We’re in the news: Albuquerque Journal op-ed piece includes member Dale Doremus. June 16, 2024
Opinion: ‘Produced water’ must be kept out of our state’s rivers and streams
Tell the NM Oil Conservation Commission we want oil and gas operators paying to clean up their toxic pollution!
NM taxpayers are often left paying the clean-up bill for low or non-producing wells that leak toxic chemicals into the groundwater. The industry’s “insurance coverage” doesn’t include enough funding to address the actual costs. Tell the Commission the rules need to change.
Inflation Reduction Act Delivers $156M in Solar for All Funds for New Mexico
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced that New Mexico was awarded $156,120,000 in funding through the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund’s Solar For All program.
Public opposition to pesticide spraying in Rio Arriba
The Rio Grande Chapter’s recent “Aerial Pesticide Alert” resulted in over 250 personalized comments from members, and thousands from residents and organizations, opposing the USDA Animal and Plant Inspection Service’s (APHIS) proposal to spray close to 40 square miles of public lands in the Cebolla area of Rio Arriba County between April and June. These objections resulted in SLO and BLM withdrawing their acres from the program and the 2023 project was stopped. This year, a similar project is being proposed in Rio Arriba County based on projections of a higher-than-normal cricket population on some public grazing lands.
Sierra Club statement on Biden Administration Protections for Buffalo Tract
The Biden Administration announced new protections for critical public and ancestral tribal lands near Placitas in New Mexico. An order issued by Interior Secretary Deb Haaland protects more than 4,200 acres of New Mexico landscapes known as the Buffalo Tract and the Crest of Montezuma from gravel mining and other extraction for the next 50 years.
Biden Administration Finalizes Important Reforms to Onshore Oil and Gas Leasing Program
In April 2024, the BLM issued its final Onshore Oil and Gas Leasing Rule, the first comprehensive update to the federal onshore oil and gas leasing program in decades. The rule includes long-overdue, commonsense fiscal reforms and incorporates updates passed by Congress under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
Update on the Solar Tax Credit
Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed House Bill 252 into law. This new law makes $20 million in supplemental New Solar Market Development tax credits available to individuals.
Sacrifice Zone – What is it?
The New Mexico Environment Department denied a permit for a concrete batch plant on the State Highway 220 corridor due to local opposition and potential endangerment of health and lives. The Environmental Improvement Board, in a complete disregard for the residents of the area, has reversed this decision.
Seasonal contamination found in Upper Pecos River
For years, northern group volunteers have been monitoring four key sites on the Pecos River from Willow Creek tributary – that flows through the old Tererro Mine reclamation property – 14 miles down to the town of Pecos. Last year the analysis included looking at total metals, gross alpha and the presence of nutrient contaminants.
Ordinance Prohibiting Single-use Plastics Passes!
On March 26th, Santa Fe County passed and ordinance prohibiting the use of single-use plastic and expanded polystyrene products in Santa Fe County.