Monument here to stay, county agrees

Monument here to stay, county agrees

April 17, 2001

By Jim Mimiaga
Journal Staff Writer

Accepting Canyons of the Ancients Monument as a done deal, the Montezuma County commissioners released a resolution Monday expressing their commitment to the new designation while vowing to move ahead with a comprehensive management plan.

In a detailed six-page resolution passed last week, the commissioners laid out the history that led to the proclamation of the monument last June. The resolution states, "Based on the legal and political realities concerning (the monument) and the compelling need to address wide-ranging issues, the Montezuma County Commission is committed to a strategy" that includes:

The expeditious appointment of a Canyons of the Ancients Resource Advisory Council representative of the diversity of local interests to oversee the implementation of the management plan.
The development of a resource management plan with active community participation that addresses issues summarized in the Working Group of August, 1999.
The pursuit of adequate funding to support a resource management planning process that involves oversight of the advisory committee and includes long term management that protects the archaeological resources without undue restrictions or infringements on the full range of multiple uses and the rights and interests of private property owners."

The resolution starts out summarizing former Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt’s visit in May 1999, when he announced his intention to seek enhanced protection for the region and its ancient ruins. It describes a series of contentious public meetings reported on in local newspapers, outlines a failed attempt to pass legislation designating the land as a National Conservation Area, a more grassroots approach, and concludes with a summary of a trip made by the county commission this month to Washington, D.C., that revealed there is no chance to alter or rescind the monument.

What follows are excerpts from 35 statements leading up to the resolution.

Whereas: "Babbitt stated, ‘Ironically, the real issue is not oil and gas, and it’s not cows — it’s people. This is a problem that arises everywhere when places are discovered — when they come into public view’. . .

"At a public meeting last August it was relayed by the local community that ‘there should be no increased federal intervention in the management of this area’ and that the concern raised by the Secretary ‘appears to be a top-down concern rather than a grassroots consensus of the region’. . .

"The environmental community is not enthused about a national monument where carbon dioxide and oil drilling is permitted. . .

"On Feb. 3, 2000, Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell introduced S.B. 2034 to create Canyons of the Ancients National Conservation Area" that "in contrast to the administration’s monument creation would require public meetings which would allow everyone involved"to participate. . .

"Environmentalists criticized the NCA legislation, saying, ‘There isn’t much in the way of enhanced protection’ and ‘It’s like an open door to the oil and gas industry’. . .

"Members of the Southwest Colorado Landowners ‘lambasted’ the NCA legislation and took the position that a National Monument was preferable to an NCA, claiming Congress would have to ratify it, withdraw it, or sue to have it overturned. . .

"Campbell announced that he has suspended action on the NCA bill, citing a total lack of consensus. . .

"On June 9, 2000, President Clinton proclaimed Canyons of the Ancients National Monument. . .

"Congressman (Scott ) McInnis put the chances of overturning or altering the monument at zero, because the support is not there — not even close."

A copy of the resolution can be obtained at the county building.