NM Environment Review: No-go on solar plus public lands, nuclear waste and more

On Wednesday, Gov. Susana Martinez signed the budget passed earlier this year by state legislators. But she refused to sign a bill that would have reinstated state tax credits for solar. That bill reinstated a tax credit that had expired after a decade, one that had spurred the deployment of 220 million BTUs per day […]

NM Environment Review: No-go on solar plus public lands, nuclear waste and more

On Wednesday, Gov. Susana Martinez signed the budget passed earlier this year by state legislators. But she refused to sign a bill that would have reinstated state tax credits for solar.

That bill reinstated a tax credit that had expired after a decade, one that had spurred the deployment of 220 million BTUs per day of solar heating energy and 40 megawatts of solar electricity. The tax credit would have given people who install a solar thermal system or photovoltaic system at their home, business or farm a ten percent credit of the purchase and installation costs, up to $9,000.

Previously, Martinez has praised the state’s “all of the above” energy resources, but by declining to sign the solar tax credit bill, she effectively vetoed it, but without having to explain why.

This week, there’s an interesting water case before the Second District Court, over a private company’s plans to drill for groundwater in the Sandia Mountains.

Aquifer Science, a partnership between Campbell Ranch and Vidler Water Company, wants approval from the New Mexico Office of the State Engineer to drill for water in the Sandia Basin. Locals, including those who have seen their well levels decline over the past decade, oppose the project.

The Santa Fe New Mexican ran a story this weekend about the issue:

At stake in the case is a permit that would allow developers of Campbell Ranch, a proposed 3,990-home resort community near Sandia Park, and their corporate partners, to extract about 114 million gallons of well water per year from an aquifer deep beneath the eastern slope of the Sandias.

For [Mark] Moll and some of the development’s other neighbors, who will face down Campbell Ranch in court, the permit would further tax the region’s already dwindling water reserves — thereby putting existing communities in jeopardy.

“We’re just trying to make sure that there isn’t a huge influx of homes that draw out what water there is,” said Kathy McCoy, a former state representative and Sandia Park resident who is active in a grass-roots coalition called Deep Well Protest. “The necessity for water to support 4,000 homes is astronomical.”

On the Gila River, the Deming Headlight has coverage of Monday’s New Mexico Central Arizona Project Entity’s meeting:

Water yields for proposed projects were the focus of Monday’s meeting of the New Mexico Central Arizona Project Entity. The quasi-governmental body is charged by the Interstate Streams Commission with diverting up to 14,000 acre-feet of water annually from the Gila and San Francisco Rivers.

Water engineer and former Interstate Stream Commission Director Norm Gaume, a critic of the plan, stated that, “You need to know the yield; it’s crucial.” Yet water yield is only one of many questions that remain – and the body is running out of time to begin the environmental review process.

Read the entire story here.

There was a great deal of excitement over U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke’s announcement that he was postponing lease sales in northwestern New Mexico and Montana. However, the New York Times reported that the potential for oil and gas exploration was key in changing the boundaries of Bears Ears National Monument. That reporting is based on internal agency documents journalists reviewed, which show that Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch, R, telling the Interior Department that shrinking the monument’s boundaries would “resolve all known mineral conflicts.”

In December, after President Donald Trump and Zinke announced the new monument boundaries, Zinke criticized those who called the changes into question:

“I’ve seen the press hits,” he said, adding that no lands have been transferred or sold. “This is not about energy. There are no oil and gas assets. There is no mine within Bears Ears Monument, before or after.” He said. “So the argument that somehow, President Trump stole land is nefarious, it is false, it is a lie.”

In addition, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management is already moving ahead with management plans for the reduced Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, according to Tay Wiles at High Country News.

At the end of February, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission accepted an application from Holtec International, which has proposed storing spent nuclear fuel from commercial reactors in southeastern New Mexico. The company is requesting a 40-year license to store 500 canisters of spent fuel. In the coming months, there will be public meetings, but for now, background information on the company’s plans can be found on the NRC website.

In addition, the New Mexico Environment Department announced a public comment period to modify the permit for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, or WIPP, which stores transuranic waste from nuclear weapons. The 60-day public comment period ends on April 23, 2018 at 5:00 p.m. For more information on the permit and how to comment, visit here.

Lastly, there’s a new paper out in the Journal of the American Water Resources Association about observed changes in the climate and the streamflow of the Upper Rio Grande. (Thanks to John Fleck for pointing out the paper.) Read it here. And if you missed our story about the Rio Grande on Monday, “Grim forecast for the Rio Grande has water managers, conservationists concerned,” you can read that here.

 

We're ad free

That means that we rely on support from readers like you. Help us keep reporting on the most important New Mexico Stories by donating today.

