New Mexico
New Mexico joins nation-wide challenge to protect and restore water resources – NM Political Report
New Mexico has joined the America the Beautiful Freshwater Challenge, a national partnership effort to conserve and restore freshwater resources. President Joe Biden announced the challenge in April as part of the Earth Week celebrations. The goal is to “protect, restore, and reconnect 8 million acres of wetlands and 100,000 miles of our nation’s rivers […]
New Mexico has joined the America the Beautiful Freshwater Challenge, a national partnership effort to conserve and restore freshwater resources.
President Joe Biden announced the challenge in April as part of the Earth Week celebrations. The goal is to “protect, restore, and reconnect 8 million acres of wetlands and 100,000 miles of our nation’s rivers and streams by 2030,” according to a press release from April.
White House Council on Environmental Quality Chair Brenda Mallory explained, during a visit to Albuquerque on Thursday, that New Mexico’s waterways will receive more focus.. A map behind her showed areas of the state where waterways are no longer protected under the Clean Water Act due to the U.S. Supreme Court’s Sackett decision. This includes ephemeral waterways as well as places like the Jemez River that run dry before connecting with larger waterways.
The Sackett decision led American Rivers to list New Mexico’s waterways as the “most endangered river” this year. In addition to the impacts of the Sackett decision, New Mexico is one of the states without its own surface water permitting system.
Mallory said that coordinated efforts are key in areas like New Mexico where the impacts of the Sackett decision are so great.
“New Mexico is doing a lot all by itself. But having the ability to get additional focus or sending in additional resources as they’re available, is really going to be a really important part to the success,” she said.
Joining the America the Beautiful Freshwater Challenge does not necessarily mean more funding will be available to New Mexico. However, Mallory said it might make New Mexico more competitive in the future as it pursues federal resources. She said that the federal government, knowing that there’s already groundwork being done in New Mexico to restore and protect waters, may see funding projects in the state as having a greater potential impact compared to some other parts of the country.
“We are all working together to make sure we can continue to protect water,” Tanya Trujillo, the deputy state engineer, said.
She said that New Mexico is facing many challenges with water, including both drought and flooding.
“We have to be able to take care and manage our waters during all of the conditions that we may see,” Trujillo said.
The states, local governments, Tribal entities, businesses and nonprofits that have joined the challenge all agree to a set of commitments to restore and connect wetlands and waters.
One of the original members of the partnership was the Navajo Nation.
“To Navajos and all Indigenous people, water is a sacred element,” President Buu Nygren said in a statement in April. “We in the Southwest, and especially Navajos, are aware daily how precious water is to our life, our livestock, our crops, wildlife and the natural world all around us. We are pleased to join the Biden-Harris Administration in this initiative.”
Some of the other partners include Colorado, Amigos Bravos, the Environmental Defense Fund, the National Audubon Society, New Mexico Wild, Patagonia, the Rio Grande International Study Center and Trout Unlimited.
“But New Mexico waters are in peril. We are in the eye of a perfect storm. We are in an arid state to begin with. And climate change is hitting us hard. Today 66 percent of our state is in drought conditions,” Tannis Fox with the Western Environmental Law Center said during the event in Albuquerque.
She said that while the majority of waterways in New Mexico do not run year round, they play important roles.
Speakers highlighted how contamination released into ephemeral waterways can jeopardize the water quality in acequias and even in waters that remain protected under the Clean Water Act.
New Mexico’s participation in the challenge complements actions that are outlined in the 50-year water plan unveiled in January.
“We’re going to be able to continue to implement our water quality protection programs, both surface water and groundwater, develop the necessary regulations that it’s going to take to make sure we can do those right and to do things like take care of our watersheds,” Trujillo told NM Political Report.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – A local business owner estimates he suffered about $1 million in damages as the result of yet another fire at a South Valley recycling plant.
Town Recycling on Broadway Blvd. SE has witnessed two fires in a span of less than two weeks with the first happening May 23rd and the second occurring Tuesday of this week.
Khalil Samaha, who owns Samcar, Inc. and Cedar’s Construction next door, says his businesses escaped without serious damage from the first fire, but the second one led to the loss of his main building, inventory he sells including trucks, construction equipment, computers, records, and much more.
“It’s a total mess. Everything is on the ground with water and insulation. It’s a total loss,” he said.
He gave KOB 4 a tour of his damaged property Wednesday and says that county officials have condemned the main office and won’t let him back inside.
“You can see all the glass is popped,” he said pointing to the windows. “I don’t know if the firefighters broke them or they exploded.”
A spokesperson for Bernalillo County Fire and Rescue issued a statement saying that, based on witness accounts, both fires may have started in a “bale of cardboard” at the recycling facility.
As of Wednesday evening, Broadway between Prosperity and Rio Bravo remained closed.
Samaha says firefighters attempted to battle the second fire from a different area than the first and the wind may have made conditions tougher.
“This time, the wind didn’t help,” he said. “So, it was blowing in my direction and took the building and some equipment in the back.”
Having seen two fires at the neighboring recycling facility in a span of about 11 days, he wonders if this will finally be the end of it.
“I hope it’s the last time. But, worried? Yes, we are worried,” he said. “We are close to them, and the materials are close to the fence. We share the fence together, so it’s always in the back of your mind.”
And now he lives with the memory of how quickly everything can change – just like it did earlier this week.
“It was very quick. From the smoke to the flame to the fire, it was very, very quick.”
A representative of Town Recycling declined our request for an interview.
LAS VEGAS, N.M. – New Mexico Highlands University President Niel Woolf has sued the school, claiming leaders pushed him to redirect a $600,000 contract to a chairman’s friend.
Woolf filed the lawsuit after the university placed him on administrative leave at the beginning of May.
He says Board of Regents Chair Frank Sanchez told him to cancel a $600,000 agreement with an out-of-state contractor and give it to a local contractor.
Woolf says that company is led by a friend of both Sanchez and his brother-in-law, Sen. Pete Campos, who represents Las Vegas.
In the lawsuit, Woolf says Sanchez told him directing the funds to his friend would “go a long way towards securing money for the University from Senator Campos,” said Woolf.
Woolf is seeking damages and attorney’s fees under the New Mexico Whistleblower Protection Act.
CHAMA, N.M. – The Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad will begin its summer season on Tuesday, June 9, after the railroad delayed its opening due to drought and wildfire danger.
The season was initially set to begin on May 23. The Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad Commission said it would conduct a review on June 2 to determine if it was safe enough to begin operations.
“A sincere thank you to all our passengers and the communities in Chama and Antonito who have been so patient as we waited for conditions to improve,” said Eric Mason, CEO of the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad. “We are excited to welcome guests back aboard and hear the opening whistle signal the start of another memorable season.”
The railroad will hold a Grand Opening Celebration on Saturday, June 13, in Chama. The celebration will coincide with Chama Western Heritage Days, a community festival that weekend with live music, vendors, and rodeo competitions.
The railroad recently won USA TODAY’S poll for the best scenic train ride in the country. In celebration of the win, the railroad said passengers who book by June 7 ca receive a 25% discount on coach tickets for trips through August. Guests must redeem the offer by calling the railroad at 888-286-2737 using promo code USATODAY#1.
Tickets are also available for the first Dark Sky Train departures on June 12 from Chama and June 13 from Antonito. The dark sky trains include evening excursions led by international dark sky guides, and take passengers to secluded spots with minimal light pollution.
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