Canyon of the Ancients

Canyons of the Ancients National Monument in southwestern Colorado contains a huge number of archaeological sites (more than 6000 recorded, up to 100 per square mile in some places) representing the Ancestral Puebloan and other Native American cultures, as well as important historic and environmental resources.



Canyon of the Ancients National Monument was home to the Anasazi people as early at 7500 B.C. For the past 8500 years, the Ancestral Puebloans, nomadic Ute and Navajo tribes have moved in and out of the region. The area was once a spot for villages, field houses, check dams, reservoirs, great kivas, cliff dwellings, shrines, sacred springs, agricultural fields, petroglyphs and sweat lodges. Now the highest density of archeology sites in the United States, the monument was designated a National Monument in June of 2000 by President Clinton. In the 164,000 acres the monument covers, there are 20,000 - 30,000 archeology sites.
The Monument is threatened by oil and gas development. Interior Secretary Gale Norton has targeted Canyons of the Ancients for new oil and gas exploration and development. Norton may modify the Monument's boundaries or weaken its management to accommodate more energy exploration and other commercial uses.
Environmental and community groups gained some temporary ground on August 20th when a Federal Judge issued a restraining order blocking "thumper trucks" from entering the Canyon of the Ancients National Monument. The 60-ton "thumper trucks," or what BLM calls "vibroseis buggies," were slated to conduct seismic soundings on fragile sections of the Monument. These seismic tests are designed to identify oil and gas deposits thousands of feet beneath the Canyon, which is home to astounding cliff dwellings, archeological artifacts, rare lizards and delicate rock formations.

The new gas wells and compressors will emit 72,000 tons of nitrogen oxides into the air -- the equivalent of two new coal-fired power plants or 3.5 million more cars! This intensive development will further push the existing ozone problems in the Farmington area past safe limits, destroying the scenic views in nearby Mesa Verde National Park and degrading the air quality throughout the Four Corners. Other impacts associated with this level of development include a 14-fold increase in existing noise generated from compressors and compressor stations and 800 miles or 44,000 acres of new roads that threaten elk and deer populations, as well as livestock grazing