The National Trust for Historic Preservation has named the Greater Chaco Cultural Landscape to its 2026 list of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places, drawing renewed national attention to ongoing efforts by Pueblo and Hopi leaders to permanently protect the region surrounding Chaco Culture National Historical Park.
The designation was welcomed Wednesday by the All Pueblo Council of Governors (APCG), which said the listing recognizes both the cultural significance of the landscape and the immediate threats posed by potential federal action that could weaken existing protections.
Centered on Chaco Culture National Historical Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Greater Chaco Cultural Landscape spans thousands of square miles across New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, and Utah. Pueblo and Hopi leaders describe the region as a living ancestral homeland that continues to hold ceremonial, cultural, and spiritual importance.
This marks the second time in 15 years the National Trust has included the landscape on its endangered list, first doing so in 2011.
“Chaco is not a museum, and it is not an isolated archaeological park,” said APCG Chairman Joey Sanchez of the Pueblo of Santa Ana. “It is a living cultural landscape that our Pueblo people have sustained for more than a thousand years. The National Trust’s recognition affirms what our Pueblos have said for generations: this place matters. To us, to the nation, and to the world. The protections we have built over more than a decade can be undone in a moment. We are calling on the Department of the Interior, on Congress, and on the public to stand with us.”
The announcement comes as the Bureau of Land Management considers revoking or modifying Public Land Order No. 7923, a federal withdrawal established in June 2023 that protects approximately 336,404 acres of federal land within a 10-mile buffer around Chaco Culture National Historical Park from new oil and gas leasing and mineral extraction for 20 years. A federal decision is expected in late June 2026.
“For Acoma, Chaco is not a distant or abstract place. It is part of who we are,” said Governor Charles Riley of the Pueblo of Acoma, which nominated the site for the endangered list. “Our ancestors built, walked, and prayed in that landscape, and our descendants continue to do so today.”
Riley also criticized the federal government’s recent seven-day public scoping comment period tied to the possible rollback of the land withdrawal.
“When the federal government compressed the recent public scoping comment period to just seven days, our community responded — hosting forums, helping community members without internet access, and submitting nearly five hundred individual comments,” Riley said. “Each one comes from a person who knows what is at stake.”
Leaders from other Pueblo nations echoed concerns about the federal review process and emphasized the need for permanent protections.
“The Pueblo of Laguna stands with our sister Pueblos and tribal nations in protecting the Greater Chaco Cultural Landscape,” said Governor Harry Antonio Jr. of the Pueblo of Laguna. “Our cultural responsibilities do not stop at jurisdictional lines. Chaco is part of who we are as Pueblo people.”
Antonio said federal officials must engage in “meaningful, government-to-government consultation” rather than relying on “a compressed timeline of weeks.”
Governor Arden Kucate of the Pueblo of Zuni called the Greater Chaco Cultural Landscape “sacred ground” and urged Congress to pass the Chaco Cultural Heritage Area Protection Act.
“The Pueblos have done the work — more than a decade of advocacy, lawful process, and consultation,” Kucate said. “Public Land Order No. 7923 was the result of that work. To revoke it without honest consultation, and on a timeline designed to limit our voices, would dishonor every commitment the federal government has made to tribal nations.”
The Hopi Tribe also voiced support for maintaining the federal protections.
“The Hopi people’s connection to Chaco Canyon and the Greater Chaco Cultural Landscape did not begin with policy decisions to further harm the landscape,” said Stewart B. Koyiyumptewa. “Our ancestors sustained, subsisted, built, traveled, performed ceremonies, and prayed across this landscape for generations.”
The National Trust said this year’s endangered places list coincides with the approaching 250th anniversary of the United States and seeks to highlight places that reflect the nation’s full cultural history.
“The Greater Chaco Cultural Landscape is an ancestral homeland of enduring importance to Pueblo and Hopi peoples,” said Carol Quillen, president and CEO of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. “Recognizing and safeguarding this landscape is an opportunity to ensure that our cultural and historic landscape reflects the full depth and continuity of its history.”
APCG Vice Chairman Mark Mitchell of the Pueblo of Tesuque said Pueblo nations and their allies will continue pursuing administrative, legal, and legislative strategies to defend the landscape.
“The National Trust’s recognition tells the country and the world that what is happening at Chaco is a matter of national consequence,” Mitchell said.
APCG, member Pueblos, and the Hopi Tribe are calling for three immediate actions: suspension of the federal revocation process for Public Land Order No. 7923, congressional passage of the Chaco Cultural Heritage Area Protection Act, and increased public advocacy in support of permanent protections for the Greater Chaco Cultural Landscape.
