New Mexico
Preventable heat injuries and deaths rising in New Mexico • Source New Mexico
Heat and degraded air quality harming New Mexicans is projected to worsen in the coming years, as climate change fueled by burning and extracting fossil fuels cranks up the planet’s temperature.
State lawmakers heard that message from panels of experts from government and outside groups in an interim Water and Natural Resources Committee meeting Monday held in Albuquerque.
Extreme heat is the deadliest natural disaster, killing more people in the U.S. than flooding and hurricanes combined. Hotter, drier conditions also increase and intensify wildfires. It leads to arid conditions causing dust storms and increases air pollution.
The data shows the Southwestern U.S. is the fastest warming area in the lower 48 states, and New Mexicans are feeling the consequences, with 50 people going to emergency rooms between April and May.
With extreme heat growing more frequent and intense, New Mexico has to transform its approach, said heat public health expert Nathaniel Matthews-Trigg, a co-founder of advocacy group Healthy Climate New Mexico.
“The stark reality is this: every summer, New Mexicans are dying preventable deaths,” Matthews-Trigg told lawmakers. “It’s time we shift our focus from individual actions to collective community efforts.”
Extreme heat is killing more people crossing the border
He said New Mexico’s current model treats extreme heat as a matter of personal responsibility, which ignores both science and experience from people who shoulder the brunt of heat exposure.
And while New Mexico has made more efforts to track data on heath injuries and deaths – which are difficult numbers to pin down – members of state agencies said they still required more funding and staffing.
Requests for money by agencies and policy experts included adding six more staff to collect heat injury and death data for the New Mexico Department of Health.
Mann-Lev said that New Mexico’s application for federal funds for $2.5 million to track public health and environment was rejected because of a lack of staff at state agencies to spend it down.
Shelley Mann-Lev, the Executive Director of Healthy Climate New Mexico said the group has been working to establish a statewide public health and climate program.
Supporters said the program would deal with heat, wildfire smoke, drought, flooding, dust and severe storms.
Mann-Lev also supports establishing a $10 million fund to help towns and cities address climate needs.
“That fund would be dedicated at least 50% to communities with populations of less than 100,000 (people),” Mann-Lev said. The proposal has failed the past three sessions.
Deadly heat
Emergency room visits due to heat stress have nearly doubled since 2010 in New Mexico, said Lauren Reichelt, New Mexico Environment Department’s director at the Environmental Health Division.
When temperatures rise above 90 degrees, so do visits in southern and northwestern NM, many of them outdoor workers, men between 18- and 44-years-old, Reichelt said.
Heat stroke and heat exhaustion in New Mexico emergency rooms rose from 200 visits to over 400 visits. Those are only for those specific conditions, Reichelt said, the real impacts are much larger since heat exacerbates heart and kidney conditions.
“If you wanted the real number, you’d have to add a zero at the end and either double or even quintuple it,” she said about estimates on heat-related injuries.
The New Mexico Environment Department ascribed 900 emergency room visits to heat in 2023. This year, there have already been 600 visits due to heat, Reichelt said.
Matthews-Trigg said most existing interventions on extreme heat are ineffective and a waste of money.
“Telling someone to get somewhere cooler, if they don’t have access to transportation is pointless,” he said. “Setting up cooling centers that are not welcoming, that don’t allow pets or in inaccessible locations will mean the people that need them are unable to go to them.”
Facing the heat head on
Matthews-Trigg offered recommendations based on surveys with state agencies, community groups, local governments and research to better prevent deaths. Those include:
Tailoring messages for elderly, children, outdoor workers
Getting better data; treating heat like a mass-casualty event for first responders
Ensuring governments have support, if a blackout happens during a heatwave
Establish a heat emergency hotline to take pressure off of 911 centers
Offer more water bottles, cooling towels to smaller communities
Give more funding and training to rural and tribal communities
Another recommendation is to offer people help with energy bills, since some research shows people don’t use air conditioning or swamp coolers out of financial hardship.
