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New Mexico environmentalists sought to block a federal sale of public land to the oil and gas industry as about 500 acres of the southeast Permian Basin region of the state were planned to be auctioned off this summer.
The sale, if it occurs, would be first new federal leases in the Permian – the most active oil and gas field in the U.S. – since the administration of President Joe Biden took office in 2021.
Upon assuming power, the Biden administration halted any new leases of federal public land to the oil and gas industry, drawing immediate backlash from industry groups and their supporters.
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In New Mexico, more than half of its oil and gas extraction occurs on federal land, activities that make up about a third of the state’s budget.
An injunction was filed by Louisiana federal court later that year ordering the federal government to resume sales, and on April the U.S. Bureau of Land Management announced it would hold sales this summer in New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, Montana, Nevada, North Dakota and Oklahoma.
The New Mexico sale, comprising of six parcels in Lea and Chaves counties in the southeast corner of the state, was scheduled for June 16.
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As the sale date drew nearer, environmental groups from New Mexico and across the state led by the Western Environmental Law Center appealed to the federal government to maintain its pause of new leases and phase out fossil fuels.
They argued such action was needed to protect the environment from further damage, and that a report issued by the Interior Department amid the pause on leasing was inadequate in addressing climate impacts of fossil fuels.
Jeremy Nichols, climate and energy program director at Santa Fe-based WildEarth Guardians said Biden must follow through with campaign promises to address pollution and climate change.
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Continuing to extract oil and gas, Nichols said, runs contrary to such statements.
“Selling public lands to the oil and gas industry is absolutely, 100 percent guaranteed to keep fueling the climate crisis,” Nichols said. “President Biden’s belief that we can open the door for more fracking and protect our climate is simply out of touch with truth, reality and what’s right.”
Melissa Hornbein, senior attorney with the Western Environmental Law Center argued for the world to avoid global warming more than 1.5 degree Celsius, the threshold the international scientific community found would bring extreme weather events, about 40 percent of fossil fuels must stay in the ground.
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This goal would be threatened by expanded public land leasing to the industry.
“Even if that 40 percent is kept underground, our odds of staying below 1.5°C are worse than a game of Russian Roulette,” Hornbein said. “Why is the government rigging this dangerous game of speculation in favor of the oil industry, when a livable climate is at stake? The science is clear: there is simply no room for additional oil and gas leasing.”
In a separate petition, New Mexico groups again joined in demanding the Interior Department develop new policy to “modernize” its fossil fuel policy to better take into account environmental impacts.
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Demis Foster with Conservation Voters New Mexico called on the U.S. Department of the Interior to uses its powers under the Federal Land Police and Management Act to block any activity such as oil and gas development that could damage the environment.
“Congress created the tools necessary to undo decades of degradation and ensure that our federal public lands can be used to address the climate crisis, provide equitable access to the outdoors and support a growing outdoor recreation economy, and provide the basis for a future our children can be proud of,” Foster said.
Mara Yarbrough, campaign director at the New Mexico Permian Basin Climate Justice Coalition said new rules were needed to ensure the management of public lands avoid environmental damage and also supported local communities over the profits of the private industry.
“By adopting the rules proposed in this petition, Interior will open new doors to usher in an era of sustainable public land use that can mitigate past and present harmful practices, rein in climate change, and create opportunities for disproportionately impacted frontline communities to thrive,” Yarbrough said.
“We urge Interior to act within its authority and take definitive climate action by adopting this proposed framework.”
Adrian Hedden can be reached at 575-628-5516, achedden@currentargus.com or @AdrianHedden on Twitter.
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