oil and gas development

A bill that would permanently codify an executive order signed at the very infancy of Michelle Lujan Grisham’s governorship to address greenhouse gas emissions was tabled in its latest stress test at the Roundhouse on Monday.

As of Feb. 18, legislators had submitted 878 bills for debate. Of those, 19 bills deal directly with oil and gas production in the state. Essentially all other bills are affected indirectly by the industry that provides nearly a third of New Mexico’s annual — and once again record-breaking — operating budget. In an overwhelmingly Democratic legislature, that makes for some unusual bedfellows.

New Mexico faces a seminal moment in its relationship with the oil and gas industry as President Donald Trump vows to slash federal regulation, enforcement and funding.

New Mexico's landmark 2021 Methane Rule banned routine venting and flaring of natural gas. But some 15 exceptions for pipeline operators allow such venting and flaring in certain circumstances, including when gas is so far out of pipeline specifications that it constitutes an “emergency,” which is what the company claimed 10 times in the first two months of the year, each time releasing millions of cubic feet of the potent greenhouse gas.

A judge heard arguments on Friday on whether a high-profile environmental lawsuit brought on by the Center of Biological Diversity, WildEarth Guardians and several frontline Native American communities should go to trial.

New Mexico is once again seeing record revenues as lawmakers meet in Santa Fe to create a budget. That’s in large part due to booming oil and gas production. The state is the second-largest oil producer in the country and among the top 10 in natural gas production. But a number of bills in the legislative session would make big changes if they pass.

A settlement between the state of New Mexico and Ridgeway Arizona Oil Corp. will plug 299 of the company’s moribund, nonproducing oil wells, with the state paying the costs and the company reimbursing the state $30,000 a month until the bill is repaid.

A trio of major oil and gas producers are testing a new-to-New Mexico process to keep natural gas in the ground when it can’t be transported, sold or otherwise shipped through a pipeline. So far, New Mexico’s closed-loop gas capture systems projects are small, and their promise hasn’t panned out in the oil and gas fields.

The Bureau of Land Management has proposed comprehensive changes to its rules for oil and gas leasing on federal land for the first time since 1988. The revision is designed to increase industry returns for taxpayers while also reducing harm to wildlife and cultural resources as part of the agency’s effort to better balance development with conservation. New Mexicans are invited to attend an information session in Albuquerque Tuesday to learn more about it ahead of submitting input.

Former Acoma Pueblo Governor Brian Vallo talks with New Mexico In Focus correspondent Antonia Gonzales about the cultural significance of Chaco Canyon to his pueblo in the wake of new protections around the site from oil and gas development.