Coal resources of Socorro County, New Mexico
— JoAnne C. Osburn

Coal-bearing strata crop out in the northwest corner of Socorro County in the Datil Mountains coal field and in the east-central part of the county in the Jornada del Muerto and Carthage coal fields (fig. 1). In addition, small isolated coal outcrops occur in northeastern Socorro County on the Sevilleta Wildlife Refuge near the village of La Joya (fig. 1). In all areas in the county, potential coal resources are present in the Crevasse Canyon Formation with the thickest coal beds occurring in the lower part of the formation.