By Nella Domenici

Across our beautiful state, fishermen, hunters, and outdoorsmen of all kinds, ranchers and farmers, and miners and oil and gas producers interact with public lands every day. Many New Mexicans live in places that are adjacent to or completely surrounded by public land. Many communities in New Mexico, including tribal lands, have econ- omies that rely upon use of the public lands.

No one is more invested in the long-term health and conservation of our public lands than the New Mexicans whose livelihoods rely on the sustained well-being of the land. Because New Mexicans are intertwined with the land, they know best how to preserve the land and their way of life. New Mexicans living in small towns and rural spaces are the ultimate conservationists.

To all of you, I extend my respect and admiration for your commitment to our lands.

Unfortunately, as I’ve traveled the state, you’ve told me repeatedly that you feel under attack from our current government agencies and state and federal elected officials:

• Ranchers in northern New Mexico with grazing rights that go back generations are often harassed with fines and threats of revoked permits.

• Ranchers in southern New Mexico are at risk of losing compensation for their losses caused by wolves.

• In eastern and southern New Mexico, the imagined habitat of endangered species not seen for decades prevents virtually any use of lands.

• Federal agencies are rewriting some rules and regulations with irrational radical Green-New-Deal goals that would allow those agen- cies to deny renewals of long-standing leases and permits owned by New Mexicans.

• Agencies often drag-out permitting applications for years for rural electric co-op rights-of-ways, oil and gas development, and other uses allowed in federal law.

• The Biden/Harris Administration and Martin Henirich are working against the interests of New Mexicans by too often turning public lands into off-limits wilderness or national monuments.

• And terrible federal land management practices have resulted in devastating wildfires and flooding in San Miguel and Mora counties in 2022 and just last spring in Lincoln and Otero counties. More than two years later, many families impacted by the Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon fire are still waiting for compensation and have heard empty promises from Martin Heinrich.

• The wildfires caused by bad forest management means that many homeowners, businesses, and electric co-ops may not be able to secure required insurance coverage.

The Biden/Harris Administration is not with you.

<n>Martin Heinrich is not with you.

<n>They are pursuing a radical-left agenda and fail to recognize that the public lands in New Mexico are for New Mexicans. They want to use New Mexico as an out-of-view remote place to build green energy projects to provide power elsewhere — like Heinrich’s vanity-project, SunZia.

SunZia is the Heinrich-backed wind farm in central New Mexico that will have more than 900 enormous wind turbines generating 3.5 gigawatts of electricity. One hundred percent of this electricity will ultimately be routed to California via 353 miles of new, high voltage power lines across six counties from Torrance to Hidalgo. New Mexicans will not benefit from any of the electricity generated.

I am in favor of alternative sources of energy that benefit New Mexicans. But those sources of energy must do more good than harm.

We should cherish New Mexico’s National Parks and forests, and they must be properly maintained. Our authentic wilderness areas and scenic rivers should be preserved. Our historic, cultural, and wildlife reserves should be preserved. But the power of the Biden/Harris Administration and Senator Heinrich to make such designations is being abused, should be limited, include stakeholder involvement, and Congressional approval.

For too many of you in rural New Mexico it feels like the walls are closing in. The radical-leftists in the federal and state government want you off of our public land.

But I will be with you.

As New Mexico’s U.S. Senator, I will fight for you. I will fight for you in Congress, and I will hold the federal agencies accountable. I will not let them push you off New Mexico’s land, or undermine New Mexico’s economy, or our way of life.

You are the true stewards of our public land and you can be trusted to preserve it for future generations of New Mexicans.