NOTES FROM A SPECIAL JOINT BOARD MEETING LPA & ESCA 23 JULY 2020
The Eastern Sandoval Citizens Association (ESCA) and the Las Placitas Association (LPA) held a joint meeting via Zoom on Thursday, July 23, 2020 to discuss action following the release by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) of the Rio Puerco Resource Management Plan (RMP) next month.
In attendance were LPT President Sandy Johnson, ESCA President George Franzen, LPT Member Scott McKenzie, LPT Member Joan Fenicle, LPT Member and ESCA Director Richard Rief, ESCA Director John McNerney, ESCA Director Jim Harre, ESCA Director Jacques Ramey, ESCA Director Bob Wilkens, ESCA Director Wayne Gaede, and guests Brenda from the office of US Representative Deb Haaland, Sandoval County Commissioner Kathy Bruch, Candidate for New Mexico House of Representative Jessica Velazquez, Mary-Rose de Valladarez from Washington DC, and Chris Daul from the office of Commissioner Bruch
The LPA Plan for RMP Release:
1. Article for the August Signpost: Both LPT and ESCA have submitted articles outlining the pending release of the RMP.
2. Meet with ES-CA re. their level of participation: This meeting today.
3. Contact Land Grant: Joan Fenicle is in touch via email with Land Grant representative Rebecca Skartwed.
4. Contact Santa Ana and San Felipe: Breda McKenna is in touch with Santa Ana and will get the contact information for San Felipe from Mary-Rose de Valladarez.
5. Contact our County Commissioner: Sandoval County Commissioner Kathy Bruch and her Aide Chris Daul is present at this meeting.
6. Assign specific tasks and develop a time line.
7. Check federal register*: When published, the RMP will appear in the federal register. It could be anytime but is likely to be August 21 or 24. It will signal the beginning of the 30 days for public comment and 60 day for Gubernatorial response. It is being monitored daily by Mary-Rose de Vallardez.
8. Prepare a postcard for mailing to all homes in Placitas: LPA is working on producing and mailing, it still needs copy and a headline. ESCA will share if the total cost.
9. Get Neighbors website message planed and out
10. Contact Deb Haaland’s office: Representative Haaland’s aide Brenda is present at this meeting. She has introduced HB 2640 prohibiting mining on the Buffalo Tract. It is co-sponsored by Representative Ben-Ray Lujan.
11. Contact our Senators offices: Brenda will coordinate with Senator Martin Heinrich’s office. He has introduced SB 526 prohibiting mining on the Buffalo Tract, companion to HB 2640.
12. Create KUPR spots and schedule airings: Scott McKenzie will coordinate this.
13. Alert the Governor’s office: George Franzen will contact the Governor’s office. She will likely support the prohibition of mining in the Buffalo Tract.
14. Call local BLM office for information (in progress) -have Farmington extension info: Sandy Johnson will inquire if the copy of the RMP received by the Farmington BLM office is a draft or a final copy.
15. Check Bulk Mail Permit: Done. Prices for bulk mailing to constituents were discussed.
16. Call Bill Devin: Done. Bill Devin is a mews writer for the Sandoval Signpost and will have an Article in the August issue.
17. Explore reasons for requesting extension: lack of public meetings, some lack of access for parts of the community to broadband with the closure of the library and community center. Essentially, an extension might be justified by the COVID-19 crisis.
18. Consider filing for an injunction when all else fails: ESCA Director and lawyer Peter Adang will be asked if he could advise us about this.
*search the Federal Register: ps://www.federalregister.gov/documents/search?conditions%5Bterm%5D=rio+puerco+resource+management+plan
*Federal Register: https://www.federalregister.gov/
George Franzen
President, ESCA