The tour of @ChacoCultureNHP reminds us that we need to finish the job our ancestors started – respecting the land so it’s here for future generations. #PeopleOverPolluters pic.twitter.com/08Su0X71XR
— Rep. Deb Haaland (@RepDebHaaland) April 15, 2019

Environment | National | Politics

Witness list for Congressional field hearing on sacred sites and energy development

Monday, April 15, 2019

• WEBCAST: Oil and Gas Development: Impacts on Air Pollution and Sacred Sites

The House Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources is holding a field hearing on Monday to discuss the impacts of energy development on sacred sites and the environment.

The hearing, which features leaders of Pueblo and Navajo tribes, takes place at the New Mexico State Capitol in Santa Fe. It comes a day after members of the House Committee on Natural Resources, including those who serve on the subcommittee, visited Chaco Culture National Historical Park, whose surrounding areas are being threatened by oil and gas drilling.

Starting our @NRDems tour of emission site impacts on our land, public health, and sacred sites near @ChacoCultureNHP #PeopleOverPolluters pic.twitter.com/LlsfNcxldE
— Rep. Deb Haaland (@RepDebHaaland) April 14, 2019

"The tour of @ChacoCultureNHP reminds us that we need to finish the job our ancestors started – respecting the land so it’s here for future generations," Rep. Deb Haaland (D-New Mexico) wrote in a post on social media on Sunday.

Rep. Alan Lowenthal (D-California), the chairman of the subcommittee, added that "it is unacceptable that such a sacred site, and one of our nation’s most magnificent cultural treasures, is threatened nearby by new oil and gas leases."

The hearing takes place at 10am Mountain time and will be streamed on Facebook. The witness list follows:

Panel 1
The Honorable Michelle Lujan Grisham
Governor of New Mexico

Panel 2
The Honorable Michael J. Chavarria
Vice-Chairman
All Pueblo Council of Governors Governor, Pueblo of Santa Clara

The Honorable Brian D. Vallo
Governor
Pueblo of Acoma

The Honorable Myron Lizer
Vice President
Navajo Nation

Chairman Rickie Nez
Resources and Development Committee
Navajo Nation Council

Panel 3
Ms. Sarah Cottrell Propst
Cabinet Secretary
New Mexico Energy, Minerals & Natural Resources Department

Mr. Paul Reed
Preservation Archaeologist
Archeology Southwest
Taos, NM

Mr. Don Schreiber
Rancher
Rio Arriba County, NM

Ms. Kendra Pinto
Member of Counselor Chapter
Navajo Nation

Panel 4
Ms. Barbara Webber
Executive Director
Health Action New Mexico

Mr. David Lyon, Ph.D.
Scientist
Environmental Defense Fund

Mr. James Jimenez
Executive Director
New Mexico Voices for Children

Mr. Craig O’Neill
Global Business Development Manager
FLIR Systems