Blog: Protecting Caja del Rio a Possibility via New Mexico Forest Management Plan

Earlier this month, U.S. Forest officials announced that for the first time in 34 years, they would re-write the Santa Fe National Forest management plan. Updates will address the implications of our changing climate, including the impacts of drought, increased development, and population growth.  

The plan also calls for establishing guidelines to conserve the forest’s waterways and wildlife habitat, and builds on a 2012 federal planning rule created to expand management prescriptions to also include social, economic, cultural, and recreational values.  

Based on this new framework, there are several key considerations that forest planners should take to achieve these goals.  

Caja del Rio 

An area that should qualify for protection under the plan should be the Caja del Rio. The Caja has become a target for a proposed federal government power line upgrade that would destroy and fragment an area that is home to petroglyphs dated to be more than 700 years old, Puebloan dry farming sites, and that is critical wildlife habitat for bear, elk, mule deer and cougars. New Mexicans are supportive of protecting this area, with the government receiving nearly 1,100 responses from the public during an open comment period. Additionally, because of the deep cultural and habitat significance of Caja del Rio, the forest management plan should extend to protect this special region.  

With the forest management plan specifically calling for partnerships with other agencies, business, activists, tribes and residents, this is an opportunity to designate the Caja del Rio as a cultural heritage area that would provide the necessary oversight that prevent further damage.  

Wildlife Corridors 

Development of roads fences, and other human-created barriers can make it increasingly difficult for wildlife species to migrate safely across landscapes. Wildlife connectivity corridors provide connecting access for species that depend on migration for survival. With the forest management plan calling for the protection of wildlife habitat that has been degraded as a result of heavy development, wildlife habitat connectivity corridors should also be protected under the Santa Fe Forest draft management plan.  

The plan presents an opportunity for communities and agencies to work together in the conservation and protection of our public lands so that future generations can continue to enjoy the nature-based traditions that define our deep connection to the outdoors.