WildEarth Guardians

Thursday, December 15, 2005
Valle Vidal Waters Protected

NM state Water Quality Control Commission votes to designate Valle Vidal streams and lakes as Outstanding National Resource Waters, a classification allowed under the federal Clean Water Act that prohibits further degradation in water quality
Contact: John Arnold Albuquerque Journal

Opponents of energy development in northern New Mexico's Valle Vidal scored a victory on Wednesday when the state Water Quality Control Commission voted to further protect the area's streams and lakes.

The commission designated Valle Vidal surface waters as Outstanding National Resource Waters, a classification allowed under the federal Clean Water Act that prohibits further degradation in water quality.

The designation doesn't prohibit oil and gas drilling, but allows state regulators to set more stringent water quality standards for the 100,000 acres of Carson National Forest land east of Red River.

"It doesn't preclude uses, it doesn't encourage uses, it focuses on water quality," said Marcy Leavitt, the surface water quality bureau chief for state Environment Department.

Spills, subsurface discharges, road building and other activities associated with gas drilling pose a threat to water quality, according to state Oil Conservation Division director Mark Fesmire.

Several state agencies, the Coalition for the Valle Vidal and members of the public argued for the Outstanding National Resources Waters designation during two days of testimony that wrapped up Wednesday. Gov. Bill Richardson proposed further water quality protection in August, calling it a first step in a long fight to protect the Valle Vidal from natural gas drilling. The Water Quality Control Commission approved the petition by a vote of 11-1.

"(Richardson) feels that it deserves to be protected not just for its natural beauty, but also for the economic funds pumped into the state through tourism, elk hunters and fishermen that enjoy use of that area," Richardson spokesman Jon Goldstein said Wednesday.

During the hearing, proponents argued that the Valle Vidal is a unique ecological treasure and home to important wildlife populations. Streams in the Valle Vidal are a refuge for the native Rio Grande cutthroat trout, New Mexico's state fish. Conservation groups are working to restore the cutthroat trout's habitat in the Valle Vidal, according to William Schudlich, chairman of Trout Unlimited's New Mexico council. Anglers hope restoration efforts will help prevent the fish from being listed under the Federal Endangered Species Act. Such a listing could impact fishing, grazing and other uses around the cutthroat trout habitat.

"I think anything we can do to prevent the listing of a species can help us all out," Commissioner Tim Darden said.

Petitioners also argued that the Valle Vidal's ecological health is an important economic factor. The long-term economic benefits derived from tourism and recreation outweigh any short-term economic boost that gas drilling would provide, Fesmire said. He cited a study by University of Montana economist Thomas Michael Power, who projected that energy development in the Valle Vidal would provide just 94 jobs over a 10-year period.

"That economic value would not offset the loss in the long term of this pristine area," Fesmire said.

Houston-based El Paso Corp., which operates hundreds of coal bed methane wells on Ted Turner's adjacent Vermejo Park Ranch, has asked the U.S. Forest Service to consider opening the Valle Vidal to drilling. A final decision on drilling won't be made until 2008.

An El Paso Corp. spokesman said Wednesday that his company has not decided whether to pursue a lease if drilling is approved.

"So there's no thinking about what might be the consequences of the (designation)," Bruce Connery said in a phone interview.

Energy industry representatives did not participate in this week's hearing. New Mexico Oil and Gas Association president Bob Gallagher on Tuesday accused the state of misusing a law to prohibit energy development. He said the state's petition for the Outstanding National Resource Waters designation didn't merit a response from his association.

Several commission members said the absence of protest during the hearing played into their decision to vote for the designation.

"It wasn't just what was presented, it was what was not presented that was important to me in terms of supporting the designation," Commissioner Peggy Johnson said.

Copyright 2005 Albuquerque Journal - Reprinted with permission