VallesCaldera.com – The independent news source about the Valles Caldera

The Associated Press reported last week that the Valles Caldera Trust has leased a 15,000-square-foot, 25-bedroom building in Jemez Springs to serve as an education and conference center for the Valles Caldera National Preserve.

The 16-month lease, which will cost the Trust $111,000 annually, also includes an option for the Preserve to purchase the facility in the future if both parties agree. The complex is owned by the Catholic church’s Servants of the Paraclete congregation.

Preserve Executive Director Gary Bratcher stated that this facility will eventually be financially self-sustaining.

Click here to read the full story in the Albuquerque Journal (after clicking on the prior link, non-subscribers must click on the “trial premium pass” button on the bottom left of the screen to read the story), or click here to read a shorter version of the article.

On Monday, the Associated Press issued a story about this summer’s cattle grazing program on the Valles Caldera National Preserve that is being conducted by New Mexico State University and the New Mexico Beef Cattle Performance Association.  This piece was carried in dozens of newspapers nationwide, including the New York Times and the Albuquerque Journal.  Click here to read the article.

According to the article, 100 Angus and Hereford bulls grazing on the Preserve this summer are the subjects of research into how to prevent high-altitude disease, which is “essentially a bovine equivalent of hypertension.”  The disease stems from the relative lack of oxygen in the air at high altitudes, and can occur to any breed and gender of cow.  Each bull’s pulmonary artery is being monitored daily at the Preserve for high pressure, and the cattle are also being monitored for weight gain.  Bulls showing symptoms of high-altitude disease are sent to lower elevations, creating a disease-resistant herd of bulls that is left over.

A Colorado State University professor was quoted in the story as stating that this disease kills three to five percent of cattle per year, a $60 million annual loss to the nation’s beef industry.

This article focused on the 100 bulls taking part in the high-altitude disease study on the Preserve, but Dr. Bob Parmenter, chief scientist of the Preserve, told VallesCaldera.com that there is a total of approximately 550-575 head of cattle on the Preserve right now, and the high-altitude disease study is only one component of the entire grazing program (the grazing contract awarded in May called for 500-1,500 animal units to be grazed on the Preserve this summer).

Parmenter also mentioned that the Preserve has been careful to keep the cattle out of the rivers of the Caldera as much as possible this summer.  “We’re keeping them out of the riparian areas, except for the time periods where they go to and from the corrals,” he said.

He added that the Preserve expects to gross $26,000 this summer on cattle grazing, and to post a $15,000 profit on the activity.

This is less than half the revenue that would have been collected by the Valles Caldera Trust had it accepted a bid from last spring by conservation group WildEarth Guardians to graze just 3-5 head of cattle on the Preserve this summer for $50,000.  The WildEarth Guardians proposal would therefore have gone further than the current grazing contract in adhering to the financial self-sufficiency mandate of the Valles Caldera Preservation Act of 2000, while also complying with the component of the legislation requiring protection and preservation of the various aspects of the Preserve, including the scenic and wildlife components, since the Preserve would only have experienced the environmental damage of grazing 3-5 head of cattle as opposed to 550-575.  However, the current program does conform to the legislative requirement that management should benefit local communities, since the Pueblo of Jemez and other local ranchers are also involved with the current grazing program.

The Jemez Mountain Salamander, an amphibian found only in the Jemez Mountains, could receive federal protection as a result of a settlement between Santa Fe-based conservation group WildEarth Guardians and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

As a result of the agreement between the two parties announced earlier this month, the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) issued a “positive petition finding” for the Jemez Mountain Salamander (Plethodon neomexicanus), which triggers a full status review by the FWS to decide whether to designate the animal as endangered or threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act of 1973.  According to WildEarth Guardians, the Salamander was first recognized by the federal government as likely needing federal protection in 1982.

“Because of logging, road building, climate change, and fire suppression, this unique salamander is at risk of extinction,” WildEarth Guardians stated.  “Without federal protection, we may lose the Jemez Mountain Salamander and its contributions to the web of life forever.” (Click here to read about how the Jemez Mountains is at the epicenter of New Mexico climate change)

According to the conservation group, 90% of the Salamander’s habitat is in the Santa Fe National Forest.  The species can be found in the Valles Caldera, both in the areas of the Caldera managed by the National Forest, as well as the portions of the Caldera managed by the Valles Caldera National Preserve.

The amphibian is small — its total length is between 1.5 and 4.5 inches, of which about half is the tail, according to the New Mexico Game and Fish Department. “This salamander typically lives on shady, wooded sites at elevations of 7,500 to 9,500 feet,” according to the Department.  “In these habitats, characterized by coniferous trees, salamanders spend much of their time under and in fallen logs. Old, stabilized talus slopes, especially those with a good covering of damp soil and plant debris, are important types of cover for this species.”  The animal has no lungs, and thus must remain moist to breathe, according to WildEarth Guardians.  It’s carnivorous and nocturnal, spending much of its time underground, eating insects found at night.

