New Mexico delegates renew push to limit drilling
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Democratic members of New Mexico’s congressional delegation are renewing their pleas for federal land managers to limit oil and natural gas drilling in the northwestern corner of the state over concerns about archaeological and cultural sites that dot the region.
U.S. Sens. Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich and Reps. Ben Ray Lujan and Michelle Lujan Grisham sent a letter this week to the acting state director of the Bureau of Land Management in New Mexico.
There have been concerns that the Trump administration could relax rules that have provided a buffer around Chaco Culture National Historical Park.
While the agency has deferred the leasing of several parcels within the buffer zone, critics say there are more parcels that should be excluded while officials work to update the resource management plan for the region.