“People literally cook inside their homes because they can’t pay a few dollars to stay cool. This is an incredible injustice,” Matthews-Trigg said.
Gerilyn Antonio, the tribal liaison for the New Mexico Alliance of Health Councils, requested that the state work to consult with tribes, provide tribal-level data, rather than just county-specific data.
“There’s not a comprehensive picture of how tribal communities in our state are affected,” Antonio said about heat.
She said the legislature needs to increase funding for state agencies and work to improve communications to Pueblos.
Sen. Liz Stefanics (D-Cerillos) said the legislature might consider combining the state agencies with climate bureaus or divisions under one office.
“If we could bring together the entities that are working in this, we might be able to better fund something as a whole, rather than piecemeal,” Stefanics said.
Pollution, wildfire smoke and dust
Extreme heat and drought are worsening New Mexico’s air quality said JoAnna Strother, who directs advocacy for the American Lung Association in the Southwest.
Ozone, also known as smog, worsens in high heat, causing a “sunburn” effect on the lungs and worsening or causing lung diseases.
Particle pollution means very tiny amounts of solids and liquids inhaled into the lungs. The pollution is sometimes due to wildfire, but also just emissions from gasoline, diesel or wood fuels.
“Particle pollution can be very dangerous to breathe, especially at higher concentrations. It can trigger illness, hospitalization, and premature death and can even cause lung cancer,” Strother said.
Just over half of New Mexicans live in a county with at least one failing air grade and 32% of New Mexicans live in counties with three failing grades for air quality, she said.
Las Cruces is the 15th most polluted city for ozone, and Albuquerque the 21st in national rankings. But it isn’t just urban areas affected, Eddy County ranked as the 17th most polluted county for ozone in the U.S.
Particle pollution has also worsened in both Albuquerque and Las Cruces, she said.
Maxine Paul, the former chair of the Albuquerque Air Quality Control Board said the legislature’s passage of a bill to reduce pollution from cars and trucks is still being implemented, but that it will work to reduce pollution.
The New Mexico Environment Department only has seven staff to travel around the state, measure, and collect data on air pollution, said Dana Bahar, the deputy director of the Environmental Protection Division.
‘There’s no future where our landscapes are not flammable’
Wildfires and smoke are inevitable in New Mexico, said Matthew Hurteau, a professor studying fire ecology at the University of New Mexico, but the state can do more to limit smoke exposure.
Climate change’s drying effect has made New Mexico’s forests more flammable, meaning the devastating 2022 fire season is projected to become “fairly normal,” as the atmosphere warms and dries, he said.
His research shows forest management is key to reducing pollution from these fires.
“If we restore frequent fire to these forests, through mechanical thinning, and prescribed burning, we can significantly reduce the amount of emissions that are happening, particularly in large doses,” he said.
Elimination of wildfire isn’t an option.
“There’s no future where our landscapes are not flammable in New Mexico,” Hurteau said. “Anyone who tells you that we can manage smoke impacts by putting out wildfire is delusional.”
He said the state needs to do more to clean people’s air, such as offering air purifiers in rural communities.
In addition to air purifiers, wearing properly fitted N95 masks filters out harmful particles and works to protect peoples’ lungs from wildfire smoke and other pollution, said Strother.
How you can protect your community from wildfire smoke
‘Albatross around our neck’
One top lawmaker expressed frustrations at New Mexico Environment Department Secretary James Kenney, saying the administration and agency is failing to display a sense of urgency.
Senate Pro Tem Mimi Stewart (D-Albuquerque) invoked 18th century poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” saying New Mexico had an inescapable burden in relying on fossil fuels.
“We all have this albatross around our neck, thanking oil and gas for giving us funding, at the same time trying desperately to keep them from destroying the Earth.”
She asked Kenney what is preventing the environment department from being at full staffing, asking if the governor requested the agency to keep its budget flat, if it can’t pay enough for staff, or a combination of issues.
