Water for Oil?

In New Mexico, pure underground water always trumps the dangers of exploring for oil and gas.

An arid state, stricken by regular but unpredictable droughts, New Mexico has often found itself indifferent to the contamination of precious aquifers in the name of economic development.

The tragedy, of course, is that once groundwater is polluted in a certain area, it is very difficult and extremely costly to clean. If the contamination reaches an aquifer, it is unlikely it will ever be potable again. It is an uncertain science at best that determines how pollution moves through underground water.

That’s part of the reason Gov. Bill Richardson and Attorney General Patricia Madrid are suing the federal Bureau of Land Management over its plan to allow exploratory oil and gas drilling on relatively pristine Otero Mesa, south of Alamogordo.
The Albuquerque Tribune