Celebrating three new victories, together we CAN rise against all adversity

Even while the government works hand in hand with polluters—rolling back 31 critical federal environmental protections under new EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin—our collective action continues to deliver real victories on the ground here in New Mexico. This week, we are celebrating three huge wins. First, with our EJ and legal partners, we secured a prohibition on PFAS in oil and gas drilling, making New Mexico one of the leading states taking action to eliminate these toxic “forever chemicals” from extraction operations. We also forced PNM to finally fulfill its promise to build solar and battery storage in the community most impacted by the closure of the San Juan Generating Station. And once again, we successfully blocked industry-backed efforts to advance fracking waste (produced water) reuse through HB311—stopping yet another attempt to greenwash toxic oil and gas waste and threaten our precious water resources.

These victories prove that when we organize, we win—no matter how powerful the opposition. Together, we are building a future where corporate interests don’t dictate our fate, but communities do.

The federal context continues to present new challenges daily. Yesterday Lee Zeldin, the new EPA administrator, announced that they will start the process to roll back 31 critical regulations to protect the environment, including reconsideration of regulations on power plants (Clean Power Plan 2.0), methane regulations for the oil and gas industry, Mercury and Air Toxics Standards targeting coal-fired power plants, mandatory Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program, wastewater regulations for power plants, vehicle emissions regulations, Particulate Matter National Ambient Air Quality Standards, National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for energy and manufacturing sectors, Regional Haze program, Social Cost of Carbon, Environmental Justice and DEI initiatives and most importantly, the 2009 Endangerment findings that underpins all climate related regulation in the United States.

As Margie Alt, director of the Climate Action Campaign, said “the EPA has officially abandoned its mission to protect health and the environment.” In fact the announcement states that the agency will redirect enforcement resources to "EPA’s core mission to relieve the economy of unnecessary bureaucratic burdens that drive up costs for American consumers." The oil and gas industry's purchase of the election and of the EPA is now complete. 

This doesn't mean that the fight is over, however, this means that the fight is on. Every one of these rollbacks will face both public opposition and a legal fight to prevent permanent destruction of our priceless earth. We must learn the lessons of history, and understand that the fight for justice in so many forms has always required perseverance, courage, sacrifice, and most importantly, love. It is love for our beautiful earth that drives us, love for our children, love for the endless variety of creatures and landscapes and wild things. Love for all that is sacred on this earth. In the words of the indomitable Maya Angelou:

You may write me down in history With your bitter, twisted lies, You may trod me in the very dirt But still, like dust, I’ll rise.

Sikh's have a term - Chardi Kala - that means "Ever Rising Spirit," especially in the face of adversity. How do we cultivate that rising spirit? We dance, we sing, we laugh, we breathe, we connect with each other, we fight like hell, and we celebrate our victories together. So today let's celebrate.

TOGETHER WE DEFEATED PRODUCED WATER REUSE AGAIN!

Against significant odds - an entrenched, powerful and wealthy industry, a Governor and group of legislators bent on doing their bidding, and an overwhelming onslaught of important issues and challenges that could have distracted us, we were successful in defeating the fracking waste reuse schemes that continue to surface at the Roundhouse.

We got public funding for reuse projects stripped from the Strategic Water Supply Act. Then came HB 311, the Reclaimed Water Act, to rebrand the treated waste in order to circumvent water quality regulations, and a wide range of water advocates swung into action. On Saturday 311 was effectively killed in House Judiciary when it became clear that the sponsor, Rep. Nathan Small, did not have the votes and on his request, the bill was rolled.

We are grateful to the Democrats on that Committee, Rep. Chandler, Romero, Abeyta, Hochman-Vigil, McQueen, and Szczepanski who made it clear that they would not pass the bill.

We are especially grateful to our friends in the Defend NM Water coalition, to YUCCA, to Indivisible Albq, to Renewable Taos, to Center for Biological Diversity, to American Friends Service Committee, to Tewa Women United, to Rivers Run Through Us, to No False Solutions, to Amigos Bravos, to NM Water Advocates and most importantly, to every one of you who wrote to legislators, made phone calls, showed up to hearings and spoke powerfully for our precious water. Have a glass on us!