WildEarth Guardians stressed the positive benefits to the Jemez Mountains if the species is protected.  “If listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), the Jemez Mountains salamander should be given habitat protections that will not only ensure its survival for future generations, but would also protect the Santa Fe National Forest and co-existing species,” the group stated.

The Jemez Mountain Salamander is the only species endemic to the Jemez.  However, there is another subspecies of fauna found only in this volcanic range.  The Goat Peak Pika, a subspecies of the American Pika (a small, hamster-like animal), is also endemic to the Jemez Mountains (click here to read about how the Fish and Wildlife Service is currently reviewing whether the American Pika should also be protected under the Endangered Species Act).

The conservation group is intimately involved in the Jemez Mountains and the Valles Caldera.  In May, the group bid $50,000 to virtually eliminate cattle grazing on the Valles Caldera National Preserve by proposing to graze 3-5 head of cattle.  This move was done in an effort to counteract the  damage that cattle grazing inflicts on the Preserve, including the erosion of streambanks, which among other effects raises stream temperature, adversely affecting the streams’ ecosystems, as well as the pollution of streams caused by cattle waste, and the deterioration of recreation experiences for visitors that cattle have caused.  In a move that the Albuquerque Journal called “shortsighted,” the Valles Caldera Trust declined this bid, instead accepting a bid that permitted the grazing on the Preserve this summer of 500-1,500 “animal units” (an animal unit means “one mature cow of approximately 1,000 pounds and a calf up to weaning, usually 6 months of age, or their equivalent”).

WildEarth Guardians is also spending two weekends on the Valles Caldera National Preserve this summer working to remove old cattle fencing that is currently unused.   “Fences are one of the many destructive things about livestock production on our public lands,” according to the group.  “They impede wildlife migration patterns and cause death for young mammals, which can get caught in barbed wire. By removing them, we move closer towards our vision of making the Valles Caldera more friendly for wildlife.”

To join with the conservation group and spend Saturday, September 26 through Sunday, September 27 on the Preserve removing old fencing, which involves the seldom-enjoyed privilege of camping on the Valles Caldera National Preserve (which has never been offered by the Trust), RSVP to Rebecca Sobel at (505) 988-9126 ext. 1152 or rsobel@wildearthguardians.org.

Click here to read the AP story published in the Santa Fe New Mexican about the settlement between the FWS and WildEarth Guardians regarding the Jemez Mountain Salamander.

Click here to read the press release sent out by WildEarth Guardians about the settlement.

Click here to read the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish wildlife fact sheet about the Jemez Mountain Salamander.

Finally, click here to read a story from May of 2008 by Staci Matlock in the Santa Fe New Mexican about the adverse effects of climate change on the Jemez Mountains.

More letters to the editor keep streaming into the Albuquerque Journal (circulation: 101,810 daily, 132,832 on Sunday) regarding the Valles Caldera Trust’s management of the Valles Caldera National Preserve. On Monday, another four letters were printed, under the headline “This Land Is Our Land.” All letters were written by Albuquerque residents.

Greg McReynolds, in a letter entitled “Taxpayers Are Entitled To Access,” states the following:

Valles Caldera Board of Trustees Vice Chairman Ed Tinsley is right when he says many people feel “personal entitlement” to the Valles Caldera in his Aug. 11 letter. The public feels entitled because it is public land, purchased with taxpayer money. Sadly, Tinsley and the board have been treating the Caldera as if it were a privately owned venue where the public has no say and is for the most part unwelcome… Tinsley also gets it wrong when he calls Valles Caldera National Preserve a burden on the taxpayer. The board of trustees is the true burden…Valles Caldera is an asset to the state and local economy that will be fully realized when we get rid of the political management restricting fair access and put a professional natural resource agency in charge. We are entitled to nothing less.

Jeremy Vesbach opines in a letter entitled “Extravagant Fees Need To Be Reduced:”

Recently I looked into planning a family fishing outing to the Valles Caldera National Preserve. In the process of signing up I quickly learned that a part-day outing for my family would cost $120 for the Rio San Antonio and $180 for the East Fork of the Jemez… Fewer and fewer kids are getting outside today and I applaud our senators for looking into a new management system for Valles Caldera that would reduce fees while improving management and help open up this jewel of our public lands to more families to enjoy.

Charles Carroll says in a letter entitled “Rules, Fees Protect Park From Misuse:”

I have fished the Valles Caldera and did not mind paying the extra for the chance. I enjoyed the quiet and seeing all the wildlife.

Carroll mentions a photo in the Journal of a fisherman standing in a Caldera river, and points out that this is against Preserve rules, due to the presence of whirling disease in New Mexico.

