Upper Pecos River Withdrawal Application Cancellation - New Mexico

FR: Interior Department

Published April 6th, 2026

Detected April 4th, 2026

Summary

The Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service announce cancellation of their joint withdrawal application for 163,483 acres of National Forest System lands and 1,327.16 acres of public lands in northern New Mexico. The temporary segregation of these lands from mining and mineral/geothermal leasing will terminate at 8 a.m. local time on May 6, 2026, restoring access to location and entry under the mining laws and leasing under mineral and geothermal leasing laws.

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What changed

The BLM and USFS have canceled their joint withdrawal application (NM-106385733) for approximately 164,810 acres of National Forest System and public lands in the Upper Pecos River Watershed of northern New Mexico. The original December 16, 2024 Federal Register notice (89 FR 101621) proposed withdrawing these lands from mining laws and mineral/geothermal leasing for 20 years. The cancellation is based on the agencies' determination, consistent with Secretary's Order 3418 implementing Executive Order 14154 "Unleashing American Energy," that the lands would be better managed under existing authorities and land management plans with provisions to address impacts from mineral and geothermal resource leasing and mining.

By operation of law under 43 CFR 2310.2-1(d), the temporary segregation terminates at 8 a.m. local time on May 6, 2026. Mining operators and energy companies interested in mineral or geothermal leasing on these lands should monitor for the May 6, 2026 reopening date. Existing valid rights, other withdrawals, and segregations of record remain unaffected.

What to do next

Verify that target lands fall within the Upper Pecos River Watershed in northern New Mexico
Monitor for May 6, 2026 when segregation terminates and lands reopen to location and entry
Confirm any existing valid rights are properly documented and unaffected by the cancellation

Source document (simplified)

Notice

You may be interested in this older document that published on 12/16/2024 with action 'Notice of proposed withdrawal.' View Document

Notice of Cancellation of Withdrawal Application for the Upper Pecos River Watershed Protection Area, New Mexico

A Notice by the Land Management Bureau on 04/06/2026

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Public Inspection Published Document: 2026-06658 (91 FR 17305) Document Headings ###### Department of the Interior

Bureau of Land Management

[NM-106385733]

AGENCY:

Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service (USFS) announce the cancellation of their joint Upper Pecos River Watershed Area withdrawal application for 163,483 acres of National Forest System lands and 1,327.16 acres of public lands in northern New Mexico. The segregation initiated by publication of notice of the withdrawal application will terminate by operation of law 30 days after publication of this Notice at the time listed below.

DATES:

This segregation terminated by this Notice will occur at 8 a.m., local time, on May 6, 2026.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Jillian Aragon, Project Manager, BLM New Mexico State Office by email at jgaragon@blm.gov. Individuals in the United States who are deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability may dial 711 (TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access telecommunications relay services for contacting Ms. Aragon. Individuals outside the United States should use the relay services offered within their country to make international calls to the point-of-contact in the United States.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

A Notice of Proposed Withdrawal was published in the Federal Register on December 16, 2024 (89 FR 101621), announcing the agencies' joint application requesting a withdrawal of 164,810.16 acres of National Forest System lands and public lands in New Mexico from location and entry under the United States mining laws, and leasing under the mineral and geothermal leasing laws, subject to valid existing rights, for a period of 20 years. In accordance with 43 CFR 2310.1-4(a), the agencies have canceled their withdrawal application. The agencies have reviewed the proposal in accordance with Department of the Interior's Secretary's Order 3418 implementing Executive Order 14154 Unleashing American Energy and have determined that the withdrawal application area would be better managed to achieve evolving national policy objectives under existing authorities and land management plans, as both agencies have established provisions to address and minimize impacts to the landscape from both leasing mineral and geothermal resources and from mining. Pursuant to 43 CFR 2310.2-1(d), the temporary segregation for the lands described in 89 FR 101621 is terminated by operation of law and the lands will be opened to location and entry under the United States mining laws and leasing under the mineral and geothermal leasing laws, subject to valid existing rights, the provision of existing withdrawals, other segregations of record, and the requirements of applicable law at 8 a.m., local time, on May 6, 2026. This cancellation notice was processed in accordance with the regulations set forth in 43 CFR part 2300.

(Authority: 43 U.S.C. 1714).

William F. Groffy,

Principal Deputy Director.

[FR Doc. 2026-06658 Filed 4-3-26; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3411-15-P

Published Document: 2026-06658 (91 FR 17305)