Silver City, NM; November 22, 2011--In early November, the Gila National Forest hosted various members of the U.S.-Mexico Border Field Coordinating Committee (FCC) under the U.S. Department of Interior (DOI) on a field trip and one-day work session to discuss common topics facing federal agencies along the international border with México. Forest hosts Gabe Partido, Timber Program Manager, and Carolyn Koury, Hydrologist, worked with FCC Chairperson Delfinia Montaño with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in setting up the agenda and taking the group along the Trail of the Mountain Spirits Scenic Byway (locally known as the Inner Loop) where topics on conservation, collaboration, and preservation of cultures, ranching, and open space along the border were discussed.

Earlier in the year, the FCC group made a decision to meet in a national forest and in a rural setting such as the Gila National Forest. By leaving urban centers in California, Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico where the group normally meets, they were able to view on-the-ground management activities such as prescribed burning in the Pinos Altos wildland urban interface, thinning projects, and burned acres in the Gila Wilderness from the Miller Fire of 2011. Other topics the FCC group heard about included recreation, archaeology, drought, species management, fire management, and economic welfare of communities.

"The FCC's visit to the Forest served as an opportunity to showcase similarities the FCC group and the Forest share on challenges related to resource management near the border," according to Partido and Koury.  

With the active 2011 fire season, discussion was also centered around other fire management activities such as firefighting, fire for resource benefits, and severity of drought on the land. Cultural connections between the Mogollon people of the Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument and Paquimé located near Casas Grandes, Chihuahua, Mexico was another topic of interest presented by Acoma Pueblo's Historic Preservation Officer. Paquimé is a major archaeological site in northwestern Chihuahua where the cultures of Mesoamerica (a region and cultural area in the Americas extending from central México to Central America) merged with the pueblo culture of the Anasazi, from the four corners area of Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah.

Attendees on the field trip were given the opportunity to visit a varied representation of cultural and natural resources sites. The work and challenges performed by the Forest provided us another agency perspective and realm of responsibilities. The entire FCC group thoroughly enjoyed the Forest trip and appreciated the warm welcome, said FCC member Eddie Guerrero from the BLM Las Cruces office.

Group visits area in close proximity to Gila Wilderness boundary for discussion on fire effects of the 2011 Miller Fire.