[Nmcaver] Snowy River Bill out of committee

[gypcaver at comcast.net]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                       CONTACT:   CHRIS GALLEGOS 

JANUARY 31, 2007                                                                        (202) 224-7082 
 
COMMITTEE PASSES DOMENICI’S FT. STANTON CAVE BILL


 


Cavers Working on New Passage to Unique “Snowy River” Formation


 


          WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Pete Domenici today gained committee approval for his bill to add federal protection to the rare Snowy River passage at Fort Stanton Cave in southern New Mexico—a passage believed to be the longest continuous calcite formation in the world.

  

          Domenici’s Fort Stanton-Snowy River National Cave Conservation Area Act (S.260) was approved Wednesday by the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and is now ready for consideration by the full Senate.  S.260 is cosponsored by Senator Jeff Bingaman.

  

          “The Snowy River is so exceptional and unique that we need to ensure that federal protection is in place to ensure its preservation for scientific research and educational purposes,” Domenici said.  “Cave experts remain excited by this discovery and are already working on the best and safest way to access the Snowy River passage for the scientific community to conduct research in the cave.”

          

          “Snowy River is truly unique, and through this conservation plan it will be protected.  I’m glad we were able to move this bill quickly though the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and I hope we gain full Senate approval in the coming weeks,” said Bingaman, chairman of the Senate Energy Committee. 

  

          The Domenici bill creates a Fort Stanton-Snowy River National Cave Conservation Area to protect, secure and conserve the natural and unique features of the Snowy River Passage and the Fort Stanton Cave in Lincoln County.  S.260 authorizes the Bureau of Land Management to develop a map and legal description of Fort Stanton Cave, and to develop a comprehensive, long-term management plan for the cave area.

  

          The Snowy River is a continuous calcite formation that extends more than two miles in the Fort Stanton Cave.  Exploration of this cave dates back to at least the 1850s, but the Snowy River passage was only discovered in 2001, and kept secret until Domenici announced its discovery in 2005.

  

          The BLM recently reported to Domenici progress on developing a new route into the Snowy River passage, a project undertaken after the original passage was deemed unsafe.  The original passage was permanently closed and research suspended.  However, new research proposals are being received from New Mexico Tech, the National Cave and Karst Research Institute and other cave experts.

  

          The continued scientific research and discoveries in the cave may yield valuable information on the hydrology, geology and microbiology in the region. For instance, investigations of the Snowy River formation may provide information on past water chemistry, weather trends, and flood and drought cycles. 

--
Steve Peerman

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines, Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in you sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."
    attributed to Mark Twain, but no record exists of his having written this.