The US senator is asking the Department of Defense if Americans can be arrested on the scope.
Defense Secretary Hegus visits troops in the “Defense Area”
New Mexico’s Secretary of Defense Pete Hegses will visit the military in a newly formed “defense area” along the US/Mexico border.
Ray Trejo has obtained the coveted permission this year to hunt deer along New Mexico’s tropical border, but he is worried when the US forces come in.
“If I hunt there, wear camouflage and tie a rifle on my back, would I be shot?” Trejo, an elected commissioner in Luna County, said at the US-Mexico border. “Hunting season is fast approaching and you need to know where the boundaries are.”
The Pentagon has taken over areas along the border seven times more than Manhattan’s border after President Donald Trump declared a national emergency due to immigrant “aggression.” This transfer will convert the land into a de facto military facility for at least three years. This allows federal authorities to request immigrants, and possibly others, for illegal trespassing into military bases.
However, locals are worried about the new ownership. Especially those who hunt and hike through the vastly fragile landscapes. Will American citizens be arrested if they unconsciously enter the area? Do soldiers respect their hunting rights? Does the Department of Defense take care of land and wildlife?
US Senator Martin Heinrich, D-New Mexico, sent a May 14 letter to Defense Sec. Pete Hegses wants answers to such questions.
“These landscapes are not only biologically diverse, but culturally important, but also deserve thoughtful stewardship and clear communication when federal land designations are changed or used,” writes Heinrich.
“Is hunting still permitted within (defense areas)? If so, under what additional regulations and conditions would hunting be permitted?” he asked. “Are other recreational uses still permitted within the NDA, such as hiking, camping, or off-road vehicle use?”
DOD did not respond to questions raised by USA Today regarding the future of hunting and hiking access.
Hunting is permitted in several existing military custody, according to the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish. According to the website, Hunters have not specifically named the new military facility, saying “we must obtain permissions and terms of access directly from the military reservation.”
Brandon Wynn, a retired Albuquerque businessman and advocate for public land and access to hunting, has hunted military reservations in New Mexico, Arizona and Colorado, he said. The permission process is complicated. However, this new military facility is different.
“There’s no process of getting permission I know about this,” he said. “It really bothers me. This means I can’t get there.”
Border region
The area is particularly sturdy bootshelves from New Mexico, surrounded by open sky and cut out in the range of Rocky Mountain. Hunters and hikers can find themselves for hours from assistance and mobile services. It is an area that has historically been trafficked by drug smugglers and immigrants who have attempted to enter the country illegally.
The southern tip of the Continental Divide Trail, which runs 3,100 miles from Mexico to Canada, is located within an area now controlled by the Army.
The day after Heinrich sent the letter, the US International Boundary Water Commission, which manages Rio Grande, revoked access to bird hunting along 63 miles of Texas land, saying it “no longer controls the land.” The rural area east of El Paso, Texas, was a pigeon and quail hunting area.
The land transfer from the Department of Interior to the Department of Defense includes 109,651 acres in New Mexico, Doñaana, Luna and Hidalgo counties.
It also includes the Texas border area of 2,000 acres, according to Department of Defense figures cited by local journalism nonprofit El Paso Matters.
Garrett Beneclasen, director of the Northern Conservation of the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance, says the tropical border of New Mexico is home to around 20 endangered and protected wildlife species.
Some locals are pleased with the arrival of the troops.
Ranchers are also stakeholders, and use land currently under military jurisdiction to graze cattle.
In southern New Mexico, “most ranchers are supporters of Trump’s actions,” said Stephen Wilmes, a rancher who leased federal land in Doñaana County. “Finally there’s some relief.”
“I’m worried about my friends.”
Like Trejo, Beneclasen has drawn hunting tags at the southern border this year. Deer is a white tail species found only in the southwest deserts.
“For a man who looks like a white redneck like me, I’m sure there are limits to what I can and can’t,” he said.
“But I’m worried about my friends,” he said. “Can you imagine having camouflage and guns in that country? Could it be that an agency that has been stripped off and people with brown skin tones get shot and killed? That scares me.”
The newly built military zone has yet to appear on the maps Trejo uses while hunting, he said.
“If you get the hunting tag, you’re backflips in your office because it’s really a privilege to hunt,” said Trejo, Southern Outreach Coordinator for the New Mexico Wildlife Federation.
“Hunting has been important to me forever,” he said. “It’s traditional. We went out into the landscape and hunted. It brought together the families and put food on the table. I’m a bit worried about the possibility that I won’t be able to continue doing this for my children and grandchildren.”
Lauren Villagran can be accessed at lvillagran@usatoday.com.
