HOUSE JOINT MEMORIAL 5

57th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2025

INTRODUCED BY

Anita Gonzales and Elizabeth "Liz" Stefanics

A JOINT MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE NEW MEXICO STATE LEGISLATURE TO SUPPORT FEDERAL ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION AND PERMANENT PROTECTIONS FOR THE UPPER PECOS WATERSHED TO SAFEGUARD CRITICAL WATER RESOURCES, THE LOCAL ECONOMY, THE ENVIRONMENT AND CULTURAL HERITAGE.

     WHEREAS, the Pecos river provides clean water, which is critical to the health and well-being of local communities; and

     WHEREAS, the Pecos river is one of New Mexico's most vital waterways, sustaining acequias, traditional agriculture, land grants-mercedes and local communities in the Pecos valley and beyond; and

     WHEREAS, the local economy is dependent on the Pecos river to support farming, ranching and fisheries; and

     WHEREAS, the upper Pecos watershed is renowned for its outdoor recreational opportunities, including hiking, hunting, fishing and camping, and serves as the gateway to the Pecos wilderness, New Mexico's most-visited wilderness area, drawing visitors from across the state and country and contributing significantly to the local economy; and

     WHEREAS, the Pecos watershed has a long and significant history as the ancestral home of Pecos Pueblo, whose descendants at the Pueblo of Jemez maintain cultural and spiritual ties to the area, along with the Pueblo of Tesuque, which also holds sacred connections to the land; and

     WHEREAS, the upper Pecos watershed provides fresh water downstream for hundreds of miles, contributing to high-quality aquatic habitat for native fish, including New Mexico's state fish, the Rio Grande cutthroat trout, and supports both a cold-water fishery and the Lisboa Springs fish hatchery; and

     WHEREAS, the upper Pecos watershed is an ecologically sensitive area that provides critical habitat for wildlife and supports biodiversity, making it essential to protect this land from further mining activities that could cause irreversible harm to its headwaters and ecosystems; and

     WHEREAS, the Pecos river tributaries and nearby wetlands have been recognized as crucial outstanding natural resource waters by the state of New Mexico; and

     WHEREAS, in March 1991, spring snowmelt carried contaminants into the Pecos river, killing more than ninety thousand fish, harming wildlife and contaminating community drinking water; and

     WHEREAS, the rehabilitation of the watershed required significant reclamation efforts by the state and others, and the toxic metal cleanup cost New Mexico taxpayers twenty-eight million dollars ($28,000,000); and

     WHEREAS, on April 9, 2019, New World resources, limited, through its Colorado subsidiary, New Mexico LLC, announced it had acquired the Tererro copper-gold-zinc volcanogenic massive sulfide project in New Mexico, raising concerns about the potential for renewed mining activity in the sensitive upper Pecos watershed; and

     WHEREAS, in 2023, United States senators Martin Heinrich and Ben Ray Luján and United States representatives Teresa Leger Fernandez and Melanie Stansbury introduced the Pecos Watershed Protection Act in congress, legislation to permanently protect portions of the upper Pecos watershed in northern New Mexico from mineral entry; and

     WHEREAS, the proposed Pecos Watershed Protection Act received national recognition and strong support, including the endorsement of the congressional Hispanic caucus in October 2024, underscoring the cultural, spiritual and ecological importance of this area; and

     WHEREAS, the United States secretary of the interior, the United States bureau of land management and the United States forest service have proposed withdrawing one hundred sixty-three thousand four hundred eighty-three acres of national forest system lands and one thousand three hundred twenty-seven acres of bureau-of-land-management-managed lands in the upper Pecos watershed from new mining claims and the issuance of new federal mineral leases. If approved, an administrative withdrawal would provide protection for up to twenty years; and

     WHEREAS, this proposal has received overwhelming support from acequia organizations, land grants-mercedes, local governments, tribal leaders, conservation groups and communities across New Mexico that are united in protecting the watershed for future generations; and

     WHEREAS, protecting the Pecos watershed is not an anti-mining initiative, but rather a recognition of the unique sensitivity of this region, which is still recovering from the impacts of past mining activities and where further disturbances could result in devastating and permanent consequences on the headwaters of New Mexico's largest river originating within the state;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the legislature express its strong support for the proposed federal administrative action to withdraw specified lands within the upper Pecos watershed from federal mining and mineral leasing laws to protect this sensitive area and its resources; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the legislature call on congress to pass the Pecos Watershed Protection Act and establish permanent protections for the upper Pecos watershed to safeguard its ecological, cultural and economic value for current and future generations; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the legislature recognize the Pecos river's role in sustaining acequias, traditional agriculture, land grants and local communities, as well as its significance to outdoor recreation, biodiversity and cultural heritage; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the legislature acknowledge and honor the historical and spiritual ties of the descendants of Pecos Pueblo and the Pueblo of Tesuque to the Pecos region and affirm the importance of protecting these sacred sites; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the legislature urge all relevant agencies, community leaders and stakeholders to work collaboratively to ensure the long-term health and sustainability of the upper Pecos watershed, balancing conservation, cultural preservation and economic prosperity; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the United States secretary of the interior, the United States bureau of land management, the United States forest service, the New Mexico congressional delegation, the congressional Hispanic caucus and the governor.

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