SENATE CONSERVATION COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR

SENATE JOINT MEMORIAL 50

50th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2012

A JOINT MEMORIAL

REQUESTING COOPERATION AND SUPPORT FOR THE EFFORTS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF GAME AND FISH TO ESTABLISH A CONSERVATION AND CULTURE ACADEMY FOR THE PRESERVATION OF TRADITIONAL CULTURES, WATERSHEDS AND ACTIVITIES.

     WHEREAS, the culture and traditions of New Mexico are founded upon and dependent on the viability and health of the land and its precious watersheds; and

     WHEREAS, the natural resources that sustain us, and that sustained our forebears, we hold in trust for our children and their children; and

     WHEREAS, healthy, intact tracts of publicly accessible land where our children can practice traditional land uses such as agriculture, hunting and fishing are essential to the continuation of traditional culture; and

     WHEREAS, the resources of New Mexico, both physical and cultural, must have champions in the next generation to ensure that they do not perish; and

     WHEREAS, beneficial use of renewable wildlife resources is essential to the long-term economy of New Mexico; and

     WHEREAS, fishing is an integral part of the fabric of New Mexico's economy and heritage, and fishing is an important cultural and traditional activity for all New Mexicans; and

     WHEREAS, the New Mexico conservation and culture academy will be established as a four- to six-week summer session for students in the tenth through twelfth grades and will be held on working ranches that have ongoing Rio Grande cutthroat trout restoration initiatives; and

     WHEREAS, the Rio Grande cutthroat trout, being the New Mexico state fish and a candidate for an endangered species listing, is a classic western icon that has survived in the face of extreme adversity and is a barometer of watershed health; and

     WHEREAS, like the cultures that rely on the same watersheds it still inhabits, the Rio Grande cutthroat trout is a symbol of diversity and uniqueness in an increasingly homogeneous world; and

     WHEREAS, the Rio Grande cutthroat trout's habitat is an ideal watershed-centric laboratory that fuses traditional cultural land use, watershed/native species protection and habitat restoration into one easy-to-manage conservation and culture curriculum package; and

     WHEREAS, the best and brightest conservation-minded kids from all corners of the state will be recruited for the academy, acting as the conservation and culture ambassadors from their respective regions;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the department of game and fish, the United States fish and wildlife service, the United States forest service, the bureau of land management, the Valles Caldera national preserve, the New Mexico agricultural community, the state council of trout unlimited and representatives of traditional cultures in New Mexico be requested to develop curricula and establish a conservation and culture academy for the preservation of traditional cultures, watersheds and activities; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the department of game and fish study the feasibility of creating and managing a dedicated youth conservation and culture education fund; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the regional forester of the United States forest service, the state director of the United States fish and wildlife service, the bureau of land management, the New Mexico state council of trout unlimited and the director of the department of game and fish.