US appeals court sides with NM in drilling fight

Associated Press

April 29, 2009 10:51 AM ET

"ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) - The U.S. Bureau of Land Management failed to comply with federal law in developing a plan for managing oil and natural gas development on southern New Mexico's Otero Mesa, an appeals court has ruled.

A three-judge panel of the 10th U.S. Court of Appeals in Denver said in a ruling filed Tuesday the BLM skirted the National Environmental Protection Act by not considering an alternative that would have put the mesa off limits to drilling and by not analyzing all of the likely impacts of the agency's chosen alternative.

"BLM's obligation to manage for multiple use does not mean that development must be allowed on the Otero Mesa," the ruling states. "Development is a possible use, which BLM must weigh against other possible uses — including conservation to protect environmental values, which are best assessed through the NEPA process."' More>>>>