Posted on 06/15/2011 5:33:02 PM PDT by SJackson
The National Trust for Historic Preservation named the Greater Chaco Landscape, which includes Chaco Culture National Historical Park, to its annual Most Endangered Places List.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation has named the Greater Chaco Landscape in northwest New Mexico to its annual list of America’s most endangered historic places.
Much of the threat Chaco faces is from the boom in energy resource exploration and extraction, according to the Trust. The oil and gas industry is continuing to push for development on federal lands outside the Chaco Culture National Historical Park, and has recently nominated several Bureau of Land Management parcels in the area for oil and gas lease sales.
Also, many of the ancient Chacoan roads are endangered because modern roads are being built and planned to serve the heavy truck traffic associated with energy extraction, Trust officials said.
Chaco Culture National Historical Park, managed by the National Park Service, is one of 20 sites in the U.S. designated World Heritage properties by UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. The natural and cultural landscape as a whole, not just individual sites, makes the Chacoan region worthy of protection, Trust officials said. Many of the sites and ancient roads outside the park rival those within the park, Trust officials said, such as the recently mapped Great North Road, which runs dozens of miles toward the New Mexico-Colorado border.
The Chacoan people inhabited this area starting in 700 A.D., and the architecture and engineering prowess of that civilization suggest a highly developed culture, the Trust said.
Its feats include massive stone buildings, or great houses, containing hundreds of rooms constructed using masonry techniques unique for their time. Many of the sites are in ruins, but many others are “remarkably intact,” according to the Trust.
The legacy of the Chacoans includes thousands of ancient pueblos and shrines, and an extensive road network that linked people across the region.
Stephanie Meeks, president of the National Trust, said the Greater Chaco Landscape has tremendous religious and cultural significance for Native American tribes, and is recognized worldwide for its historic and cultural significance.
“We cannot stand back and witness insensitive energy development and the permanent scarring of a place that holds deep significance for hundreds of thousands of people around the globe,” she said in a prepared statement.
The area was nominated for the Most Endangered List by the Solstice Project, a nonprofit in New Mexico. The Chacoans were keen astronomical observers, and several sites in the park are aligned to coincide with the angle of the sun’s position on summer and winter solstices, including the Sun Dagger petroglygh.
If reaource exploration and extraction WERE a rational argument that it's a danger to a heritage site.
Which it's not, an absurd assertion; a red herring.
But even if it were, bye bye Chaco. The well being of 300,000,000 fellow citizens is more important than making a few national pets feel good about themselves.
Perhaps expanding the list a bit to enviornmental issues.
Chaco Canyon is a wonderful place. I'd recommend a visit. Worthy of protection. Which is why it's a National Historical Park.
Of course the article isn't about the National Historical Park. It isn't about the expansion of the National Historical Park, else it would have advocated that.
It's about stopping the production of energy outside the park.
Note my post 3, it’s not about the park. Rather about the trails/roads that anyone might have taken over the last millenia getting to what is not the park. Within a dozen miles or so. The industry will be able to cope with that, they’ll preserve the roads and decorate them with wind chimes if necessary.
If there’s no threat to the site, then develop the energy resources. We can’t afford to tie up every inch of the United States because some group wants us to.
What say those FReepers living in the Four Corners area?
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I would think the oil and gas exploration and extraction would be a lot less hazardous and dirty than the uranium mining, as well.
***It’s about stopping the production of energy outside the park.***
Energy exploration will not hurt the park. Look at the Farmington area. Lots of gas wells and Aztec ruins and Salmon ruins are not damaged. the place is covered with old ruins everywhere! We found pottery shards on my place at La Plata back in 1973. Wish I was still there!
Besides, the Chacoans walked away from the area about 700 years go.
As a little context, 1000 years ago, Chaco was the equivalent of Chicago, today. It was the midpoint of a trading route from New England all the way to South America. Their most convertible currency was chips of turquoise, and tens of thousands of such chips have been found at Chaco. Something of an abandoned bank.