Bill Black states in “Lack of Access, Fees Keep Locals Out:”

Stephen Henry, the chairman of the Valles Caldera Trust board of trustees, in his op-ed column presented a very positive picture of the Valles Caldera National Preserve. Unfortunately it is not true….Mr. Henry contends the fees are reasonable. Well, they are reasonable for private land. But this is public land and the fees and access are unacceptable for taxpayers.

In the past nine days the Journal has published eight letters to the editor critical of the Valles Caldera Trust, with two letters supporting it (one of which was written by a Bush-appointed member of the Valles Caldera Trust, Vice-Chairman Ed Tinsley). One letter warns against following the Forest Service’s model of public access, but calls for a new management style and to redefine the directive of the Preserve.

Trust Vice-Chairman Tinsley stated in his letter that criticism of the Trust has been “voiced largely by a very small group of activists who do not represent the overall opinion of the American taxpayer,” and the “vocal minority.”

Given that the vast majority of letters to the editor of the Journal regarding the Valles Caldera are critical of the management provided by the Valles Caldera Trust (with only one letter supporting it from a person who is not a member of the Trust itself), it would be interesting to find out whether Mr. Tinsley still believes this is a view held by the minority of New Mexicans.

Click here to read these letters in their entirety. Please note: if you are not a subscriber to the Albuquerque Journal, after you click on any of these links you will need to click on the “Trial Premium Pass” button at the bottom-left of the page to read the article/letters.

Click here to read the letters to the editor in the Journal printed on August 11, and click here to read the letters published on August 12.

Click here to read Dave Menicucci’s op-ed, “Access Issue at Valles Caldera,” which seemed to trigger this recent round of op-eds and letters to the editor.

Click here to read Valles Caldera Trust Chairman Stephen Henry’s op-ed, “Valles Caldera Open for Recreation and Comments,” written in response to Mr. Menicucci’s piece.

The first-ever unscheduled hike up a lava dome inside the Valles Caldera National Preserve has been offered to the public: an 8-mile journey up lush South Mountain, open every day in the summer, for $5-$10.

South Mountain (elev. 9,795) forms part of the the western edge of the Valle Grande. Once the second (and final) cataclysmic eruption in the Jemez Mountains took place 1.2 million years ago (the first being the eruption that formed the Toledo Caldera about 1.6 million years ago), the earth collapsed on itself along a ring fracture, creating the Valles Caldera.  Many different ring fracture domes (also known as lava domes) were formed over the next 700,000 years along the fracture, as explained by the “toothpaste tube model” of eruptions.  These domes gradually erupted in a roughly counterclockwise manner, beginning with Cerro del Medio and Cerro Abrigo, which form the northern boundaries of the Valle Grande.  The two final ring fracture domes created — both about 500,000 years ago — were South Mountain, as well as relatively tiny, 200-foot-tall Cerro la Jara, which rises from the Valle Grande like an island in the tall grass (check out this view from the sky, which features Cerro la Jara as a bump in the middle of the Valle Grande, with South Mountain directly to its left.  Also, check out the Geology section of VallesCaldera.com’s FAQ page for more information on the geology of the Valles Caldera).

This is the first unscheduled hike up a ring fracture dome that the Trust has offered.  The three unscheduled hikes offered currently allow visitors to descend into the Valle Grande (the Valle Grande Trail), ascend the south rim of the Caldera (the Coyote Call Trail) and circumnavigate Cerro la Jara (the La Jara Trail).  As mentioned above, Cerro la Jara is also a ring fracture dome, but at this time visitors are not permitted to climb that dome’s slopes.  Visitors can hike the ring fracture domes Cerro Abrigo and Cerro Seco, but these are by reservation only, and hikers must be driven in a Preserve van out to these peaks’ trailheads (click here to see maps of all of the hikes offered by the Preserve).

According to the map of the South Mountain hike (which can be seen by clicking here), visitors can ascend to a maximum altitude of about 9,475 feet, about 320 feet beneath the dome’s summit.  On the dome, visitors are certain to be treated to stunning views of the Valle Grande, the Caldera’s south and east rims, as well as ring fracture domes Cerro del Medio and Cerro Abrigo.  The hike is designated as “moderate to difficult,” with an elevation gain of 1,000 feet.

This hike will be offered seven days a week during the summer recreation season, which lasts until Sept. 30 (with some exceptions – check the calendar to be sure).

You can drive down to the Valle Grande Staging Area, which is two miles from Highway 4 in the Valle Grande, and begin your hike there (get directions to the staging area by clicking here).  This option, which takes about 8 miles, costs $5.  Alternatively, you can pay $10 total and be driven to the Ranch Headquarters area (click here for a view from the sky of Ranch HQ), which cuts about 2 miles off of your hike.

