A Call to Action:
The proposal to designate the Mimbres Peaks National Monument in Luna County needs your support.

The Luna County Commission is set to vote on a resolution opposing the monument designation at its meeting Thurs., Jan. 11. Supporters of the monument proposal should attend the work session before the meeting and express support for the designation and opposition to the resolution.

Luna County Commissioner Ray Trejo is a strong proponent of the monument. He spoke last month at the ceremony that publicly launched the monument proposal. He has emphasized that it would conserve indigenous and cultural resources on nearly a quarter-million acres of federal lands administered by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management.

Trejo and other supporters, including pueblo leaders and conservationists, said that the monument designation would draw tourists seeking outdoor recreation opportunities to the area. They said traditional uses such as hunting, grazing and regulated OHV use would continue.

The resolution opposing the monument designation is sponsored by the other two members of the three-member Luna County Commission: Colette Chandler and John Sweetser. It states that monument supporters failed to include area farmers, ranchers and miners in the planning process.

Jesse Deubel, executive director of the New Mexico Wildlife Federation, said it's clear that the monument designation wouldn't affect existing livestock and mining operations on BLM lands. He pointed out that the ranching community has reported no problems from the designations in recent years of the Organ Mountain Desert Peaks National Monument near Las Cruces or the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument in Northern New Mexico. He said the monument designation in Luna County would only apply to federal lands and that hunting would continue to be allowed on the lands.

"Mimbres Peaks National Monument would bring much-needed jobs and economic development to Luna County through increased visitation and tourism," Deubel said. "It would help grow the outdoor recreation economy and preserve public lands and cultural resources, all while respecting ongoing ranching and mining operations. Supporting the monument designation should be a slam dunk for county and local government officials."

The Luna County Commission is scheduled to take public comment at its work session at 9:30 a.m. Thurs., Jan. 11, and those wishing to speak should arrive early and sign in. The meetings will be held at the Mimbres Valley Learning Center, 2300 E. Pine St, Deming, NM 88030.