The order was celebrated by many Pueblo communities and leaders, along with dozens of conservation organizations throughout the country however, the Navajo Nation contends that the withdrawal of the lands would deny Navajo Nation allottees access to their mineral rights. In June 2023, the Biden administration issued Public Land Order 7923, withdrawing approximately 337,000 acres of the federal mineral estate surrounding the CCNHP for a period of 20 years. The park is home to cultural sites that are the sacred ancestral homelands by the Hopi and Pueblo people. If the bill passes, it will nullify the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Public Land Order (PLO) issued last month that bans all new oil, gas, and mineral extraction within ten additional miles around the CCNHP. “The allottees felt like they were hit with a trash can,” Nygren said.
Buu Nygren, who spoke in favor of the bill, said at Thursday’s Congressional hearing that the allottees, who represent less than 1% of the Navajo Nation citizenship, felt their concerns were not heard or considered.
The hearing was held by the Committee on Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources.Īt stake are Navajo Nation’s mineral rights to land surrounding the National Park, which many citizens use to support themselves and their families. The July 12 hearing focused on a bill that would reverse protections around Chaco Culture National Historical Park (CCNHP) in New Mexico and restore Navajo mineral rights in the area. Navajo Nation citizens expressed disappointment with Interior Secretary Deb Haaland (Laguna Pueblo) and the Bureau of Land Management for stripping away their mineral rights at a Congressional subcommittee hearing on Wednesday.
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