Related

Lujan Grisham pocket vetoes two bills

Lujan Grisham pocket vetoes two bills

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham pocket vetoed two bills the legislature passed this legislative session: one changing the Cybersecurity Act and the other concerning law…
Gov signs bills with some vetoes 

Gov signs bills with some vetoes 

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed 69 bills that the legislature passed during the 2024 legislative session. These included the General Appropriations Act which contains…
Guv signs state budget

Guv signs state budget

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed the budget bill for Fiscal Year 2025 and the Capital Outlay spending bill. The FY25 state budget bill passed…
Advocates travel to D.C. to push for additional protections for the Gila River

Advocates travel to D.C. to push for additional protections for the Gila River

New Mexico advocates seeking to have the Gila River designated as a Wild and Scenic River will travel to Washington D.C. this week to…

NM Supreme Court annuls $10,000 penalty in PNM/Avangrid merger case

The New Mexico Supreme Court ruled on Monday that a penalty the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission levied against the state’s largest utility was…
State fines oil company more than $2 million after spill

State fines oil company more than $2 million after spill

The Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department fined an oil and gas company operating in the Permian Basin more than $2 million over produced…
Amid new graduation requirements, what do high schoolers want to learn?

Amid new graduation requirements, what do high schoolers want to learn?

By Margaret O’Hara, The Santa Fe New Mexican The main things that bring Brayan Chavez to school every day: Seeing, talking to and engaging with…
Special ed teachers hope lawmakers OK pay raises, admin changes

Special ed teachers hope lawmakers OK pay raises, admin changes

By Margaret O’Hara, The Santa Fe New Mexican Brittany Behenna Griffith has a laundry list of adjectives to describe the ideal special education teacher:…
Lawmakers must find consensus on competing education spending plans

Lawmakers must find consensus on competing education spending plans

By Margaret O’Hara, The Santa Fe New Mexican A challenging task awaits New Mexico lawmakers in the next 30 days: Reconciling three very different…
Lujan Grisham, Biden admin announce $10 million in federal funds for tribes, pueblos

Lujan Grisham, Biden admin announce $10 million in federal funds for tribes, pueblos

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced Friday $10 million in funding from the federal American Rescue Plan Act was awarded to six tribal nations and…
Proposal to curb executive powers moves to House Judiciary

Proposal to curb executive powers moves to House Judiciary

The House Government, Elections and Indian Affairs Committee discussed a potential constitutional amendment that seeks to limit the governor’s executive powers. The committee approved…
Supreme Court censures attorney over conduct in anti-COVID policy suits

Supreme Court censures attorney over conduct in anti-COVID policy suits

The New Mexico State Supreme Court censured a New Mexico attorney because of her “misconduct” in two unsuccessful cases pushing back on COVID-19 regulations…
Supreme Court to hear two abortion cases this spring

Supreme Court to hear two abortion cases this spring

Later this month, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on the case against the abortion medication mifepristone. It will hear a second…
How Biden, others highlighted reproductive rights at the State of the Union

How Biden, others highlighted reproductive rights at the State of the Union

President Joe Biden highlighted reproductive rights issues as part of his State of the Union speech Thursday. Biden delivered his 2024 State of the…
Stansbury invites OB-GYN doctor as her state of the union guest 

Stansbury invites OB-GYN doctor as her state of the union guest 

U.S. House of Rep. Melanie Stansbury has invited an OB-GYN doctor from Roswell as her guest for President Joe Biden’s State of the Union…
Supreme Court to hear two abortion cases this spring

Supreme Court to hear two abortion cases this spring

Later this month, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on the case against the abortion medication mifepristone. It will hear a second…
How Biden, others highlighted reproductive rights at the State of the Union

How Biden, others highlighted reproductive rights at the State of the Union

President Joe Biden highlighted reproductive rights issues as part of his State of the Union speech Thursday. Biden delivered his 2024 State of the…
Stansbury invites OB-GYN doctor as her state of the union guest 

Stansbury invites OB-GYN doctor as her state of the union guest 

U.S. House of Rep. Melanie Stansbury has invited an OB-GYN doctor from Roswell as her guest for President Joe Biden’s State of the Union…
See who’s going to be on your primary ballot in June

See who’s going to be on your primary ballot in June

Tuesday marked the official beginning of the 2024 New Mexico primary season for the legislature, with candidates officially filing for candidacy. This is the…

Bill to require disclosure of use of AI in campaign materials goes to governor

The Senate approved a bill aiming to require the disclosure of the use of artificial intelligence or other changes made by computers to campaign…
House amends, passes bill banning firearms near polling places

House amends, passes bill banning firearms near polling places

The House narrowly approved a bill that would ban firearms near polling places. The House voted 35-34 to pass the bill following an extensive…
Advocates travel to D.C. to push for additional protections for the Gila River

Advocates travel to D.C. to push for additional protections for the Gila River

New Mexico advocates seeking to have the Gila River designated as a Wild and Scenic River will travel to Washington D.C. this week to…
U.S. Supreme Court lets ban on Couy Griffin from holding office stand

U.S. Supreme Court lets ban on Couy Griffin from holding office stand

The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal of a Republican official who was barred from holding office after being convicted for a…
Politics Newsletter: legislative leaders not running for reelection

Politics Newsletter: legislative leaders not running for reelection

Hello fellow political junkies! Candidate filing day has come and gone, and members of House and Senate leadership opted to either not seek reelection…

GET INVOLVED

© 2023 New Mexico Political Report