By Terry Z. Riley
Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership
TIJERAS— Those of us who live in New Mexico appreciate the rugged mountain ranges, broad deserts, endless prairies and diverse ecosystems that make our part of the country unique. As an avid outdoorsman and sportsman, I like nothing better than pursuing quail or pronghorn across plains dotted with mesquite and yucca. And I dream of one day having the opportunity to hunt the crown jewel of New Mexican wildlife, the mighty desert bighorn.
Yet, New Mexico's cherished wildlife and sporting traditions are being jeopardized by a rush to lease millions of acres of our public lands for energy development without adequate protections. Currently, more than 4.8 million acres of the state's federal public lands have been leased for development— an area the size of Lake Ontario. Between 2001 and 2006, approximately 500 new wells were drilled in big-game habitat on public lands per year, more than a 65-percent increase from previous years. Like much of the Rocky Mountain West, rapid energy development in New Mexico is threatening valuable habitat.
That's why the Bureau of Land Management's recent decision to allow energy development on 60,000-plus acres of potentially suitable desert bighorn habitat troubled me. Adjacent to the Caballos Mountains, the areas offered for development provide suitable habitat for a rare but expanding population of desert bighorn sheep, listed in 1980 as a New Mexico endangered species and identified as a "species of greatest conservation need" in the state's Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy.
The New Mexico Department of Game and Fish, which protested the BLM's energy lease sale, believes the Caballos Mountains bighorns to be part of one of the three desert bighorn populations known to exist in the state. The department's recovery plan for the species requires recognition of three healthy populations before the species no longer is considered imperiled. Suitable habitat and conditions for sheep occupation are needed for recovery, and the Caballos Mountains provide suitable habitat.
Desert bighorn are a cornerstone of New Mexico wildlife, and our state would be much the poorer without the sheep's vigorous presence gracing our countryside. The species also offers a once-in-a-lifetime hunting experience to a lucky few sportsmen and consequently generates appreciable revenue for Game and Fish's ongoing bighorn management effort. Efforts by the department to produce a comprehensive survey of the Caballos Mountain desert bighorn population could be hindered if the lands in question are leased for energy development. Both the department and hunters throughout the state clearly have a huge stake in actions that could affect the species' range expansion and population numbers.
As a result of Game and Fish's protest of the Caballos Mountains leases, along with a similar protest filed by the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, the BLM quickly withdrew all of the contested acreage from its April 16 lease sale. The agency's decision was encouraging for all of us who care about balancing the extraction of our energy resources while maintaining healthy fish and wildlife resources.
But the Caballos Mountains leases speak to a larger, more disturbing reality of the BLM's public-lands management: its decision to lease our federal public lands for energy development without first consulting and coordinating with the state agency responsible for protecting our fish and wildlife. Had sportsmen and Game and Fish not protested these energy leases, the public never would have known about the BLM's mistake in offering them in the first place.
The BLM is required to manage our public lands under a multiple-use mandate, which includes the conservation of state-listed plants and animals, with state laws protecting these species applying to all BLM programs and actions. Nevertheless, the agency failed to consult officials at Game and Fish about how the Caballos Mountains energy leases might compromise bighorn recovery objectives. This flies in the face of the BLM's recent commitment to work with the department on energy-related matters and improve the status of the bighorn in New Mexico.
Certainly, our public-lands energy resources must be developed, for the good of our nation and its economic security. However, oil and gas development has proved to be detrimental to game species throughout the Rocky Mountain West and to lesser prairie-chickens here in New Mexico. Our energy policy must adhere to federal guidelines for coordination and cooperation with state agencies, acknowledge current science and employ absolute transparency in communicating its actions to citizens. Anything other than that needlessly endangers the future health of our fish and wildlife and proud sporting legacy.
Despite the BLM's commitment to manage the public trust, its message in opening the Caballos Mountains area to energy development is clear: Let citizens beware.
Terry Z. Riley of Tijeras is vice president of policy for the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership and a former member of the New Mexico State Game Commission
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