Speak up on plans for forests — they’re yours

mines how the entire forest will be managed for the next 15-plus years. Draft plans for the Carson and Santa Fe are available online for public review, and public comment periods for both forests are anticipated to start any day now.

With recent reports showing that 1 million species may be at risk of extinction, the Forest Service and other land management agencies have to ensure that key wildlife habitats and migration corridors are protected. Northern New Mexico and southern Colorado provide incredible wildlife habitat, but numerous threats are making it more and more difficult for wildlife to thrive.

Our National Forests must think at a landscape scale to ensure management decisions are aligned with the needs of wildlife across the region, and that key management areas like the Valle Vidal, San Antonio and Caja del Rio remain in the final versions of the forest plans.

The decisions made in these plans could affect New Mexico’s wildlife for generations. I think of my family and the legacy of exploring New Mexico’s special places we have shared, and I know I must share my voice with the Forest Service. And I encourage everyone who enjoys spending time in our national forests, as well as those who simply appreciate from afar that these special natural places exist as oases for wildlife, to do the same. “It’s All Yours,” as the Forest Service marketing says. We should all feel a sense of ownership for our public lands.