News Release

Valles Caldera Approves New Fire Management Plan

Prescribed burn to reduce fine fuels.

NPS/L. Trader

News Release Date: September 2, 2025

Contact: Dave Krueger, 505-412-0826

Jemez Springs, NM – The National Park Service (NPS) has approved a Finding of No Significant Impact for Valles Caldera National Preserve’s Fire Management Plan Environmental Assessment. 

This allows Valles Caldera to implement its Fire Management Plan, which provides expanded tools to manage lightning-caused wildland fires and implement prescribed fires to promote ecosystem health and reduce the long-term risk of high severity fires.

The new plan prioritizes safety and managing risk to firefighters and the public, infrastructure, and natural and cultural resources. Community engagement and tribal consultation is emphasized in the plan in addition to ecosystem stewardship, monitoring, and adaptive management.

“Since 2009, Valles Caldera has worked closely with the surrounding Santa Fe National Forest to promote forest health and resiliency through the Southwest Jemez Mountains Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Project. Now that most of the forest thinning work has been completed, we aim to use our new Fire Management Plan to safely and carefully manage low intensity wildland fires in the park to reduce the threat of catastrophic fires impacting our surrounding communities,” said Superintendent Jorge Silva-Bañuelos.

The availability of the signed FONSI will be announced through the NPS Planning, Environment, and Public Comment website at https://parkplanning.nps.gov. Learn more about the park’s fire management plan at https://www.nps.gov/vall/learn/management/fire-management.htm.

nps.gov/vall

Valles Caldera National Preserve | About 1.2 million years ago, a spectacular volcanic eruption created the 14-mile-wide circular depression now known as Valles Caldera. The park is known for its huge mountain meadows, abundant wildlife, and meandering streams. The area also preserves the homeland of ancestral native peoples and embraces a rich cultural history. Visit us at nps.gov/vall.

National Park Service | More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America's 420+ national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Visit us at nps.gov.