New Mexico
Water managers push for funding to remove invasive plants from the bosque
NEW MEXICO (KRQE) — It’s a major problem, sucking up lots of water from the Rio Grande. Now, some water managers are asking lawmakers to get serious about ripping invasive plants from the bosque by spending millions. An “out of control bosque” is how the head of the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District (MRGCD) describes the areas around the river in central New Mexico, and he said it’s time for a generational project to take on the problem.
Not everything green in the middle valley’s bosque is helping New Mexico’s water supply, with a newer study highlighting how the Rio Grande’s riparian species are taking just as much water as surrounding farms. In fact, they’re actually consuming a percentage point more than agriculture.
Jason Casuga, the MRGCD’s CEO and Chief Engineer, said conversations are not being had across the board regarding water conservation. “We’re not having a fair conversation about riparian depletions,” said Casuga.
He said he thinks both the bosque and farming are worth protecting. “If we’re going to have standards for depletions on urban areas, standards for depletions on reducing those across farming, then the only way to have a realistic discussion about reducing depletions, as a whole, is to include the riparian area.”
Casuga said that invasive Salt Cedar and Russian Olive plants drive the problem of the extreme riparian water depletion, and that it’s unfair to farmers and cities to ignore what he calls a “takeover.” And that is especially when irrigators are often the first to cut back on water use. “Are we really going to ask farmers and have cultural farms on the Rio Grande go away? And leave hundreds and hundreds of acres of invasive species of Salt Cedar and Russian Olive? Is that what we’re protecting?
He stressed that he thinks if there are standards for agriculturalists and municipal entities, then there ought to be standards for invasive species as well. That feeling has Casuga pushing for a massive, coordinated invasive plant removal effort. He’s calling on lawmakers to fund a multi-million dollar investment in the project next session.
He said not everyone is quick to get on board with proposals like this. “Right now, everyone says, ‘Hey, it’s expensive, and it’s hard, and the easy thing to do is to target ag.’ But, I pose the question back, ‘If we love the Rio Grande in the Middle Valley, and we love the heritage of ag, is it a conversation worth having?’”
He said the millions would also ideally pay for bosque upkeep and native plant restoration. But one hurdle is finding qualified contractors to take on that difficult job
A Mississippi crew is now working to clear invasives near Belen. The MRGCD said while saving water, the job also cuts wildfire risk, and makes a big difference if firefighters do need to move in.
The MRGCD’s Bosque Management Coordinator said the next step in the Belen bosque restoration project is to plant more native grasses and bushes, which is expected to help wildlife. The methods used to eradicate the invasives protected the native plants that were already there.
“The more diverse food sources you have available for the wildlife, the different types of wildlife you have, and you’ve got a healthy food system that’s supporting multiple species throughout the year,” she said. “The species that come here in the summer to breed, and the species that come here in the winter will still have access to be able to find bugs under the ground, find any of the seeds from the species that have been seeding out, and still have access to water and then access to places where they can hide and they can have burrows and sustain themselves through multiple conditions.”
The MRGCD is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. It was founded to create the infrastructure capable of transforming the Middle Rio Grande Valley—by building and connecting more than 1,200 miles of canals and hundreds of miles of levees—to support agriculture and enable the growth of Albuquerque and surrounding communities.
Casuga said that it was a difficult endeavor then. “Tremendous amount of effort and resources were put in for that day—to set the river for essentially a hundred years that we’ve enjoyed with some problems here or there,” said Casuga.
He took a moment to think. “This might be generational work that needs to be done that sets the stage for the next hundred years.”
The MRGCD said Valencia and Sandoval counties need the most attention in removing invasive plants. While the District is still considering its exact proposal for a large removal effort, and doesn’t have a specific dollar figure on potential cost, it’s thinking of a project worth at least several million dollars.
SANTA FE, N.M. – Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham asked Attorney General Raúl Torrez to investigate whether any Drug Enforcement Administration agents broke state law when pills reached New Mexico streets.
In a statement, Lujan Grisham said, “make no mistake: the DEA knew people would die if these pills made it into New Mexico communities.”
The governor also shared a timeline from 2022 to 2025 that she said shows when she asked federal officials for help with New Mexico’s fentanyl crisis and violent crime.
Lujan Grisham said the first request came on June 21, 2022, when she wrote to then-Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Christopher Wray and asked for 50 additional federal agents.