This is not what might be thought of as primitive, as even the stonework in their buildings is of three different types, showing technological innovation. And South of there, in the great empires in Mexico, were lots of great cities built of stone, often with multistory buildings.
Likewise, heading East from Chaco were the great Plains and Mississippi River tribes, the latter of whom also built great cities, that were, unfortunately, far more biodegradable.
Then around the year 1,000, there was a heck of an extended drought, which pretty much wiped out the Indians of the southwest.
Thank you for the very nice synopsis.
They can put that proposal where OThuga keeps his head.
SJackson is spot on.
Most of the road network is rather obscure and certainly more remote than most folks think.
San Juan County is bigger than the State of Conneticut(sp?--neither spell check nor a spelling book nor a dictionary were of any help. LOL).
I wouldn't be for obliterating most of each one of the 20% more important roads.
However, most of major long stretches of the roads they are talking about will never see humans within 100’ of them for the next 100+ years and more. The only travelers on them are jackrabbits, rattlers & horned toads & lizards.
I'm Choctaw and Cherokee. And I respect the Dine a lot. However, a bunch of the Native American hoopla is just posturing and political grandstanding for personal gain.
Enough already yet.
However, the globalists want to make all of North America one large National world park for the elite's playground. The oil and gas stuff has relatively small footprints in a rather desolate landscape. But then the whol oil charade gets into another globalist bunch of nonsense.
I found a pottery shard a few days ago laying some paving stones.
Bolack’s ranch has more than 100 ruins alone.
Has there ever been any DNA analysis of the Anazazi and comparing them with Puebloan Dine, Ute, etc? I understand the Apache’s are closely related to the Dine. But the Hopi are not???
http://www.canyonsworldwide.com/chacocanyon/p3.htm
(This is a long, but data heavy article about Chaco. Lots of interesting information.)
“The Chaco Canyon Anasazi were, according to archaeological evidence available today, a mix of a few Mesoamericans who intermarried with the local indigenous population. DNA testing of the “two high status” burials contrasted with the dozen or so accompanying dismembered burials found in Pueblo Bonito will aid in confirming or refuting this proposal. In fact, DNA testing of these two dignified Pueblo Bonito burials may very well resolve many mysteries concerning Chaco Canyon.”
http://www.science-frontiers.com/cat-arch.htm
DNA gets everywhere.
THANKS THANKS.
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-——Which it’s not,——
What is your evidence for that statement?
I would argue it has no basis in fact and is a knee jerk reaction.
You can, on the contrary, see with your own eyes that the gas wells are in fact proliferating in the area described. This is especially true in the north around Aztec and Salmon ruins.
I know you won’t, but that doesn’t mean you can’t, study the area from Chaco along the Anasazi north road to Aztec. Then look at the area north of Aztec and Salmon and actually see the intense ,and It is really intense, network of gas wells, gas lines and roads that cover the area. The study can be made in a half hour or so on Google Earth which allows you to see all the major sites and the gas and city developments.
The importance of the vast area involved in the Chaco civilization is increasing as new sites are discovered and studied. The society lived over a vast area that is not really defined. To inhibit knowledge of the great American culture that was on the Colorado plateau would be a very bad thing. At present we are just beginning to realize that there was great effort and substantial construction over a vast area. We have not yet fit the pieces together to understand why.
To destroy the scant and scattered evidence is unforgivable..
There is very strong precedent.
We are learning more about a second great society in the nearby Phoenix Basin. The development of Phoenix covered over many sites and the knowledge is lost. I do not advocate the non construction of Phoenix but advocate learning from the process. Knowledge lost can never be reclaimed.
The same is true of the development of East St Louis that covered and destroyed much of the greatest of American cities now known as Cahokia. The remaining mound is the largest man made structure in North America.
Haven’t been to that particular site but, I hear the roads are horrible. Perhaps the energy companies could improve them?
Thanks blam.
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