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Pueblo of Jemez Hosts EM-Los Alamos Leadership

The Pueblo of Jemez recently hosted Stan Pyram, acting manager for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management Los Alamos Field Office, for a tour with pueblo leadership and Natural Resources Department staff.

Office of Environmental Management

September 8, 2026
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A group of individuals pose for a photo outside at the Los Alamos site with mountains and trees in the background

Stan Pyram, acting manager for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management Los Alamos Field Office, is pictured at center during a tour with Pueblo of Jemez leadership and the pueblo's Natural Resources Department staff. Redondo Peak, pictured in the background, is a site of continued traditional use and significance for the pueblo.

Visit focuses on shared interests in environmental stewardship

JEMEZ SPRINGS, N.M. — The Pueblo of Jemez recently hosted Stan Pyram, acting manager for the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Environmental Management Los Alamos Field Office, for a tour with pueblo leadership and Natural Resources Department (NRD) staff. The pueblo is a federally recognized tribe located 30 miles west of Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). It’s one of 19 pueblos in New Mexico and consists of over 89,000 acres of land across three noncontiguous parcels with 3,400 tribal members.

“Building a strong and lasting relationship with the Pueblo of Jemez, and with the other Accord Pueblos, is a personal priority,” Pyram said. “I was grateful to learn some of the history from these beautiful sites from pueblo members. Along with the invaluable insights I gained, I deeply appreciated the warm hospitality, the shared meal and the open, thoughtful conversation.”

Two professionals standing outside at the Los Alamos Site talking to each other

 

 

The tour began with a visit to the Valles Caldera Preserve, a volcanic caldera over 13 miles wide and home to the headwaters used by pueblo members. Aaron Cajero, Natural Resources manager for the pueblo's NRD, left, explains to Pyram how his program performs air monitoring and sampling at the Valles Caldera because of its proximity to LANL and the site’s traditional importance. Redondo Peak, pictured in the background, is a site of continued traditional use and significance for the pueblo.

Three professionals standing in the woods at the Los Alamos site speaking to each other

The tour included a visit to Banco Bonito, known to the pueblo as SÉE WÂAK’Į̂ TÛUKWÂ (“EAGLE DOWN PLACE”). The pueblo’s cultural resources specialist, Mark Magdalena, left, and Daryl Lucero, wildlife manager, right, tell Pyram that this archeological site inhabited by pueblo people from 1500 C.E. remains important to the pueblo, which co-stewards Banco Bonito with the National Park Service. 

Three professionals taking a tour outside at the Los Alamos site

 

 

At the pueblo, NRD Director Clarice Madalena, center, leads a tour of the NRD offices, which houses the Los Alamos Pueblos Project (LAPP) sampling and monitoring program. Madalena also gave a presentation on the history of the LAPP program. The LAPP, comprised of four New Mexico pueblo governments — Santa Clara Pueblo, Pueblo de Cochiti, Pueblo of Jemez and Pueblo de San Ildefonso — has individual cooperative agreements with EM to develop and maintain environmental monitoring programs.

Two professionals sitting at a desk speaking with each other

During a discussion with Pyram, right, Jemez Gov. John Galvan expresses interest in maintaining the pueblo’s relationship with DOE, the value of transparency and the pueblo’s perspective on environmental stewardship. The group shared a traditional meal including Jemez enchiladas and beans.

-Contributor: Sarah Voorhees