The verdant, forested slopes of South Mountain will likely offer fantastic scenery and a memorable experience to its visitors.  This type of unscheduled activity is one example of the sort of access to our National Preserve that many New Mexicans have been hoping for.  The Trust should be applauded for opening up a new piece of this stunning volcanic landscape that has never been available to the public.

The Valles Caldera Trust yesterday unveiled a new segment of its web site designed to engage the public in providing feedback on various alternatives for future public access and use at the Valles Caldera National Preserve.  Click here to visit the new section of the vallescaldera.gov site.  UPDATE: As was mentioned on Valles Caldera Rim, you can download the entire Public Scoping Document as a PDF file by clicking here.

The Trust also announced two public meetings next month, in Albuquerque and Santa Fe, to accept feedback on these alternatives in person.

Upon entering the new Public Access and Use Planning (PAUP) portion of the vallescaldera.gov web site, which is quite extensive and detailed, visitors can learn about five alternative plans that include varying levels of development of permanent facilities and infrastructure throughout the 140-square-mile Preserve.  These alternatives were developed in the business model that was prepared for the Trust by Houston-based environmental consulting firm ENTRIX and unveiled to the media in April.

The PAUP section also includes details on each alternative’s ramifications on six separate aspects of the preserve: access, capacity, activities, development, financing, and values.

One of the most interesting aspects of the PAUP section is the fascinating maps that allow visitors to gain a broader view of how these alternatives might affect the Preserve geographically.  These maps feature comprehensive detail on the locations for various proposed developments: trails, picnic areas, campgrounds, roads, RV parks, luxury lodges (rooms for which could go for between $550 and $730 per night), observatories, bars, snack bars, food service stations, a conference center, new staff housing, a new administrative center, and “a full service science and education center and campus.”

The Trust indicated in an email that they are also interested in alternatives other than the five proposed on the web site.  “At this time we are asking stakeholders to do more than comment; we are asking you to roll up your sleeves and help us build alternatives for public access and use of the Preserve,” the Trust stated.

In order to comment on the proposed alternatives for the future, one must register with the new PAUP section of the vallescaldera.gov site, which involves providing one’s name address, phone number, and email (pseudonyms are not allowed).  Visitors will be able to view other individuals’ comments without having to register.  Be sure to budget plenty of time for this process, as there is a sizable amount of information to digest on the site.

The Trust has also scheduled two workshops/open houses for next month in order to discuss these alternatives in person.  The first hour of each event will consist of “an open house where you can learn about the elements involved in public access and use planning and visit with staff and experts,” according to the Trust.  After the first hour, “a series of small group discussions” will begin.  Details of these meetings are as follows:

Mon., Sept. 14, 2009, Hilton Garden Inn, 5320 San Antonio Dr NE, Albuquerque, 5:30-8:00 PM
Tues., Sept. 15, 2009, Santa Fe Community College, 6401 S Richards Ave, Santa Fe, 5:30-8:00 PM

The Albuquerque Journal today published a collection of letters to the editor in response to two recent op-eds: Dave Menicucci’s piece asserting that a primary cause of public controversy about the Valles Caldera National Preserve is limited recreation access, and Valles Caldera Trust Chairman Stephen Henry’s response disputing this point of view.

Today’s published letters include a sole letter in defense of the current management structure of the Valles Caldera National Preserve, “Let Enabling Legislation Work.” This was written by Valles Caldera Trust Vice-Chairman Edward R. Tinsley III.

The three other letters published are entitled “Dump the Trust Management,” “Hiking Access Severely Limited,” and “Hire Some Real Park Managers.”

Click here to read these letters to the editor. Please note: if you are not a subscriber to the Albuquerque Journal, after you click the prior link you will need to click on the “Trial Premium Pass” button at the bottom-left of the page to read the article.

UPDATE:  Two more letters were published in the Journal the following day on this topic.  The letters are entitled “Free Access Would Ruin the Caldera,” and “Put Valles Caldera Under Park Service.”  Click here to read these letters.

As mentioned in a prior post, the Chairman of the Valles Caldera Trust recently published an op-ed in the Albuquerque Journal, entitled “Valles Caldera Open for Recreation and Comments.” He wrote:

As for “lofty usage fees,” our access and activity fees are quite affordable and are shown on the Web site.

Upon visiting the official Valles Caldera National Preserve web site, and seeking to reserve a day of fly-fishing on either the East Fork of the Jemez River or the San Antonio River for two adults and two children, the following fee was requested:

$120.

This comes out to an average price of $30 per person, and does not include the New Mexico state fishing license and wildlife habitat stamp that must also be purchased (fees for which can be found here).

Not even including the license fees, this is higher than the average price for a ticket to a major league baseball game ($26.64).