By Teresa Seamster,
Rio Grande Chapter Mining Co-Chair
In late August 2021, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed an executive order to protect New Mexico’s lands, watersheds, wildlife and natural heritage to help put America on the path to protecting 30 percent of our land by 2030. That order is still in effect.
The governor promised to designate an additional 20% of New Mexico as climate stabilization areas and recognized the need to protect migratory wildlife habitat. Unfortunately, we have fallen far behind other states in protecting our one-of-a-kind heritage.
Today, just 6.1% of New Mexico’s land is protected compared to 12.5% nationally. And only 2% of New Mexico is protected at the highest level of federally designated wilderness. This is the smallest amount in any Western state.
The executive order set goals that are consistent with the scientific consensus to keep average global temperature increases below 1.5 °C of warming and highlighted the need for fast action on climate change. This approach is consistent with the federal government’s America the Beautiful Initiative announced under the Biden administration, which recognizes that the protection of 30 percent of the world’s lands, freshwater, and oceans by 2030 can significantly contribute to mitigating climate change impacts.
The governor’s executive order specifically directed state agencies with regulatory authority over natural resources, wildlife and outdoor recreation to use existing programs across all land types. It also urges them to leverage state and federal funding to the fullest extent, engage with federal land-management agencies in planning, and coordinate with the Indian Affairs Department and stakeholders.
What qualifies as Geographic Area Protection (GAP) status
Under the Biden administration’s 30×30 national framework, protected lands fall into four categories:
- GAP 1: Full Protection (wilderness & parks)
- GAP 2: Partial Protection (monuments)
- GAP 3: Multiple Use, including Inventoried Roadless Areas and Areas of Critical Environmental Concern
- GAP 4: Private land (with no designated protections)
New Mexico’s 30×30 goal is to protect 30% of 77.7 million acres or a total of 23.3 million acres. Currently, GAP 3 Multiple Use Lands provide the greatest opportunity to change their status to protected land. For example, approximately 5.2 million acres of inventoried roadless areas are candidates for being designated as additional wilderness.
Statewide, the opportunities to expand protections to GAP 3 lands is identified in this map. It shows 6.18 million protected acres in dark green and turquoise against the much larger light green areas currently designated as multiple use and subject to development.
A month before the Trump inauguration, the Biden administration joined the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in announcing $122.4 million in grants through the America the Beautiful Challenge. It remains to be seen if those grants will still be allocated to landscape-scale conservation projects across 42 states, 19 tribal nations and three U.S. territories.
In the Biden administration, 30×30 America the Beautiful program conserved and restored more than 45 million acres of land and waters. New Mexico has the opportunity to add significantly to that common heritage. This urgency is all the greater under Trump’s proposed sell-off of public land that puts our progress at risk.
Featured image: Taos Valley Overlook at the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument is an area protected by the Bureau of Land Management. Photo by Teresa Seamster
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