New Mexico · Area of Critical Environmental Concern
Dark Canyon
BLM found a natural system, a wildlife resource, a cultural value, a scenic value, a natural process, a historic value and a natural hazard here, and its plan calls for special management. BLM's records place 1 right of way inside the line today, and two grazing allotments cover part of it. It covers 1,526 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
1 right of way sits inside the line. BLM files 1 under oil & gas facilities.
- Holder not listed by BLM1right of way
Grazing allotments
2 grazing allotments cover part of this line. Their permittees aren't named here yet.
- Stetson Seep8,836acres
- Serpentine Bends3,563acres
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
- Blue SpringNew Mexico · 445 acres · 2 oil and gas leases, 5 rights of way, 3 grazing allotments covering part of it11miles
- Lonesome RidgeNew Mexico · 2,983 acres · 3 grazing allotments covering part of it19miles
- Pecos River/Canyons ComplexNew Mexico · 6,620 acres · 10 oil and gas leases, 20 rights of way, 4 grazing allotments covering part of it30miles
- Alkali LakesNew Mexico · 6,353 acres · a grazing allotment covering part of it35miles
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 Dark Canyon. 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