Kenney said he feels Stewart’s sense of urgency, but the environment department lacks an office for 167 of its staff, and said state hiring remains slow.
“We have no shortage of people wanting to work there. We just need quicker processing to get them in the door,” Kenney said.
Stewart said she wants New Mexico to be seen by the rest of the country as a model for addressing climate change, boldly addressing public health and economic impacts.
“You can’t say that about us right now. Little tiny steps,” she said pantomiming footprints with her hands. “Little tiny steps while the Earth is burning.”
EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — As families across the country gather together to celebrate the 4th of July, one family will reunite for the first time in years in El Paso.
Juan Escobar, an Albuquerque native, will finally be able to celebrate a holiday with his 14-year-old son, Andrew, all thanks to the El Paso Police Department.
Over the last three years, Escobar endured a long-standing search and custody battle over Andrew with his Miriam Felix, Andrew’s mom, which he originally won in 2023.
Not long after that custody victory, Andrew went with Felix for an overnight stay.
He never came home.
Missing posters said Andrew went missing June 25, 2023. He was 11 years old at the time.
Escobar hired a private investigator to uncover Andrew’s whereabouts. Investigation revealed Felix changed her name to Sophie Shelton and changed Andrew’s name to Oliver Shelton. The two reportedly moved to an area near Fort Collins, Colorado.
Suddenly, the case changed from a missing child to an abduction.
Escobar wasn’t able to find Andrew or Felix in Fort Collins.
After years of prayer and searching for answers, Juan received a phone call from El Paso Police last week.
In the call, EPPD said they had Felix in custody and Andrew waiting for him.
Escobar said Andrew told authorities he and his mom traveled to several countries over the three-year period, including Austria, Albania and Turkey.
He reportedly said he went to school online and just finished eighth grade.
However, his father is worried about his mental health.
“Physically, he’s well,” Escobar said. “But he’s just been through so much the last three years emotionally and mentally.”
Escobar told ABC-7 police said Border Patrol identified Andrew as a missing person while he and Felix reportedly crossed into El Paso from Ciudad Juarez, putting both of them into custody.
Escobar told ABC-7 his wife drove him down to El Paso and told him he wasn’t “in the condition to drive.”
He said his first instinct was to hug Andrew, since they used to love wrestling, but was told to give him space instead.
“The reality is that Andrew was an 11-year-old boy that was abducted and was moved across the country, and then moved out of the country and possibly overseas over the last three years,” Escobar said. “He’s a boy right now who has been in flight or fight mode for the last three years.”
Escobar said he’s now investigating how Andrew reportedly traveled around the world without being flagged as a missing person.
He also said he hopes Felix understands the gravity of what she’s done.
“This isn’t just trying to keep a father away from his son. This is breaking local law and breaking international law,” Escobar said. “I’m hopeful she understands what she’s done and she gets the help that she needs.”
Escobar also questioned how Felix afforded international trips.
As Andrew reunites with his father, Escobar has a simple message for parents and families this holiday weekend:
“Do what’s best for your children,” Escobar said. “Because ultimately, they’re what matter the most.”
Escobar said he’s excited to spend the holiday weekend with his son.
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New Mexico State Treasurer Laura Montoya reintroduced baby bonds to legislative teams at a recent conference.
During this conference, Montoya and her team explained what baby bonds would do, what they would mean for New Mexicans and asked for their thoughts and what she could change to help get it passed in the New Mexico Legislature.
Baby bonds are a way for parents to set children up for success later down the line, Montoya said. New Mexico would allocate around $7,000 to each newborn child as part of the bond proposal. The bond would grow over time, and the child would have access to it at age 18. Bonds could be used for a down payment for a car or to pay for parts of school that are not covered by the lottery or opportunity scholarships, buying or renovating a home, or starting a business all withing the state of New Mexico.
Montoya said the funds would not be used for random expenses.
