Farmington, NM –(ENEWSPF)–June 7, 2016. Yesterday, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) withdrew three parcels of public land totalling 2,122 acres near Chaco Canyon National Park from consideration for fossil fuel development.
In April, the Sierra Club along with members of the Navajo Tribe and a broad coalition of national environmental groups and local organizations and voices held a large protest outside BLM’s Santa Fe office, calling for the agency to protect the land around Chaco Canyon by withdrawing these areas from consideration.
In response, Sierra Club’s Beyond Dirty Fuels campaign Director Lena Moffitt released the following statement:
“This is a monumental win for our public lands, our national parks, Navajo people, and all New Mexicans. Our public lands belong to all of us, and are too precious to permit oil and gas drilling and fracking that threatens our air, water, and climate.
“By taking Chaco Canyon off the table for fracking and drilling, the Obama Administration has answered the calls of the movement to keep dirty fuels in the ground, which will continue to grow and push for the end of fossil fuel leasing on public lands.”
Source: http://www.sierraclub.org
