⚠ PROTEST DEADLINE: Monday, July 20, 2026 at 4:00 PM MT — calculating... remaining — Email protest to blm_nm_so_protests@blm.gov with subject "Protest, Q3 2026 Competitive Oil and Gas Lease Sale"
● PLO 7923 BUFFER UNDER THREAT: BLM is evaluating revocation of the 10-mile withdrawal (DOI-BLM-NM-F010-2026-0002-EA). No Q3 2026 parcels are inside the buffer — but full revocation would open 336,400 acres of BLM land to future nomination. View PLO 7923 revocation EA →
Legend
Chaco Culture NHP center
10-mile buffer — 336,400 ac. protected (PLO 7923)
5–10 mile zone — 12,000 cultural sites (at risk under 5-mi. alt.)
5-mile inner boundary (alternative)
RPFO parcels — Sandoval Co. (outside buffer)
FFO parcels — Rio Arriba Co. (outside buffer)
Torreon ACEC overlap parcels
BLM PLSS section grid
Base map
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⚠ PLO No. 7923 — What the 10-mile buffer protects and what is at risk

Public Land Order No. 7923 (signed June 2, 2023) withdrew approximately 336,400 acres of BLM-administered federal land within 10 miles of Chaco Culture NHP from new mineral leasing for 20 years. No Q3 2026 lease parcels are within this boundary. The 12 parcels on this map are in the broader Greater Chaco landscape, outside the buffer. However, BLM opened a revocation review in March 2026 (DOI-BLM-NM-F010-2026-0002-EA) with only a 7-day public comment window. BLM is considering three alternatives:

● No action — Keep PLO 7923 336,400 acres remain protected. No new leasing within 10 miles of Chaco NHP. Protection lasts until 2043.
△ Reduce to 5-mile buffer The 5-to-10-mile zone is reopened to new leasing. Archaeologists estimate approximately 12,000 cultural sites and traditional cultural places lie within that zone.
▼ Full revocation (BLM preferred) All 336,400 acres opened to future oil and gas nomination. Lands directly bordering the park would be leaseable. BLM has signaled this is its preferred alternative.

Source: BLM ePlanning DOI-BLM-NM-F010-2026-0002-EA • Archaeology Southwest (April 2026) • Moab Sun News (April 2026) • 90% of the Greater Chaco Landscape was already leased for mineral development before PLO 7923 was signed, with more than 37,000 existing wells in the region.

Parcel reference table — Q3 2026 Farmington & Rio Puerco Field Offices

12 nominated parcels totaling 16,855.5 acres, all located outside the 10-mile PLO 7923 buffer zone, in Sandoval and Rio Arriba counties. Data from BLM ePlanning DOI-BLM-NM-F010-2026-0020-EA and BLM ABI Screen 26-083. Click any row to zoom to that parcel on the map.

#Field officeParcel IDSerial # CountyAcresLocationConflicts

ⓘ Parcel geometries loaded live from BLM MLRS Feature Service where available. Coordinates are approximate centroids only. Acreages from BLM ABI Screen (26-083). Source: BLM ePlanning DOI-BLM-NM-F010-2026-0020-EA.

How to protest the Q3 2026 lease sale (deadline July 20, 2026)