Published: February 8, 2023 |

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A federal appeals court said the government inappropriately ignored the dangers of hazardous air pollutants when issuing permits to drill oil and gas wells in northwestern New Mexico, in what environmental groups say is a “new precedent” that will help protect community health.

The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision Wednesday invalidated the government’s analysis of the impact of drilling, finding the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) violated the National Environmental Policy Act by conducting inadequate environmental reviews for nearly 200 drilling applications in the greater Chaco region, which is an area viewed as sacred to indigenous people and is the home of the Chaco Culture National Historical Park.

Native American group Diné CARE and environmental groups including the Sierra Club sued BLM in 2019 in New Mexico federal district court saying the approvals failed to take into account how drilling would exacerbate the climate crisis and harm the health of nearby communities. The district court in 2021 said BLM adequately analyzed the environmental impacts of proposed drilling, leading to the 10th Circuit appeal.

The appeals court said the government had arbitrarily ignored how emissions of hazardous air pollutants from the wells — a class of pollutants known to cause cancer or other serious health impacts — could impact community health and instead focused on a narrower list of potential pollutants.

Kyle Tisdel, an attorney for the plaintiffs at the Western Environmental Law Center, said the decision is the first time an appeals court has ruled the environmental reviews should consider that class of pollutants, which include chemical compounds such as benzene and formaldehyde.

The Interior Department declined to comment Thursday.

The 10th Circuit decision also found the environmental reviews didn’t adequately calculate the cumulative impacts the wells and associated development would have on greenhouse gas emissions, which causes climate change.

The case has now been sent back to the district court to determine whether to vacate or remand the approvals to BLM for further consideration.

In 2021 President Joe Biden said he would “take action to protect the greater Chaco landscape from future oil and gas” leasing as part of a broader push to protect tribal lands.

The case is Diné Citizens Against Ruining Our Environment et al. V. Debra Haaland et al., 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, case No. 21-2116.

For the plaintiffs: Kyle Tisdel and Allyson Beasley of Western Environmental Law Center, and Samantha Ruscavage-Barz and Daniel Timmons of WildEarth Guardians

For the government: Claire Boronow, Bridget McNeil, Andrew Mergen and Andrew Smith of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division

Source: Reuters

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