It doesn’t matter if you travel to Texas, New Mexico OR Arizona, all 3 states have problems with air pollution. Some cities have more issues than others, but which ones are the worst when it comes to air pollution? Well, we know exactly which ones to be extra careful when outside.

Which cities have the highest amount of air pollution in Texas, New Mexico & Arizona?

In a recent study by the American Lung Association (ALA), they went to over 200 different cities in the entire United States. Each city was ranked based on the average of days with high ozone, how many particles of pollution were in the air for a single day & all year round.

They found that while 1 city from Arizona made their rankings, Phoenix ranked high in ALL 3 lists. There were 2 major cities from New Mexico & a whopping 5 cities from Texas found on their ozone list; one actually made 2 lists of theirs (that honor goes to Houston).

Granted they weren’t THE worst cities according to the ALA; those honors all go to various cities in California like Bakersfield & Los Angeles. But it IS clear that if you live or travel in Texas, New Mexico or Arizona, you’ll want to be extra careful because the air can be quite tainted with pollution.

If you want to see which cities ranked amongst the worst, we did the research for you so you can find out which ones made the cut. I’m hoping some of these cities WON’T

MANUELITO, N.M. (AP/AZFamily) — The Federal Railroad Administration is now leading the investigation of last month’s fiery train derailment near the Arizona-New Mexico border.

National Transportation Safety Board officials said Thursday that the FRA will determine the probable cause of the April 26 derailment.

NTSB investigators have examined the track and derailed tank cars and will focus on the performance of the tank cars and emergency response actions.

The derailment of an BNSF Railway freight train forced a 50-mile stretch of Interstate 40 to close and led to two days of precautionary evacuations for 52 Manuelito residents who lived within a two-mile radius of the derailment site.

No injuries were reported, McKinley County officials said.

The train had left Belen, New Mexico, and was headed to Phoenix and was traveling about 53 mph at the time of the derailment, well below the maximum authorized speed of 70 mph near the derailment site, NTSB investigators said.

Of the 35 cars that derailed, six tank cars were carrying non-odorous propane, the NTSB said.

Four of the six tank cars were breached and released their contents, which ignited, investigators said. New Mexico State Police Lt. Phil Vargas said some rail cars caught fire and burned for hours after the derailment.

Initial passersby posted video and photos on social media of crumpled train cars and billowing, black smoke.

A fifth tank car carrying propane — a type of liquefied petroleum gas — was exposed to the flames and released vapor through its pressure relief device, investigators said.

Each derailed tank car was carrying about 30,000 gallons of liquefied petroleum gas, according to investigators.

The derailment also led Amtrak to cancel some passenger travel, including on the route between Los Angeles and Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

Thursday, the University of New Mexico Board of Regents approved a land acquisition for a full-spectrum reproductive healthcare center, that will include abortion care, in Doña Ana County.  The UNM Board of Regents voted 6-1 to move forward with the purchase of land, according to a news release. Charlene Bencomo, executive director of Bold Futures, […]

Thursday, the University of New Mexico Board of Regents approved a land acquisition for a full-spectrum reproductive healthcare center, that will include abortion care, in Doña Ana County. 

The UNM Board of Regents voted 6-1 to move forward with the purchase of land, according to a news release. Charlene Bencomo, executive director of Bold Futures, told NM Political Report that the goal is to have the reproductive center open to see patients by October 2025.

The project is called the Reproductive Healthcare Success Project. Bencomo said the $10 million allocated by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, which was approved by the 2023 legislature despite an effort to block it by Republicans, is the money UNM is using to acquire the land. That money will also be used to construct the building, she said. 

Becomo said the four organizations collaborating on the creation of the center are Bold Futures, UNM Health Sciences Center, Strong Families and Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains. She said the four groups are still working out who will run the center but she said it is a full partnership among the four.

She said the group is also in discussion with the New Mexico Doula Association. 

Bencomo said the center will provide a full spectrum of reproductive healthcare and that will include both abortion and gender-affirming care. She said due to the center’s location, it will likely attract patients coming from out-of-state and more rural areas of southern New Mexico as well as residents of Las Cruces.

The center is a part of the changing landscape of reproductive care in Las Cruces and New Mexico in general. Since the U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision in 2022 that overturned Roe v. Wade, more abortion clinics have relocated to New Mexico and new clinics have opened in both Albuquerque and in Las Cruces. In addition, Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains expanded its abortion care in the state to include medication abortion in its Farmington clinic and the organization opened a brick-and-mortar clinic in Las Cruces last year.   

Planned Parenthood clinics in New Mexico expand, offering medication abortion care at all locations

Bencomo said the RHSP clinic has been needed in southern New Mexico for a long time. She said the way the center will deliver care will be a holistic approach focused on good outcomes for both patients and providers. 

An example of that is having doula care available for patients in the future clinic. Bencomo said doulas can assist with more than birthing. They can provide assistance in explaining medical information to patients, which frees time for the provider to see another patient but allows the patients to get the information they need about their care.

Doulas can also bridge language barriers, Bencomo said. 

Bencomo said the project has taken time to move forward because the collaborators have involved community members and have been “truly listening.” She said it has been important to involve community members who will be the most impacted by the decisions the group is making. 

Bencomo said the group has not picked a specific location yet but that they are looking for one that will be accessible by public transportation. Security will be considered. 

University of New Mexico OB-GYN Department Chair, Eve Espey said through the release that the department is excited to be a part of the project.

“We are dedicated to reducing health inequities across our state,” she said through the release.

PPRM said through a statement that they are “honored” to also be participating in the project.

“We take our responsibility to steward these funds seriously, knowing that high-levels of transparency and collaboration often result in longer timeframes. We prioritize these values over moving too quickly through this one-of-a-kind community-led endeavor,“ Adrienne Mansanares, president and chief executive officer of PPRM, said through the release.

Marshall Martinez, executive director of Equality New Mexico, told NM Political Report that having a full-spectrum reproductive center in Las Cruces that will include both abortion and gender affirming care is also of importance to the LGBTQ community. In addition to making it possible for individuals who live in southern New Mexico to have access to care that is closer to home, it will make it easier for individuals who live in Texas to access gender affirming care. He said the fact that Texas has banned gender affirming care for minors has sent a chill in the medical community in Texas and that adults now also struggle to find the care they need.

In addition, having gender affirming care in Las Cruces will make it easier for undocumented individuals to receive healthcare because of border checkpoints along the route to Albuquerque.

“A good percentage of asylum seekers from Central and South American countries seek asylum here because their lives are in danger as queer people,” he said. “We have to think about everything we can do to reduce the harm to them.”