Trump’s choice for Interior chief could be mixed bag for New Mexico

As of Wednesday, Zinke had not accepted Trump’s offer. Reactions to Zinke’s tentative appointment varied.

“This nominee is a dirty energy advocate through and through, but his record suggests he opposes a sell-off of public lands,” said Erik Schlenker-Goodrich, executive director of the Western Environmental Law Center in Taos. “I hope Zinke really does value public lands as highly as do the American people. If he does, he should realize climate change presents a grave risk to our public lands, our rivers and streams and the West’s iconic wildlife — and we can’t mine and drill our way out of the climate crisis.”

Santa Fean John Horning of the nonprofit WildEarth Guardians opposes the nomination. “Zinke’s pro coal and pro fossil fuel policy advocacy would be a disaster for our nation and our planet,” Horning said.

The Western Landowners Alliance, a Santa Fe-based group that represents private landowners, managers and businesses, including Ted Turner’s New Mexico ranches, were cautiously optimistic about Zinke’s selection.

“Congressman Zinke has boots-on-the-ground, real-life experience to understand what needs to be done to achieve the difficult balance our landscape requires,” said Jeff Laszlo, chairman of Western Landowners Alliance. “He has experienced and witnessed firsthand the need to improve land management policies in Western states like Montana, which are comprised of an interconnected patchwork of private and public lands. These lands serve multiple uses and are cherished by a diverse array of interests.”

Zinke was elected in 2014 as Montana’s lone U.S. representative. The fifth-generation Montanan served 23 years as a U.S. Navy SEAL, including a stint commanding a special operations force in Iraq.

If he accepts the appointment and is confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Zinke would oversee the department that manages millions of acres of the nation’s public lands, national monuments and tribal lands, as well as the oil, gas and other minerals underneath. About a third of the land in the United States and in in New Mexico is managed by federal land agencies. In Western states, such as New Mexico, that have large swaths of public land and have economies that are heavily dependent on oil and gas, the Department of the Interior has a major impact.

The department also oversees the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which manages research into wildlife and restores endangered species such as the controversial Mexican gray wolf.

In June, Zinke voted against a fellow Republican’s bill that sought to transfer 2 million acres of U.S. Forest Service land to states.

“I’m starting to wonder how many times I have to tell these guys in leadership I’m not going to allow Montana’s public lands to be sold or given away,” Zinke said in a statement issued after the vote. “We use our land for hunting, fishing, hiking, and to create jobs. Our outdoor economy is a billion dollar economic engine for the state that creates jobs.

“The federal government needs to do a much better job of managing our resources, but the sale or transfer of our land is an extreme proposal and I won’t tolerate it.”

In May 2015, Zinke voted against a GOP-proposed federal budget because language in the bill could have allowed public lands to be sold. Other Western Republicans have advocated turning management of federal lands over to the states.

New Mexico State Land Commissioner Aubrey Dunn, a Republican, said he now doesn't advocate turning management of federal public lands over to the states, but he would like to see unleased federal mineral rights under private land granted to state control.  In August, Dunn proposed that revenues generated from leasing those subsurface federal mineral rights could go to a permanent fund for early childhood education in New Mexico. The State Land Office manages revenues from 13 million acres of subsurface minerals on state lands to benefit public schools, hospitals and other institutions.

Emily Strickler, spokeswoman for Dunn, said he was not available to comment for this story.

Ryan Flynn, head of the New Mexico Oil and Gas Association, was in meetings and also unavailable for comment, spokesman Wally Drangmeister said.

In a track record worrisome to climate change activists and those opposed to oil and gas development, Zinke also subscribes to the “all of the above” energy strategy of developing fossil fuels, renewables and alternative energies, according to his official statements. That includes reopening public lands to coal leases. In November, after the Department of the Interior and Bureau of Land Management issued a final regulation to reduce methane gas emissions, Zinke issued a statement condemning the rule. The action, he said, was “a duplicative and unnecessary rule against responsible oil and gas development in Montana and on sovereign Tribal lands. This rule is a stark reminder that we need to invest in infrastructure projects like the Keystone pipeline, so we don’t need to flare excess gas.”

But Zinke supported a resolution co-sponsored by New Mexico Republican Congressman Steve Pearce that would turn over management of at least 200,000 acres of national forest lands in each state to local communities with the intent to thin forests and manage watersheds. The bill “would have handed over management responsibility on up to 4 million acres of national forest to state/local interests,” Horning said. “Zinke favors state management of federal public lands to generate income to the benefit of the state of Montana, and that’s not inconsistent with the value and vision of America’s public lands.”

Zinke recently introduced a bill in Congress to amend federal law to discourage litigation against the Forest Service and BLM related to forest thinning and other land management projects. He also introduced this year a bill to end the BLM moratorium on new federal coal leases and re-establish a committee including representatives from tribes to review regulations of mining.

Zinke also has introduced several bills that seem to indicate he supports Native American concerns in Montana, including a bill to restore recognition of the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians and one to finalize Blackfeet water rights in the state.

Zinke holds a geology degree and earned dual master’s degrees in business management and global leadership from the University of San Diego. He serves on the House Natural Resources Committee and the Armed Services Committee.

Zinke’s skeptics say his mixed voting bag on energy and public lands will be tested further by influence from the oil and gas industry if he accepts Trump’s appointment.

“It’s great that Congressman Zinke has opposed the sell-off of our nation’s public lands, but the rubber will meet the road when his campaign contributors come asking Interior for permission to drill those lands at the expense of Western communities,” Chris Saeger, executive director of the nonprofit Western Values Project, said in a statement. “Saying you want to protect public lands is easy to do when your seat in Congress is on the line, but it’s a completely different matter when powerful special interests ask to abuse those same lands at bargain basement prices behind closed doors.”

The Santa Fe New Mexican is a sister-paper of The Taos News. Contact Staci Matlock at 505-986-3055 or smatlock@sfnewmexican.com.

Correction: Although Aubrey Dunn said he supported transferring some federal lands to state control during his 2014 campaign, he said he now only is advocating for the transfer of unleased federal mineral rights under private land in the state, not public land, to the state in order to fund early childhood education.