Last month, it was revealed that two government agencies within in the Interior Department were moving forward with a proposal to expand drilling in the Greater Chaco region. As reported by Kendra Chamberlain of the NM Political Report:
"The U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) decided to move forward with a public engagement process for plans to expand drilling in the Greater Chaco region, even as the communities in northwestern New Mexico, who are currently struggling with a surge in COVID-19 cases, have repeatedly requested an extension to the process.
"The U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and the BLM released a draft amendment to the Farmington field office resource management plan (RMP) and environmental impact statement in late February, kicking off a public comment period that ends on May 28 [though that deadline has since been extended to September 25]. The 400-plus page draft amendment outlines a preferred alternative that would increase oil and gas activity in the Greater Chaco region.
"As the COVID-19 outbreak has spread across the state, local community groups in the Greater Chaco region requested the BLM extend the public comment period during the public health emergency. That call was echoed by the state government, the congressional delegation, and tribal leaders. All told, three separate letters were sent to the Department of Interior requesting the comment be extended. As of Friday [May 1], none have received a response, according to officials."
Environmental advocacy groups -- mainly Food & Water Action (FWA), the political arm of the non-governmental organization Food & Water Watch, and Frack Off Greater Chaco -- have come out in opposition to this proposal. FWA in particular has ripped the proposal, claiming that "[i]t would make nearly a million acres available for lease to the oil and gas industry for more extraction, many of which are in or near Navajo communities." Given the environmental consequences of such a proposal, as well as the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, it begs the question: why would it be so seriously considered?
As it turns out, Indian Affairs Assistant Secretary Tara Sweeney, who heads the BIA, is a former lobbyist for the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation (ASRC), an Alaskan fossil fuel corporation. She lobbied on the ASRC's behalf for three years, between 2005 and 2007. During this time, she received a total of $535,000 in lobbying expenditures ($200,000 in 2005, $193,000 in 2006, and $142,000 in 2007) from the corporation. Why does this matter? Well, the ASRC, as stated by the Department of Influence, "has already leased millions of acres of land to Anadarko, Chevron Texaco, and BP for oil drilling, including all of their land within ANWR […]" Even more recently, they have expressed their support for drilling in the ANWR, stating that they were "pleased with the passage in December 2017 of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which included language to open the non-wilderness section of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) Coastal Plain to natural resource development."
Given Sweeney's history as a lobbyist for the fossil fuel industry, and how much she received from the ASRC during her tenure lobbying on its behalf, it should come as expected that she would support drilling in the Greater Chaco reason. Given the public health crisis the country is in right now, it is a shame that the government wants to potentially exacerbate it by opening drilling in Navajo communities. Hopefully, the public will respond with swift opposition, and the agencies will take these concerns into account. However, money talks in government, so this is not likely.
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