Benny Shendo, Jr. is the only one of the candidates running for U.S. Congress in New Mexico's 3rd Congressional District who showed up and testified at the Santa Fe County Commissioners' Hearing on Oil Drilling in the Galisteo Basin in Santa Fe County.
Addressing the commissioners and the overflowing crowd in the chambers, Shendo said, "As we all know, Galisteo Basin is a unique place: a mix of residential, small business, ranching and equestrian communities, as well as historical sites, native pueblos and open spaces filed with wildlife. What we may not all know is that the Basin also has the highest concentration of archeological sites in the nation and is widely considered to be one of the most impressive archeological sites in the world. Also, underneath this uniquely beautiful land is the large and endangered Galisteo Aquifer, which we must vigilantly protect from the risk of being contaminated and possibly destroyed."
