Oil and gas withdrawal around US park stirs debate over economic costs for Native American tribe

Some Republican members of Congress are criticizing the Biden administration's recent move to withdraw hundreds of square miles of federal land in New Mexico from oil and gas development. Arizona Congressman Eli Crane was among those to speak out during a congressional subcommittee hearing Thursday. He said the buffer around Chaco Culture National Historical Park puts a “destructive chokehold" on tribal revenue and economic prosperity. Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren testified that the administration gave no weight to the tribe's economic concerns when imposing the ban. Other tribes had fought for formalizing the ban as a way to protect culturally significant sites beyond park boundaries. The administration has defended its decision.