By REBECCA BOONE BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Rapidly growing wildfires prompted evacuations in Northern California on Thursday, a day after powerful winds and lightning strikes in Oregon and Idaho cut power and stoked fires, including one in Oregon that was the largest active blaze in the United States. Another fast-moving wildfire forced thousands to abandon […]
Environment & Climate
Posted inEnvironment & Climate, New Mexico, State News, Syndicated
Preventable heat injuries and deaths rising in New Mexico
BY DANIELLE PROKOP 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 […]
Posted inEnvironment & Climate, New Mexico
State offers second chance at solar tax credits
Homeowners who missed out on a tax credit for going solar will have another shot at recouping some of their investment, thanks to a new state program. The Supplemental New Solar Market Development Tax Credit program from the Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department (EMNRD) is aimed at New Mexico taxpayers who were denied solar […]
Posted inAlbuquerque, Environment & Climate
Who’s using the most water in Albuquerque?
Water woes are ever-present in the Southwest, with rising temperatures and persistent drought conditions. Albuquerque, for instance, is in a moderate to severe drought this summer. With that in mind, City Desk ABQ contacted the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority to find out who uses the most water. Below is a list of the […]
Posted inEnvironment & Climate, New Mexico
One woman’s story on the effects of the largest radioactive accident in US history
Maggie Billiman says her family and neighbors have been forgotten. However, she said she hopes a gathering Saturday to commemorate the country’s largest radioactive accident grabs the attention of a government that seems indifferent to the consequences of its Cold War deterrence efforts. Billiman was a teenager in Sawmill, Arizona on July 16, 1979 when […]
Posted inEnvironment & Climate, New Mexico, Syndicated
Wildfire risk rises as Western states dry out amid ongoing heat wave baking most of the US
Authorities in Western states warned of the rising risk of wildfires as hot conditions and low humidity dry out the landscape amid a protracted heat wave that is expected to bake much of the U.S. again Thursday.
California’s top fire official said Wednesday that so far this year the state has responded to more than 3,500 wildfires that have scorched nearly 325 square miles (842 square kilometers) of vegetation — five times the average burned through July 10 in each of the past five years.
Posted inEnvironment & Climate, New Mexico, Syndicated
NM amends complaint against DOD regarding PFAS contamination
This story is republished from NM Political Report, a nonprofit news outlet, as a part of our commitment to bringing you the best in independent news coverage that matters to Albuquerque. By Hannah Grover The New Mexico Environment Department, the New Mexico Office of Natural Resources Trustee and the state Attorney General amended a lawsuit […]
Posted inEnvironment & Climate, New Mexico, Syndicated
A closer look at the SCOTUS ruling on the Rio Grande
By DANIELLE PROKOP With the irrigation season still going strong, and recent rains temporarily swelling the Rio Grande, the river is running through most of New Mexico. In court, the case over the river’s water is in a lull, after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected a deal to end a lawsuit over the water flowing at about just […]
Posted inEnvironment & Climate, New Mexico, Syndicated
Review of prescribed fires finds gaps in key areas as US Forest Service looks to improve safety
By SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Two years after the U.S. Forest Service sparked what would become the largest and most destructive wildfire in New Mexico’s recorded history, independent investigators say there are gaps that need to be addressed if the agency is to be successful at using prescribed fire as a tool to reduce […]
Posted inEnvironment & Climate, New Mexico, Syndicated
Lightning strike blamed for wildfire that killed 2 people in New Mexico, damaged 1,400 structures
RUIDOSO, N.M. (AP) — A lightning strike caused the larger of two wildfires that has killed at least two people and destroyed or damaged more than 1,400 structures in New Mexico, authorities said Wednesday. The South Fork Fire was first reported June 17 on the Mescalero Apache Reservation and forced the evacuation of the Village […]