
ALBUQUERQUE — It’s critical that everyone who enjoys using New Mexico’s public land get involved in helping to shape the management plans that will guide activities on the Santa Fe and Carson national forests for decades to come.
Representatives from the New Mexico Wildlife Federation, National Wildlife Federation, Trout Unlimited and Defenders of Wildlife will speak about the Santa Fe and Carson forest management plans at a free event in Albuquerque on Oct. 9.
The event also will focus on getting people to submit their own comments in the forest-planning process to ensure that the final plans meet the needs of wildlife and preserve critical habitat and natural resources. Comments are due by Nov. 7.
The free event starts at 5:30 p.m., Oct. 9, at Marble Brewery’s Northeast Heights location at 9904 Montgomery Blvd., NE, in Albuquerque. It’s part of the New Mexico Wildlife Federation’s monthly lecture series.
Jeremy Romero, regional connectivity coordinator with the National Wildlife Federation in New Mexico, has been tracking the forest plans. He will be among the people presenting information on the planning process at the event.
“Public participation and input is a key and large component of how these plans are being developed,” Romero said. “So whether you’re a sportsman, sportswoman, whether you like to hunt, fish, hike, camp, mountainbike — whatever it may be — these forest plans compile all these multiple uses into this plan and show you the direction of the forest.”
The comment period that’s open now gives people the opportunity to provide the U.S. Forest Service with feedback on what’s important to them, whether that’s wildlife corridors, riparian areas or multiple-use values such as gathering firewood and pinon, Romero said.
“The way we’ve been looking at the plan is through habitat and wildlife connectivity,” Romero said.
The plans call for designating special management areas on the Carson and Santa Fe National Forests. Romero said there are components in both plans that address protecting and maintaining habitat connectivity.
The National Wildlife Federation has been pushing to designate the Caja del Rio Wildlife and Cultural Interpretive Management Area on the Santa Fe National Forest. On the Carson National Forest, it’s been pushing for special management areas in the San Antonio and Valle Vidal areas.
“These special management areas have special characteristics for wildlife,” Romero said. “They promote wildlife connectivity. Wildlife use these areas for seasonal reasons, like seasonal movement, they also use these areas for migrations.”
Without adequate protections, all of the special management areas could be subject to energy or road development projects or other activities that could fragment wildlife habitat, Romero said.
Only people who submit comments on the plans at this stage will have standing to object when the final plans are released, Romero said.
Dan Roper, New Mexico public lands coordinator for Trout Unlimited, will also speak at the event. He also emphasized that the current period is the public’s last opportunity to comment.
“I’d say these plans are an excellent opportunity for New Mexicans to weigh in on fish and wildlife, habitat, clean water and some of the really special places in New Mexico that people care about,” Roper said.
“The Forest Service is proposing several special management areas, Valle VIdal, San Antonio Mountain, and the Caja del Rio on the Santa Fe forest,” Roper said.
“Those are all areas they propose to manage for wildlife, protecting cultural resources, and what they call semi-primitive forms of outdoor recreation,” Roper said. “We’d like to see some additional plan components to assure really great outcomes for wildlife and other important resources like clean water in those areas.”
Roper said his group would like to see the Carson Forest plan in particular pay more attention to riparian areas, especially those associated with intermittent or ephemeral waters.
“Those are really important to clean water downstream for native fish,” Roper said. “And right now we feel like the forest hasn’t really acknowledged the importance of protecting intermittent and ephemeral waters in their forest plan.”