“Now you might be saying, ‘when I was 18 and I would never give myself that money.’ You’re not getting the money directly. So, what happens is it all gets put into a pool of cash that is invested by the State Investment Council. They manage the money and then when you need it, let’s say you’re a student and NMSU gives us an invoice, you say ‘yes, I went to school and NMSU needs to be paid out,’” Montoya said. “Then it goes to the appropriate (agency), whether it’s EFA (Education Freedom Account) or whoever the Legislature designates, will then sign off the check and send it directly to NMSU. So, it’s their money but it isn’t their money.”
Montoya hypothesized on how a bond would benefit a young New Mexican.
“So, you consider an 18-year-old from a working-class family living in Rio Arriba (County), who dreams of attending a four-year college and eventually becoming a nurse. However, achieving this dream would have been difficult given her family’s working-class income. Having a Baby Bond has already made a difference. Research indicates that even small dollar savings accounts with money designated for school results in low-and middle-income children being more likely to enroll in college,” Montoya said.
Montoya said that statistics from the Treasurer’s Office, other state government agencies and pulled from public records to show what a baby bond could do for someone in a low income bracket.
“So, in Rio Arriba only 6% of adults have a degree beyond a bachelor’s degree. Only 7.5% of renters in Rio Arriba are able to afford median home price and baby bonds can contribute to significant decreases in student loan debt especially for women and people of color. You’ll see that same $7,000 she used $13,000 of it for nursing school when she was 18. Then, she still made another $23,000 and she used 30,000 for a home down payment. By the end of it she still had $150,000,” Montoya said.
The children who receive baby bonds would gain access to them only by taking a financial literacy course — or as Montoya calls it financial fitness course. This could be offered through state banks, but she said maybe later down the line it will be offered in kindergarten through grade 12.
“Financial fitness for me is something that I’m very passionate about because I grew up super humble and we didn’t have anyone to teach us what that looked like in having a savings account and investing and so many New Mexicans don’t. So, the one place we can learn this is in our schools, and we need to partner because a lot of our schools don’t have some of that expertise,” she said. “We need to partner with our banks; we need to partner with others that are doing the work already. We don’t need to reinvent the wheel. We just need to bring more people in to partner.”
Department Head and Professor at NMSU Harikuman Sankaran questioned whether the bonds could be used by students already relying on the New Mexico Legislative Lottery Scholarship and New Mexico Opportunity Scholarship. Deputy State Treasurer Ricky Serna said students had the option to access the funds regardless of scholarship awards.
“If I’m a student that says, ‘I live in Albuquerque and I’m going to UNM, I already don’t have to pay tuition and I have a scholarship and now I don’t have to pay for books and fees. Do I have to now wait until I buy a home to access my baby bond?’ Maybe it’s ‘No, I can tell UNM I have enough to put me to work in the school of arts and sciences or put me to work somewhere because I want to use some of my money now, right?’ I think that’s the idea,” Serna said.
Montoya said that this concern would be addressed later to not overcomplicate the bond proposal.
“But that’s something the Legislature can do in the future, too. I mean we have 18 years, so I don’t want to complicate it at this moment. I just want to keep it as simple as possible, but I understand (the concern) of what you’re saying on the long-term investment to have them buy in,” Montoya said.
Montoya said Baby Bonds have the potential to address some of the state’s largest issues – poverty, educational attainment and housing. As the bond recipient gets older it too can ease the burden of housing, retirement and reliance on public assistance.
Children born in New Mexico could access the investment between the ages 18 and 35 to build wealth.
Montoya asked the public to comment on the use of Baby Bonds, an issue the state Legislature will consider in the 2027 Legislative session.
Leighanne Muñoz is the business and development reporter for the Las Cruces Sun-News and is a fellow with the New Mexico Local News Fellowships and Internships Program, which places emerging journalists in newsrooms across New Mexico. Learn more at www.newmexicolocalnewsfellowships.org. Email her at lmunoz@gannett.com.
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