Recently the U.S. Air Force (“USAF) made a request for additional training usage of the Gila National Forest (“Gila”). USAF flight expansion over Gila was delayed back in June 2019. Now the USAF wants to expand into Gila for increased “Personnel Recovery Training” stemming from the Davis Monthan USAF base located in Tucson.
What is the Gila?
Gila is situated on the New Mexico/Arizona border between I-10 to the south and I-40 to the north. Gila is a 3.3-million-acre wilderness area; the first in the United States. Hunters can have a chance to pursue big game on Gila during the appropriate seasons, they just have to comply with New Mexico Fish & Game regulations. Maps for hunting opportunities in and around Gila can be found here.
Gila in Politics.
Expanded uses in Gila have been a hot political topic for some time. The current governor of New Mexico, Michelle Lujan Grisham, ran on a platform to protect the Gila resources. In April 2019, Gov. Grisham vetoed $1.698 million in funding requested to divert the wild Gila River. This diversion request was made by the Interstate Stream Commission, a portion of state government Gov. Grisham can control. Now the USAF wants to expand its use of what is technically federal land, a question left to the president.
President Trump loves a lot of things about America. But two have been recent favorites: Hunting and the Military. Recently, Pres. Trump expanded uniting opportunities in 77 National Wildlife Refugees. (See EHUNTR article Trump Administration Creates More Hunting Opportunities). So if left to the President, the expanded use would likely be approved. The EA is still under review at this time though so no final decision has been made.
Challenges to the Expanded Use
The last USAF flight expansion was denied due to a delay in the environmental assessment (“EA”). With the EA now complete and showing “no significant impact” would result if increased military usage was allowed, it is more likely that the usage will be approved.
Currently, a few groups including the Gila Conservation Coalition, the Gila Resources Information Project, Heart of the Gila, and the Upper Gila Watershed Alliance have teamed up to challenge the finding. Their contention is the lack of definite usage amounts from the military. With public comment for the draft EA still in progress, and the potential to challenge the decision in court, the expanded usage won’t likely take effect for some time.
If you are in the Silver City area, stop by the public library to review the EA. A digital copy isn’t available on Davis-Monthan AFB’s website yet.
What this means for Hunters.
More use of land always damages the animal populations. The USAF is likely going to go into places they haven’t been before which could harm the elk populations of Gila. The USAF’s best argument though is the diversity of the terrain in Gila. Davis-Monthan AFB isn’t in very mountainous terrain, so the Gila may be the best place to train soldiers. On the other hand, we aren’t at war and there are plenty of other areas in the U.S. open to mountain training. Hunters should care about the Gila as conservationists. If the Gila is used for more military operations, New Mexico’s elk population would likely have less of a chance to continue to grow.
Have you hunted the Gila? Do you think more flights and training in Gila could damage the hunting potential? Let us know how you did in the comments below!
