Current work in wildlife, rivers, public lands, and climate

Though Exempt from the Rules, Ranchers Consider Clean Water Protection Onerous
Contact: Bryan Bird (505) 988-9126 x1157

Santa Fe, NM – Despite a special exemption forgrazing, new rules protecting New Mexico’s source of clean water werechallenged Friday by the New Mexico Cattle Growers Association. The CattleGrowers filed a petition with the NM Water Quality Control Commission to staythe designation of Outstanding Waters in Forest Service Wilderness Areas andnew rules for protecting those waters from pollution including an explicitspecial exemption for existing grazing permits. The protective rules werepublished in the state register in December and can only be undone now by theWQCC through a thorough public notice and administrative hearing.

“Clean watershould be a right for New Mexicans and this petition is simply a desperate attemptby a small, special interest to deny us that right.” Said Bryan Bird, WildPlaces Program Director for WildEarth Guardians. “The Outstanding Water rule isa common sense approach to protecting water and makes special provisions forexisting uses, I simply see no basis for reversing it.”

The 13-page petition to the WQCC claims theoriginal petition by the Richardson administration was changed during thehearings and those changes were not publicly noticed. The Cattle Growers areasking for a stay of the rule and to re-open the administrative hearings on thematter. They also request the original statewide wilderness petition besegregated into numerous, smaller watershed based petitions.

“The Cattlegrowers petition is not onlybaseless but too late. The state met all the requirements of a completepetition and conducted the most extensive public outreach for a rulemaking inthe state’s history, the cattlemen simply do not like the result of thedemocratic process.” Bird continued.