Heritage Waters Coalition Submits Formal Opposition to S.1476 – the M.H. Dutch Salmon Greater Gila Wild and Scenic River Act
Silver City, New Mexico (November 26, 2025) —The Heritage Waters Coalition (HWC), the Southwest’s largest grassroots organization dedicated to defending property and water rights, has submitted a formal letter to U.S. Senator Mike Lee (Utah), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, opposing S.1476 – the M.H. Dutch Salmon Greater Gila Wild and Scenic River Act.
In the letter delivered November 25, 2025, HWC Board Chair Charlotte Griffin and Executive Director Drew Lesofski outlined the severe and far-reaching consequences the legislation would impose on New Mexico’s rural communities, water users, and landowners.
The coalition emphasized that S.1476 was developed without meaningful input from the communities it claims to serve, instead of being advanced by outside political and financial interests with no stake in the resulting burdens. The bill proposes sweeping Wild and Scenic River designations across more than 440 miles of the Gila River system—far beyond what the U.S. Forest Service itself has recommended.
HWC warned that the bill would create a fragmented patchwork of federal, state, and private-management jurisdictions, inviting regulatory conflict, legal uncertainty, and years of litigation over land use, access, and water rights. The legislation would impose unworkable management demands on already overstretched agencies like the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management, further destabilizing regional land management efforts.
“For generations, ranchers, farmers, county officials, and local conservationists in southwestern New Mexico have been the stewards of these lands,” the letter states. “S.1476 undermines that history by transferring sweeping authority to unelected federal administrators, threatening the private property and water rights that form the backbone of rural communities.”
The coalition also highlighted the contradiction of this bill advancing at the same time other proposals before Congress call for mass disposal of public lands. “High-value areas like the Gila are being targeted for restrictive federal designations while millions of acres elsewhere are slated for disposal. This underscores the political—not conservation-driven—nature of Senator Heinrich’s bill,” the letter reads.
HWC is urging Chairman Lee and the full Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee to reject S.1476 to protect the people who live, work, and rely upon the Gila River Basin.
About the Heritage Waters Coalition
The Heritage Waters Coalition is a grassroots organization dedicated to protecting land and water rights. Comprised of landowners, agricultural stakeholders, conservationists, and outdoor enthusiasts, the HWC is committed to ensuring the responsible management and use of America's precious water resources.
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