Chaco Cultural Heritage Area Protection Act of 2019

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in opposition to H.R. 2181, the Chaco Cultural Heritage Area Protection Act of 2019.

This unnecessary bill would permanently ban oil and gas development on about 316,000 acres of land in New Mexico. It would also incur $3 million in increased spending costs with no built-in mechanism to pay for it.

H.R. 2181's proposed landgrab would surround Chaco Culture National Historical Park. The park itself is already under Federal protections, including a prohibition on mineral development. This bill would add 10 extra miles of protected area around the perimeter of the park. This arbitrary addition could have long-term negative repercussions to the State of New Mexico.

H.R. 2181 would also impact the very Navajo Nation members it claims to protect. Many of them own lands and mineral rights in the area that have been passed down for generations, but this bill would make it virtually impossible for them to develop the energy resources to which they are rightfully entitled. The complex puzzle of interlocking Federal, State, Tribal, and private land in the disputed area would result in significant hurdles for the Navajo Nation, creating a de facto extraction ban.

In June of this year, a Navajo Nation representative who owns some of these mineral resources came to Capitol Hill to testify in front of the Natural Resources Committee on behalf of 131 Navajo Nation members about how detrimental H.R. 2181 would be to their land. This bill ignores the request of local landowners and continues the pattern of government overreach in the West.

H.R. 2181 also completely sidesteps the Department of the Interior's resource management plan for the area. This plan is currently undergoing environmental review and will be publicly released at some point. To permanently ban all future energy developments before we know all of the facts and research conclusions is uncalled for.

I have stood here at this podium and spoken at length about American energy dominance and good environmental stewardship because I believe they can go hand in hand. Every indicator we have shows that energy production is becoming cleaner, faster, and cheaper by the day. Refusing to allow safe energy development on Federal land isn't environmentally friendly; it is just bad science and a thinly veiled power grab.

As foreign energy sources become increasingly unpredictable, it is imperative that we tap into our vast domestic energy potential in sustainable ways and that we don't arbitrarily restrict future development.

Keep in mind that any leasing in these areas is subject to a host of Federal regulations and oversight already. Any development must comply with the National Historic Preservation Act and NEPA. These laws are in place to protect and preserve historically significant sites across our country.

But that is not the issue here. Instead, we are debating areas completely outside the boundaries of the Chaco Culture area. My Democratic colleagues are rushing to pass this bill without hearing the concerns of local Navajo Nation members or waiting to read the Department of the Interior analysis of the area. These hasty conclusions are unnecessary, with potentially devastating effects on New Mexico's revenue stream.

I urge my fellow Members to consider the negative implications of this bill and vote against H.R. 2181.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source