BLM appoints Navajo tribal coordinator

The Bureau of Land Management and members of the Navajo Tribe have an additional avenue of communication with the BLM’s appointment of a Navajo coordinator.

“The Navajo coordinator position is to help the BLM coordinate activities that impact Navajo tribal members,” said Gary Torres, manager for the BLM Farmington Field Office.

The Navajo coordinator is Esther Willetto of the Farmington Field Office, who prior to her appointment was a rangeland conservation specialist for the office.  Much of Willeto’s work has been in northwest New Mexico’s so-called checkerboard area, where there is a mix of Navajo allotment land and BLM land, and in areas where BLM land borders the Navajo Nation.

“When a pipeline is going through with a right-of-way, people may want to know what clearances the company has.” Willetto said.
 
As part of the federal government’s responsibility to hold land in trust for an Indian tribe or Indian individual, the BLM manages oil and gas production on Navajo allotment land.  In addition to oil and gas related issues, when Navajo allotment and tribal land border BLM land, there can be issues related to livestock grazing, trespass and unauthorized occupancy. 

“We can’t accomplish our Navajo coordination and consultation by just writing letters to Navajo chapter houses, land boards and the tribal government,” Torres said. “You hear about a lot of things out in the field and Esther will serve as a BLM point of contact.” 

Willetto is a tribal member fluent in the Navajo language.  She also has worked for the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the National Park Service.

The federal government’s trust responsibility for Indian land also extends to protecting Navajo cultural resources.  As Navajo coordinator, Willetto will keep the BLM Farmington Field Office informed about Navajo cultural concerns connected to the land.

As with all government entities with which the BLM has a relationship - tribal, local, state or with other federal land management agencies - the BLM needs productive lines of communication. Willetto will assist with improving communications with Navajo chapter houses and with the tribal government in Window Rock, Ariz.  Torres said that through Willetto, Navajo tribal members in remote areas who speak only the Navajo language will have a better line of communication with the BLM.

“It can be confusing when people don’t know who to talk to,” Torres said.  “Esther will be that first line of communication. She will help us learn about issues early on and if somebody has a question and she doesn’t know the answer, she will know who at the BLM can be of assistance.”