Gabby Brown, gabby.brown@sierraclub.org
Farmington, NM -- Last week, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Farmington Field office removed approximately 2,500 acres in the Greater Chaco region from a lease sale that was held last week that allows multistage horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracking in the region and in southeastern New Mexico. The deferral did not apply to any of the parcels nominated by the BLM Rio Puerco Field office, which also manages lands in the Greater Chaco region.
After deferring a lease sale scheduled for March 2018 due to a need for more cultural study and consultation, the BLM went forward with the December 2018 lease sale in the same region and in expanded drilling areas, despite the fact that no tribal consultation or additional study of 5,400 cultural resources has occurred.
These sales have been the subject of significant controversy and opposition from local communities, tribal governments, elected officials, and organizations because of the impacts of increased fracking on historical artifacts and living culture of the region, as well as the public health and safety of nearby communities. An unprecedented 10,000 protest comments were submitted in opposition to the December 2018 sale -- though the BLM only accepted 1,000 of the total as valid -- and hundreds of activists recently protested outside BLM’s office in Santa Fe.
Last week’s lease sale delivered lackluster results, generating nearly $100 million less than expected.
In response, Sierra Club Rio Grande Chapter Organizer Miya King-Flaherty released the following statement:
“The removal of thousands of acres from last week’s lease sale is a testament to the power of local communities’ fight to protect our region’s rich cultural history, public health, tribal sovereign rights, and environmental justice. This is welcome news, but the fight to protect Greater Chaco from expanded fracking is far from over. We will not back down until there are permanent protections for this special place and the people who are culturally connected to it.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3 million members and supporters. In addition to helping people from all backgrounds explore nature and our outdoor heritage, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.