New Mexico · Area of Critical Environmental Concern
San Rafael Canyon
BLM found a cultural value, a scenic value and a historic value here, and its plan calls for special management. BLM's records place 7 oil and gas leases and 66 rights of way inside the line today, and four grazing allotments cover part of it. It covers 5,687 acres and was designated September 1, 2003, in the Farmington 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
66 rights of way sit inside the line. BLM files 64 under oil & gas facilities, 1 under non-energy facilities and 1 under other energy facilities.
- ENTERPRISE FIELD SERVICES LLC44rights of way
- WILLIAMS FOUR CORNERS LLC7rights of way
- *ENTERPRISE FIELD SERVICES LLC6rights of way
- Enterprise Field Services LLC4rights of way
- WILLIAMS FOUR COURNERS2rights of way
- NM ST HWY DEPT1right of way
- WILLIAMS GAS & FLD SVCS1right of way
- HILCORP SAN JUAN LLC1right of way
The oil and gas leases
7 active oil and gas leases sit inside the line. 7 of them took effect before the area was designated on September 1, 2003.
- HILCORP SAN JUAN LLC3leases
- ENDURING RESOURCES IV LLC3leases
- Holder not listed by BLM1lease
Grazing allotments
4 grazing allotments cover part of this line. Their permittees aren't named here yet.
- Delgadito Mesa 24,324acres
- Gobernador Canyon8,113acres
- Navajo City7,668acres
- Jesus Mesa5,188acres
The nearest areas
- Delgadita/Pueblo CanyonsNew Mexico · 351 acres · 6 rights of way, 2 grazing allotments covering part of it3miles
- Frances MesaNew Mexico · 7,620 acres · 7 oil and gas leases, 100 rights of way, 6 grazing allotments covering part of it4miles
- Encinada Mesa-Carrizo CanyonNew Mexico · 3,470 acres · 4 oil and gas leases, 54 rights of way, 4 grazing allotments covering part of it7miles
- Pregnant BasketmakerNew Mexico · 7.9 acres · a grazing allotment covering part of it8miles
- Christmas Tree RuinNew Mexico · 40 acres · a grazing allotment covering part of it9miles
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 San Rafael 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