New Mexico, Chaco Culture National Historical Park, Pueblo Bonito, ancestral Puebloan great house ruins, AD 850 to AD 1150, UNESCO World Heritage Site

The reintroduction by New Mexico’s entire federal delegation of the Chaco Cultural Heritage Area Protection Act sparked widespread praise on Thursday from pueblos, environmentalists and others.

The legislation would create a 10-mile buffer zone around the park — the Chaco Protection Zone —in which future leasing and development of oil, gas and minerals on non-Indian federal lands would be forbidden. The Biden administration began an administrative withdrawal of the area in 2023, which offered temporary protection. “That welcome step has been successful and is still in place but is under threat from the Trump Administration and Republicans in Congress,” a news release from the delegation states. The legislation, on the other hand, would provide permanent protection.

“Chaco Culture National Historical Park — and the Greater Chaco Region — is one of the world’s greatest treasures that must be protected for our future generations,” U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) said in a statement. “Chaco holds deep spiritual and cultural significance for Tribes and Pueblos and is one of only a handful of World Heritage Sites in the United States. This legislation is a longstanding priority for Pueblo and Tribal communities, environmental advocates, and the New Mexico Delegation to ensure we protect our sacred sites.” Luján is leading the introduction of the bill in the U.S. Senate; U.S. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández is doing so in the U.S. House.

The All Pueblo Council of Governors, which represents the 20 Pueblos of New Mexico and one in Texas, issued a statement reaffirming its support for the measure, with Pueblo of Acoma Gov.Charles Riley issuing a statement that: ““Chaco Canyon holds the footprints and fingerprints of our ancestors. By reintroducing legislation to permanently protect these federal lands, our congressional partners honor our living heritage, and the centuries of prayers offered to safeguard it. This is not only about preserving an archaeological wonder—it’s about ensuring our ancestral gifts remain intact for future generations.”

The Sierra Club Rio Grande chapter also endorsed the legislation:

“For years, advocates and impacted community members have called on federal agencies to protect the cultural integrity of the Greater Chaco landscape and community well-being from fracking,” Sierra Club Rio Grande Chapter Program Manager Miya King-Flaherty said in a statement. “Now, under a second Trump administration that is blatantly calling for public lands to be sold off for corporate polluter interests and turn back the clock on climate action, it’s urgent that we permanently protect this sacred landscape from further desecration, as well as the health of communities already overburdened from oil and gas drilling. We’re thankful to Senator Ben Ray Lujan and Representative Teresa Leger Fernandez for continuing to pursue protecting Chaco Culture National Historical Park and hope efforts to protect the broader landscape and public health are not forgotten.”

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