She said she wrote to then-Attorney General Merrick Garland on Sept. 15, 2022, asking for more agents, resources and support for New Mexico law enforcement.
Lujan Grisham said she wrote Garland a second time on Aug. 8, 2023, with the same request.
What came next?
About a month later, Lujan Grisham said she sent Garland a third letter and said New Mexico needed more federal law enforcement to curb violent crime, drug trafficking and human trafficking.
She said her most recent request came on Sept. 4, 2025, when she wrote to former Attorney General Pam Bondi and again asked for additional agents and resources.
The governor’s statement says those requests span several years as she pressed the federal government for more help in New Mexico.
Full statement from Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham:
“I am appalled by reporting this week by the Associated Press and Albuquerque Journal that revealed federal authorities made a deliberate decision to let hundreds of thousands of fentanyl pills flood into New Mexico communities, despite knowing that fentanyl is so lethal the White House has designated it a weapon of mass destruction.
Let me say that again: the Drug Enforcement Administration watched as 74,000 fentanyl pills were delivered to a mobile home park in Albuquerque, and they did nothing. And that’s just one transaction. Shockingly, the federal government stood by while monitoring shipments, tallying exact pill counts, and watching as these deadly drugs hit the streets.
There are no words to describe how reckless and dangerous these decisions were. Make no mistake: the DEA knew people would die if these pills made it into New Mexico communities, and the agency let it happen anyway. The result: hundreds of New Mexican parents burying their kids. Hundreds of New Mexican kids growing up without stable parents. All while the federal government stood by.
If the justification for letting these pills flood our communities was that it would somehow make New Mexico safer down the road through bigger eventual busts, the results say otherwise. New Mexico now leads the nation in the increase in overdose deaths for the second straight year, despite deaths dropping nationwide.
Today, I wrote to Attorney General Raúl Torrez and asked him to investigate whether any federal agents broke state law when they allowed lethal drugs to remain on our streets, and to prosecute anyone responsible — regardless of whether they are a federal agent or not.
I have spent years working across two administrations — writing letters, traveling to Washington, meeting directly with President Joe Biden and his cabinet, pushing for accountability, asking for more federal agents to be deployed to New Mexico to help fight this crisis.
- On June 21, 2022, I wrote to FBI Director Christopher Wray, imploring the FBI to assign no less than 50 additional agents to New Mexico to stem escalating drug trafficking and violent crime.
- On September 15, 2022, I wrote to Attorney General Merrick Garland, requesting that the Department of Justice provide additional federal agents, resources and support to New Mexico law enforcement. We asked the department to match the level of investigative, analytical, and technical resources the FBI had deployed in its Buffalo, NY surge.
- On August 8, 2023, I wrote again to Attorney General Garland, renewing my request that the DOJ expeditiously assign more federal agents to New Mexico.
- On September 7, 2023, I wrote to Attorney General Garland for a third time, reiterating my request once more federal law enforcement support to curb violent crime, drug and human trafficking.
- On September 4, 2025, I wrote to Attorney General Pam Bondi, once again requesting additional agents and resources.
I have declared the surge of drugs like fentanyl to be a public health emergency. I have deployed the National Guard to both Albuquerque and Española. While my administration was doing everything we could to stem the tide of fentanyl coming into our state, the federal government deliberately allowed it to flood in.
New Mexican lives are not the federal government’s cost of doing business.
I plan to hold the federal government accountable for this disaster and will explore every possible avenue of action against the federal government to right these wrongs.”
The Canyon Venado Fire has grown to 852 acres east of Clines Corners and crews say wind farms in the area are threatened.
CLINES CORNERS, N.M. – The Canyon Venado Fire has grown to 852 acres east of Clines Corners and crews say wind farms in the area are threatened.
The fire is burning just east of Clines Corners, south of Interstate 40.
It forced the closure of eastbound Interstate 40 at Clines Corners on Tuesday night. I-40 reopened Tuesday night. I-40 is back open but smoke still affects visibility.
“We’re on the side of I-40 so drivers have to be pretty cautious. As far as our establishment itself we’re pretty isolated by the freeway itself as a nice fire break,” said Lincoln Tarantino, Clines Corner general manager.
The fire has burned around 852 acres, up from just 20 at this time Monday.
Crews say the fire is not contained and wind farms in the area are threatened.
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