TOGETHER WE WON A PROHIBITION ON PFAS IN OIL AND GAS DOWNHOLE OPERATIONS

In November New Energy Economy intervened at the New Mexico Oil Conservation Commission (OCC) to support the adoption of a rule proposed by WildEarth Guardians to prohibit the use of PFAS in oil and gas drilling, development, and production, and to further prohibiting the use of any undisclosed chemicals in fracking operations. On Tuesday the Commission voted in support of prohibiting PFAS in downhole operations, and importantly, they adopted the most protective definition of PFAS, the same definition adopted by 23 other states - “PFAS chemicals” means a perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl substance with at least one fully fluorinated carbon atom. NMOGA had proposed a definition that would have narrowed the rule to just six PFAS that have been extensively studied thus far.

Unfortunately two OCD commissioners hid behind a false flag argument about trade secret laws to continue allowing the oil and gas industry to inject any and all chemicals at any quantity into our land and aquifers without public disclosure. Despite a well reasoned and impassioned plea by Commissioner Bloom, the Commission representative from the State Land Office, to err on the side of public health and the environment, Commissioners Ampomah and Razatos voted to strike the chemical disclosure requirement that is critical to enforcement and public safety. The Governor's promise to require disclosure of chemicals used in fracking has yet to be fulfilled.

Watch Commissioner Bloom explain below why the proposed rule would not violate any trade secret laws:

TOGETHER WE FINALLY FORCED PNM TO FULFILL THEIR PROMISES TO THE PEOPLE OF SAN JUAN COUNTY

Also on Tuesday New Energy Economy entered into a stipulated agreement with PNM and five other parties to build a 100MW solar generation and 50MW battery storage facility in the Central Consolidated School District (CCSD) most impacted by the closure of the San Juan Generating Station. The agreement requires review and approval by the Public Regulation Commission. 

This stipulated agreement followed a June 2024 Motion for Rehearing we filed on behalf of 15 legislators (Representatives Anthony Allison, Mark Duncan, William A. Hall, Rod Montoya, Patricia Roybal Caballero, Eleanor Chávez, Joanne J. Ferrary, Liz Thomson, and Senators William Sharer, Steven P. Neville, Shannon Pinto, Antoinette Sedillo Lopez, William P. Soules, Harold Pope, and Bill Tallman) who objected to the PRC's May approval of PNM's application to build new resources located in Bernalillo County (NMPRC Case No. 23-00353-UT). That approval ignored the requirements under the Energy Transition Act that PNM “site up to four hundred fifty megawatts of nameplate capacity” in the CCSD. Till date PNM hasn’t fulfilled the ETA or NMPRC Case No. 19-00195-UT mandates, thus far building only 300MW within the San Juan district. A 130MW resource, the Rockmont project, was approved but ultimately delayed and canceled.

At the time PNM had the audacity to argue that this failed project fulfilled its obligations to the CCSD under the law, regardless of the loss of jobs and tax income that this provision was meant to fulfill. Those losses have had significant impacts on CCSD's operational and tax revenue, and have already led to impacts on student learning and poverty, including a 73% increase in homeless students since the closure of the SJGS and the adjacent San Juan coal mine. Delay of replacement resources in the CCSD has caused substantial, irreparable economic harm to the community.

Though our Motion for Rehearing was denied, PNM’s November 2024 Application for Approval of the above named resources responded directly to the concerns raised in our Motion. PNM’s testimony includes the admission that “PNM believes that the Stipulation addresses an important regulatory principle regarding the energy transition that was articulated by the Commission when approving replacement resources for the abandoned San Juan Generating Station under the ETA.” (p.13)

We were honored to represent the legislators to try to require PNM to do right by the community and the students most directly impacted by the closure of the San Juan Generating Station. The Energy Transition Act was largely authored by the utility and to the benefit of the utility, and this important measure to provide some measure of justice to the impacted community has taken far too long. The 100MW of solar and 50MW of battery storage in the Central Consolidated School District will require PNM to pay taxes on the replacement power, which will go directly for school lunches, books, teachers' salaries and more. Finally, PNM is making good on their outstanding obligation to the people of San Juan County.

We leave you with this important reminder - our public, loud, persistent voice is the only chance we have. We must not remain quiet while dissidents and protestors are arrested. We must not fade into the background, leaving just a few to stand with targets on their backs. We must not rely on mainstream media and social media companies, mostly owned by oligarchs, to get our message out there. We need to make signs, stand on street corners, and join with small groups of friends and family who share our values for mini-actions like this fun Visibility Brigades idea. Let the people know that we are not afraid and they are not alone.

Together We Rise.