ABQjournal: No Oil Wells Near Chaco By Leslie Linthicum
State Land Commissioner Patrick Lyons is pulling the plug on two oil wells proposed for just outside Chaco Canyon.
Lyons said Tuesday— after his office was peppered with complaints about allowing drilling so close to a national treasure— that his office will ask Cimarex Energy to trade for different parcels of state trust land.
If the company doesn’t want to trade, the Land Office will reject the application and refund the $10,000 that Cimarex paid for the leases.
“We have a moral obligation to maintain the integrity of Chaco Canyon,” Lyons said. [mjh: Send Lyons your love – PLyons@slo.state.nm.us 827-5760]
Cimarex had plans to drill two wells on state trust land about one mile beyond the southern boundary of Chaco Culture National Historical Park. The Land Office approved leases for the sites late last year and was in the process of reviewing archaeological studies before issuing final approval.
A Cimarex spokesman did not return phone calls from the Journal on Monday or Tuesday.
Lyons said he thought Cimarex would agree to transfer the lease to another area.
“I think they’re going to be receptive,” he said. If the company does not want to swap, he said, “they’re going to be fighting an uphill battle.”
Lyons said his office originally understood Cimarex, a Colorado energy company, planned to drill for natural gas. He said he learned Tuesday that the company planned to drill for oil, which would necessitate pump jacks that could be seen from inside the park.
Lyons said he wants to work with Chaco and other federal agencies that hold land around the park on a series of land trades that could build a no-development buffer around the park.
“We’ve got plenty of land,” Lyons said. “We don’t need to be right up against their boundary.”
That comes as welcome news to critics who complained that oil and gas exploration on the edge of the park would detract from the experience of visiting ancient Indian ruins.
Chaco is a World Heritage Site and its collection of pre-Puebloan ruins draws visitors from around the world to San Juan County.
“That’s terrific news. I’m glad to hear that,” said Mark Pearson, director of the San Juan Citizens Alliance, which had opposed the drilling.
Assistant Land Commissioner John Bemis said the office will begin to identify other tracts of state trust land where development might harm historical sites. The office could withdraw the tracts from leasing or trade the parcels to other agencies.
“Our preferred method is to exchange land and trade out of it because we don’t want these conflicts,” Bemis said.
Pearson praised the idea of building a buffer. “That sounds like a real positive long-term solution,” he said.
The goal of the Land Office is to make money from the land it holds in trust by approving leases for mineral extraction. Royalties from trust land— $495 million in the last fiscal year— support schools, hospitals, prisons and other public projects in New Mexico.
“Everyone agrees that the oil and gas industry plays a critical role in funding institutions and programs across the state,” Lyons said. “But we also agree that New Mexico has an extraordinary and unique history that must be protected and preserved.”
New Mexico State Land Office
P.O. Box 1148
Santa Fe, NM 87504-1148
Phone: (505) 827-5760
Fax: (505) 827-5766
– – –
My Chaco site:
www.mjhinton.com/chaco/