New Mexico · Area of Critical Environmental Concern
Blue Spring
BLM found a natural system, a wildlife resource, a natural process and a fish resource here, and its plan calls for special management. BLM's records place 2 oil and gas leases and 5 rights of way inside the line today, and three grazing allotments cover part of it. It covers 445 acres and was designated January 1, 1997, in the Carlsbad RMP. In the plan's name, RMP stands for resource management plan.
One of the 1,120 places the Bureau of Land Management has designated an Area of Critical Environmental Concern. This page shows its line, what BLM found there and what sits inside it.
The line
The rights of way
5 rights of way sit inside the line. BLM files 4 under oil & gas facilities and 1 under non-energy facilities.
- ENTERPRISE FIELD SERVICES LLC2rights of way
- DCP OPERATING CO LP2rights of way
- CIMAREX ENERGY CO1right of way
The oil and gas leases
2 active oil and gas leases sit inside the line. 2 of them took effect before the area was designated on January 1, 1997.
- CHEVRON USA HOLDINGS INC1lease
- CHEVRON USA INC1lease
Grazing allotments
3 grazing allotments cover part of this line. Their permittees aren't named here yet.
- Cottonwood Springs17,025acres
- Threemile Draw6,174acres
- Blue Spring4,501acres
The nearest areas
- Chosa DrawNew Mexico · 2,838 acres · 1 oil and gas lease, 3 rights of way, 2 grazing allotments covering part of it8miles
- Dark CanyonNew Mexico · 1,526 acres · 1 right of way, 2 grazing allotments covering part of it11miles
- Pecos River/Canyons ComplexNew Mexico · 6,620 acres · 10 oil and gas leases, 20 rights of way, 4 grazing allotments covering part of it19miles
- Lonesome RidgeNew Mexico · 2,983 acres · 3 grazing allotments covering part of it27miles
- Alkali LakesNew Mexico · 6,353 acres · a grazing allotment covering part of it44miles
More from BLM's New Mexico office
Every area BLM's New Mexico office holdsThe proposed rule
A proposed rule, RIN 1004-AF53, would change how BLM drafts every land use plan, and how it designates ACECs like Blue Spring. The comment window hasn't opened: the proposed rule wasn't in the Federal Register at our last check. The Watch sends one email the day it prints.
The rule's abstract
The purpose of this rulemaking is to establish in regulations an updated process for the approval of the development, revision, amendment, and maintenance of land use plans, as provided for by the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, for public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Additionally, this rulemaking will provide clarification of the process the BLM uses for designating Areas of Critical Environmental Concern.Unified Agenda entry for RIN 1004-AF53, Publication ID 2026, reginfo.gov (OMB OIRA), read Oct 18, 2026