New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) on Aug. 25 signed an executive order (EO) that echoes the Biden administration’s America the Beautiful initiative to combat climate change, drought and reduced water availability by preserving 30 percent of land and waters by 2030.
“My administration has been working since day one to protect and preserve New Mexico’s environment and public lands,” Lujan Grisham wrote on Twitter. “Today, I’m proud to take our conservation efforts one step further by signing an executive order to conserve at least 30 percent of all lands in New Mexico by 2030.”
In addition to the goal of preserving 30 percent of land by 2030, the EO states an additional 20 percent of land will be set aside “as climate stabilization areas.”
The order directs state agencies to utilize existing funding and programs to “conserve, protect and enhance lands and natural environments across the state in furtherance of the foregoing goal.”
The agencies, collectively known as the 30×30 committee, would coordinate with external stakeholders, federal agencies, Tribes and private landowners on programs through engagement on natural resource management plans, transportation and energy development projects, and any other initiatives that impact land and water conservation, including wildlife migration.
To achieve this effort, the EO states it would:
• Use the best available science to take a view of conservation “that reflects the importance of traditional resource protection efforts, increased access and recreation and the contributions from working lands.”
• Enhance biodiversity to sequester carbon.
• Enhance surface and groundwater quality “for cultural purposes, and ensure resilient local economies, including those based on agriculture, fishing and outdoor recreation.”
• Support migratory wildlife habitat to ensure movement across landscapes.
The 30×30 committee will meet quarterly and provide annual reports to the governor every July on the program’s progress and recommendations for state or federal legislative changes needed to achieve the goal set by the order.
The EO states New Mexico has 29 percent of undeveloped state, federal and private lands “and has the ability and desire to make great strides in conserving and responsibly managing these areas for the benefit of future generations of New Mexicans.”
However, the 30×30 committee will be charged with inventorying the state’s protected lands based on the American Conservation and Stewardship Atlas or a similar database established as part of the America the Beautiful initiative.
The EO recognizes the role of working lands as an important part of the fabric of New Mexico and their role in achieving the initiative’s goals. The order states, “Voluntary practices implemented by land managers, including private landowners and leaseholders, on working lands (both private and public) provide opportunities to support broader restoration activities, improve watershed health, create resilience in rural and urban communities, add value to the food chain and food security and contribute to the state’s outdoor recreation and ecotourism economy.”
Reaction
Reactions to the EO were mixed, with a coalition of environmentalists, Tribal leaders, local governments and outdoor recreation advocates applauding the effort, stating it should involve all stakeholders, including private landowners.
Lesli Allison, executive director of the Western Landowners Alliance, told the Albuquerque Journal that landowners need to be involved with the state efforts in order to help quell fears of the 30×30 program as a “government land-grab.”
“We really hope that this initiative will recognize the role that private and working lands play in conserving open space, biodiversity and providing food and water security,” Allison said.
New Mexico Sen. Crystal Diamond (R-Elephant Butte) criticized the EO, saying that “family-owned, private land is better managed, utilized and preserved” than state or federal land.
“I am beginning to think that the governor has never met a rancher or farmer in her decades as a bureaucrat, candidate and elected official,” Diamond said in a statement. “This 30×30 initiative set forth by the governor is a thinly veiled land-grab, and the people of New Mexico will not stand for it.”
Randell Major, president of the New Mexico Cattle Growers Association, stated that eliminating multiple uses of public lands would negatively affect the local tax base and impact local communities. Additionally, he said producers are the original conservationists.
“Healthy ecosystems are a result of their stewardship. Here in New Mexico, feral cattle in the Gila National Forest continue to be a problem created by U.S. Forest Service mismanagement, feral horse populations are growing out of control and national parks struggle with maintenance and closure. Overgrown forests catch fire, threatening property and livestock. These issues lead us to ask why we would want more land under federal control,” Major said in a statement.
New Mexico Wild stated Grisham is taking “bold leadership that is absolutely essential in the face of the twin crises of climate change and mass species extinction.”
“We know that designated wilderness areas and other protected public lands help mitigate the effects of climate change by capturing carbon and keeping natural ecosystems intact,” said Mark Allison, New Mexico Wild executive director, in a statement. “Gov. Lujan Grisham’s executive order is a recognition of the need to act now and puts New Mexico on the path to a more sustainable future.”
John Cornell, southwest field manager for Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, said he was pleased to hear the governor address the need to protect migration corridors, which are critical for the health of elk and deer.
Ralph Vigil, chairman of the New Mexico Acequia Commission, stated the EO would help agriculture by protecting watersheds.
“Local farmers and the acequia community have an intimate connection to the land and our watersheds,” Vigil said. “We know that protecting those watersheds and the lands our rivers flow from is essential for our businesses and the food we provide.”
New Mexico becomes the second state to commit to a 30×30 goal. In October, California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed an EO directing state agencies to work with the federal government to protect 30 percent of the state’s lands and waters by 2030. — Charles Wallace, WLJ editor
