The top story in yesterday’s Journal North asserted that public support for ending the Trust management experiment at the Valles Caldera National Preserve is building.
This comes on the heels of last week’s article in the Los Alamos Monitor that came to the same conclusion (headlined “Residents Prefer Park Service”), and it also follows this month’s public listening sessions in which 86% of participants expressed support for possible National Park Service management of the Caldera.
Click here to read the Journal North article in its entirety (after clicking on this link, non-subscribers must click on the “trial access pass” button in the lower left of the screen to read the story). A portion of the article is shown below:
Support appears to be growing for turning the Valles Caldera National Preserve over to the National Park Service or the U.S. Forest Service.
Two public meetings were held this month to address the issue. Of the 90 or so who attended, only about five spoke in favor of retaining the current structure, under which the Valles Caldera is managed by a presidentially appointed board of trustees, according to Los Alamos County Councilor Nona Bowman.
“Basically, people want it under the National Park Service,” she said. “They just want, I think, more opportunity without so much hassle to get into the park.”
…
Jason Lott is both a member of the Valles Caldera National Preserve board and the superintendant at Bandelier.
“When you go to the Valles Caldera, your experience is based on which programs you decide to attend,” he said. “It’s cost-based by program. … In Bandelier you can do whatever you want, snowshoeing or whatever.”
Lott said there are no programs currently at the Valles Caldera, including the educational center, that would be automatically cut should it become part of the park service. Bandelier’s opportunities include cultural demonstrations, outdoor workshops, skiing, biking, and programs involving science, he said.
It would all depend on the legislation drafted in Congress. Hunting, which is allowed at Valles Caldera, could also be preserved on the preserve.
“Each park is its own model on what it can be and what it is,” Lott said. “There’s no limitations on the park service.”
Last year, Bandelier hosted more than 200,000 guests. Valles Caldera hosted less than 16,000.“Los Alamos and the resources around it — Bandelier, the Valles Caldera, Pajarito Mountain, Santa Fe National Forrest — all these things lend to this place becoming a destination for tourists,” Lott said. “They (people in Los Alamos) recognize the economic benefits. The National Park Service is nationally known very well. People know the arrowhead (logo). The National Park Service as a brand is going to attract people from a lot farther away to this location.”
