Photo Courtesy Seth Gayner

BY SETH GAYNER
White Rock

As a community that values scientific rigor and data-driven policy, Los Alamos residents should take a closer look at the National Park Service’s General Management Plan for Valles Caldera National Preserve.

In its planning documents, the park determined that the frontcountry Visitor Engagement Zone can handle 2,900 visitors per day—nearly one million annually. Yet across the remaining 89,000 acres of public land, the agency failed to conduct scientific visitor capacity or modeling studies. Instead, it relies on locked gates, daily vehicle caps, and restrictive 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. operating hours.

Long-standing policy restrictions—such as the static November 15 backcountry road closing and narrow daily gate hours—were never justified in the Environmental Assessment with site-specific ecological data. While neighboring land agencies manage seasonal access dynamically based on actual conditions, the park relies on administrative convenience rather than peer-reviewed science.

Under the National Parks and Recreation Act, General Management Plans legally require science-based carrying capacities for ‘all’ park zones. Furthermore, when citizens document these locked gates or ask questions, park communications have met public feedback with patronizing social media responses.

Valles Caldera belongs to the public. The National Park Service should replace arbitrary gate hours and seasonal closures with transparent, science-based management that truly serves our community.

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