Political

Open this story for endorsement information on U.S. Congressional District 1 in the 2012 Democratic Primary.

President Barack Obama
Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar
U.S. Senator Jeff Bingaman
U.S. Senator Tom Udall
U.S. Representative Martin Heinrich (Dist. 1)

U.S. Representative Ben R. Luján (Dist. 3)

The Rio Grande Chapter has gained a significant legislative victory with the passage of SB200 Energy Efficient Public Building Standards sponsored by Senator Carlos Cisneros. Governor Bill Richardson signed this bill into law on March 9.

The Rio Grande Chapter of the Sierra Club is seeking permanent protection of Otero Mesa from oil and gas development, through BLM administrative options and through federal legislation.

June 25, 2009 - New Mexico Senators Udall and Bingaman jointly announced that they have asked the National Park Service (NPS) to study the Valles Caldera National Preserve for inclusion in the national park system as a Preserve where hunting and fishing would continue.

June 5, 2009 - The Sierra Club and its tribal partners won a hard-fought victory when 541 square miles of New Mexico’s Mount Taylor, held sacred to many southwestern tribes, were listed on the state’s Register of Cultural Properties. The designation will trigger an automatic consultation with the tribes for any new development proposals in the area.

March 30, 2009 - The Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 makes bold strides to enact over 160 different public lands measures across the country, including the protection of the Sabinoso Wilderness. Those advances include a 26 million-acre National Landscape Conservation System, 2 million new acres of Federal wilderness, more than 1,000 miles of rivers through the National Wild and Scenic River System, and the designation of thousands of trails for the National Trails System.

During Clean Water Week, February 22-28, four New Mexicans traveled to Washington, DC to participate in the Clean Water Week ’09 Lobby Day, sponsored by the Clean Water Network.