American Oil and Gas Reporter - November 2015 - 123

ConventionCoverage: New Mexico Oil & Gas Association
(CCAAs) remain in effect."
SWCA Environmental Consultants
ecologist Matthew McMillan echoed that.
"It was a big win for the industry and for
collaborative conservation groups," he
described the ruling. "But, it is important
to remember that there still are CCAs
and CCAAs in the Permian Basin in
Southeast New Mexico that still require
management and mitigation activities."
Later, his response to a question suggested there was some uncertainty about
how the court's decision impacted mitigation responsibilities on land outside
BLM jurisdiction or that had not been
enrolled in a CCA or CCAA. "There is
some gray area," he acknowledged. "But
post-decision, I think there are situations
where BLM would like to see (mitigation)
considerations taken care of."
McMillan's presentation also considered
some other species present in New Mexico
for which USFWS will be determining
ESA status. "USFWS plans to review more
than 500 species in the next five-six years,
many because of litigation," he reported.
"I recommend companies seek a bit of information on these."
One species under review, he mentioned, is the Rio Grande cooter, an
aquatic turtle found in the Permian Basin
to which the state of New Mexico already
has assigned the protected status of threat-

Moderate Democrats in the California
Assembly helped defeat a legislative
proposal to reduce California petroleum
use by 50 percent in 15 years, relates
Western States Petroleum Association
President Catherine Reheis-Boyd. She
explained that those lawmakers helped
scuttle the proposal over concerns about
potential economic impacts.

ened.
"Its habitat is permanent streams and
rivers with large, deep pools of relatively
clear water with sandy, rocky bottoms,"
McMillan described.
Fortunately, he suggested, the cooter's
ESA status is unlikely to have much
direct impact on oil and gas operations.
"For operators, mitigation more or less
already is taking place through the Clean
Water Act," McMillan related. "By boring
under streams and river systems, you
likely are not going to have much impact
to the species. However, trenching streams
may be more problematic."

Seeking Specifics
NMOGA also heard from Western
States Petroleum Association President
Catherine Reheis-Boyd, who offered a
glimpse into energy-related public policy
proceedings in California, Oregon and
Washington.
In the Golden State, she noted, Governor Jerry Brown has directed the California Air Resources Board to seek ways
to reduce petroleum usage 50 percent in
15 years. Legislators tried to put statutory
weight behind that push as part of SB
350 during their 2015 session, she said.
The legislation does set energy efficiency
requirements and mandates that the state
obtain half of its electricity within 15
years from renewable sources (AOGR,
October 2015, pg. 45).
According to Boyd, the bill was very
specific on the latter two matters, but devoted almost no text to the portion on
petroleum use. "How in the world would
California reduce petroleum use by 50
percent in 15 years?" she posed. "The
bill simply gave a 'blank check' to
CARB."
In response, Boyd said WSPA collaborated with other industry advocates,
including the California Independent Petroleum Association, on an aggressive
campaign to defeat the legislation, which
they nicknamed "The Gas Restriction
Act of 2015." They noted such a drastic
reduction seemed achievable only through
gasoline rationing, a drastic reduction in
vehicle miles traveled, or some kind of
hefty tax that would curtail gasoline consumption, she said.
Eventually, she noted, lawmakers
passed the bill with only the portions on
efficiency and the renewable energy standard. "Twenty-one moderate Democrats
stood firm throughout the entire debate
because of their concern for jobs and the

Pre-existing conservation agreements
and federal resource management plans
mean that little will change for many using land in the lesser prairie chicken's
range, even after a federal court nullified
the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service's decision
to list the bird under the Endangered
Species Act, relates SWCA Environmental
Consultants ecologist Matthew McMillan.
During his remarks on the last day of
NMOGA's convention, McMillan also noted that USFWS planned to review the
ESA status of more than 500 species in
the next five-six years.

economy," Boyd affirmed. "The petroleum
use piece of the bill was removed."

A Safety Lesson
During his keynote remarks at NMOGA's membership luncheon, Jeff Skiles,
co-pilot of U.S. Airways Flight 1549,
the "Miracle on the Hudson," which
averted disaster in January 2009, recounted
the short flight, which went awry as the
plane passed through a large flock of
geese after take-off from New York's
LaGuardia Airport. He credited much of
the outcome to the crew's standardized
safety training, which he said had changed
markedly in the past couple decades.
When it became clear that both engines
had failed, Skiles recounted, Captain
Chesley B. "Sully" Sullenberger calmly
took control of the aircraft while Skiles
began to go through a checklist for such
contingencies. "As these cascading failures
overwhelmed the monitoring systems,
Sully had the presence of mind to grab
the public address telephone and announce:
'This is the captain, brace for impact,'"
Skiles described.
That announcement was a sign for
the flight attendants to begin their emerNOVEMBER 2015 123

American Oil and Gas Reporter - November 2015

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