Update: The commission voted unanimously in favor of the resolution! Thanks to everyone who wrote their commissioners and/or attended the meeting.
The Santa Fe County Commission will be meeting on Tues, Nov. 29, to consider a resolution directing county staff to advocate for trap-free federal lands within the county.
Please attend this meeting to voice your support!
The resolution means that county personnel could lobby the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management and elected state and federal officials to prohibit the use of steel-jawed leg-hold traps and wire cable snares on these lands.
It is currently legal for traps to be hidden on public lands where we all recreate. Trappers seek to capture and kill wildlife like bobcats and foxes to profit from skinning and selling their fur.
Traps pose a risk to the public and to domestic dogs, including companion and search-and-rescue dogs.
The county can’t prohibit trapping on federal lands, but it can let federal decision-makers know that county residents do not consider this an acceptable land use. Our county’s economy is heavily dependent on tourism and outdoor recreation; we should not let the profits of a few take away wildlife that belongs to all of us.
Please attend this meeting to voice your support! The meeting will take place at 2 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 29, at the County Commission Chambers, 102 Grant Ave. in Santa Fe.
Please also email Commissioners Roybal, Anaya, Chavez, Holian and Stefanics at hproybal@santafecountynm.gov, mchavez@santafecountynm.gov, ranaya@santafecountynm.gov, kholian@santafecountynm.gov, lstefanics@santafecountynm.gov. See sample message below.
Sample message (please use your own words to make a bigger impact):
Emails: hproybal@santafecountynm.gov, mchavez@santafecountynm.gov, ranaya@santafecountynm.gov, kholian@santafecountynm.gov, lstefanics@santafecountynm.gov
RE: Please pass trapping resolution
Please vote in favor of the county resolution that will pledge county staff to work for prohibiting the use of injurious traps on federal land within the county.
Santa Fe County is blessed to have abundant and beautiful public lands that attract local visitors and tourists and their dollars from afar. Tourism is an essential source of revenue for the county.
Santa Fe residents have been harmed when their dogs have been trapped. Last year a dog named Noodles lost part of her ear in the struggle with a trap. In addition to leg and foot bruising and tendon and muscle injuries, dogs can also break off their own teeth biting at the trap. People can be injured when even the most mild-mannered dog bites at his rescuers. On top of this, there can be veterinary and medical costs. In turn, tourist revenue is at risk when visitors instead choose to go to states like Colorado or Arizona, where traps are not legal on public land and they are protected from such experiences.
Traps are not compatible on public lands with public use.
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