The Trump administration is revisiting a collection of public land orders issued under previous leadership. Tribal leaders who supported a ban on oil and gas development around a national park in New Mexico worry about how this could impact their cultural sites.
What's happening?
The Associated Press reported last month, when the government was still in the midst of a shutdown, that the Bureau of Land Management notified tribal leaders in the Southwest that it would conduct an environmental assessment to determine whether to open up hundreds of square miles around Chaco Culture National Historical Park for oil and gas development.
A sacred site for many Indigenous people, the park contains the remains of stone structures built centuries ago by the land's original inhabitants.
Why is this important?
The fight to preserve the Chaco landscape has been ongoing for decades.
In 1987, the park and six other nearby areas became UNESCO World Heritage Sites. In 2023, the BLM announced it would protect approximately 336,404 acres of public lands from new oil and gas leasing and mining claims for two decades.
The Biden administration said this decision was "informed by extensive public engagement, including significant consultation with tribal nations."
"Our bloodlines, our heritage, our cultural foundation, our identity comes from Chaco Canyon," Santo Domingo Pueblo Lt. Gov. Raymond Aguilar said this fall to the media at a gathering in Washington, D.C., where pueblo leaders advocated to make the 20-year ban on new oil and gas leasing and mining claims permanent, per the AP.
While oil and gas pollution harms communities worldwide — being connected to millions of annual premature deaths, as well as a dangerously warming climate — in the U.S., Indigenous tribes suffer disproportionately from harmful carbon pollution from dirty fuels, according to a study by the Clean Air Task Force.
Proximity to oil and gas facilities contributes to these outcomes, even as many Indigenous communities lack access to reliable power.
What's being done about this?
Not every tribal member has supported the current plan to protect Chaco Culture National Historical Park. The AP reported that "the debate over the buffer around Chaco has pitted the Navajo Nation against other tribes in the region," with some Navajos advocating for a smaller protected area.
TCD Picks » Upway Spotlight
💡Upway makes it easy to find discounts of up to 60% on premium e-bike brands
|
Should states be allowed to ban plastic items from businesses? Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. |
Definitely 👍 This could preserve millions in oil and gas royalties, per the Arizona Republic. In January, the Navajo Nation sued the DOI over the Chaco protections.
For its part, the Interior Department said in a statement to the AP that it will work closely with tribal leaders and uphold its trust responsibilities to tribes. There should also be a period for public comment. Ultimately, the withdrawal could remain in place.
However, given the U.S.'s long history of broken treaties with and promises to native tribes, it remains clear there is a lot of work to do to restore trust in this process and make amends.
💰Get TCD's free newsletters for easy tips to save more, waste less, and make smarter choices — and earn up to $5,000 toward clean upgrades in TCD's exclusive Rewards Club.
Cool Picks
