Sierra Club seeks Permanent Protection of Otero Mesa

The Rio Grande Chapter of the Sierra Club is seeking permanent protection of Otero Mesa from oil and gas development, through BLM administrative options and through federal legislation.

For advocates for Otero Mesa, the fight to protect this last great example of Chihuahua Desert grassland seems to have turned a corner. After a decade of battling the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) plans to open the area for oil and gas development, conservationists recently scored a major victory with a 10th Circuit Court of Appeals decision that basically sends the BLM back to square one. The court decision leaves open, however, the possibility that the BLM may start their effort to allow oil and gas drilling on Otero Mesa.

Over the years, the BLM has consistently maintained that it conducted one of the most thorough ecological assessments ever done in deciding to allow drilling on Otero Mesa. But, in reviewing the record, the court decided that the BLM had not adequately considered impacts like habitat fragmentation that would result from drilling. Nor, said the court, had the BLM taken a serious look at alternative management strategies for Otero Mesa that do not include drilling.

While the court decision allows the possibility that the BLM can redo their assessment of Otero Mesa, it is a major setback for them. Any attempt to open Otero Mesa to oil and gas development must be preceded by a more thorough reevaluation of ecological impacts and consideration of alternatives.

In the meantime, conservationists have vowed to continue their push for permanent protection of Otero Mesa from oil and gas development, both through BLM administrative options and through federal legislation.

For Sierra Club members who would like to be actively involved in the final push to protect Otero Mesa, you can contact Margot Wilson (575/744-5860) or Glenn Landers (575/525-0491). —Glenn Landers