The public dispute under analysis herein involves multiple issues regarding land use and conservation in Catron County, New Mexico. The challenges facing the stakeholders in this matter face a variety of land use issues, including grazing, deforestation, protection of endangered species, and community impact. The following stakeholders are players in this matter which involves federal, state and local levels of government and interests:
The federal government (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Forest Service, Environmental Protection Agency, etc.)
Environmentalists (Southwest Center for Biological Diversity)
County and local government (Catron County Commissioner, Reserve Mayor Harold Dykstra)
State government (New Mexico Senators Bingaman and Domenici)
Local citizens (i.e., clergymen, employees, community leaders)
Neutral Parties (New Mexico Center for Dispute Resolution)
One can see that there are not only multiple land use issues facing Catron Country, but also a host of diverse stakeholders among who common ground is sought. After the diverse interests of the stakeholders created chaos and a virtual standstill where action or resolution is concerned, the New Mexico Center for Dispute Resolution (NMCDR) was consulted as a means of finding common ground to sensibly tackle the diverse issues and challenges facing stakeholders. Dr. Mark Unverzagt, concerned about the well-being of the community being torn apart by a lack of resolution involving land use issues, contacted the NMCDR. The mediation consultants recommended the formation of the Catron County Citizens Group (CCCG), a core of community leaders and representatives from each stakeholder group that was instituted as an open, respectful, and tolerant forum for dialogue with all concerned parties. The CCCG Mission was formulated as follows “The mission is to come together to openly and honestly discuss and deal with the diverse situations we face, findin...