BLM, Pueblo of Acoma sign co-stewardship agreement for ancestral lands
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The Bureau of Land Management and Pueblo of Acoma signed a co-stewardship agreement to protect the Pueblo’s traditional, religious, and cultural interests on public lands. This collaborative management will benefit the Pueblo, the United States government, and the public.
“Pueblo of Acoma is pleased to collaborate with the BLM in this co-stewardship agreement to protect important cultural places on federal land,” said Pueblo of Acoma Governor Randall Vicente. “Protecting these places is one of our highest priorities. We look forward to working with the agency in co-stewardship, future management, and maintaining the integrity and sanctity of these places.”
In 2021, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland and Secretary of Agriculture Thomas Vilsack signed Joint Secretarial Order 3403 to ensure agencies manage federal lands and waters in a way that seeks to protect the treaty, religious, subsistence, and cultural interests of federally recognized Indian Tribes and Native Hawaiian communities. The order requires such management be consistent with the nation-to-nation relationship between the United States and the Tribes and the United States’ unique trust obligation to Tribes and their citizens.
“This agreement advances the Department of the Interior’s priority of strengthening the government-to-government relationships with sovereign Tribal Nations. It improves the BLM’s ability to support Tribal communities and emphasizes our commitment to co-stewardship of federal lands,” said BLM Albuquerque District Manager Sabrina Flores. “The BLM is honored to have worked collaboratively with Pueblo of Acoma on this historic agreement and looks forward to continuing to work together for a successful future.”
“The landscape in New Mexico is beautiful and diverse, just like its history. The agreement with Pueblo of Acoma is one more way to respect the knowledge and deep connection of those who are tied to the history and the land as we manage these landscapes for future generations,” said BLM Rio Puerco Field Manager Adam Lujan.
For more information, please contact BLM Rio Puerco Field Manager Adam Lujan at alujan@blm.gov.
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 western states, including Alaska, on behalf of the American people. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. Our mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.