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Idaho Matters

Conservation deal a key to Indigenous survival in New Mexico

New Mexico creates largest state-owned recreation area to date.

Broadcast on:
04 Aug 2022
The Sacramento Mountains are seen as an "island in the sky," a refuge of forest land in the otherwise harsh southern New Mexico desert.
The Sacramento Mountains are seen as an "island in the sky," a refuge of forest land in the otherwise harsh southern New Mexico desert.(Kirk Siegler / NPR)

Officials in New Mexico recently celebrated the purchase of 50,000 acres to create its largest state-owned recreation area. The deal carries special meaning for tribes in the area and it's one of the biggest public land acquisitions in the U.S. this year.

Emma Gibson of the Mountain West News Bureau has more.