3 die in Navajo Nation flooding
Authorities said that three people died early Wednesday morning after being swept away by flood waters on the Navajo Nation.
The Associated Press reports that police officers received a call around 12:30 a.m. about people being washed away near Newcomb in northwestern New Mexico.
The report followed a day of heavy rain that left roadways and other areas flooded with standing water. More rain followed during the overnight hours.
Search crews responded and found the bodies of two adults and a child. Authorities did not release any details about the circumstances, other than saying the drownings were under investigation.
The three deaths on the Navajo Nation follow flooding just weeks ago at the Grand Canyon, where three hikers were swept away and dozens more were rescued after heavy rain brought torrents of water through Bright Angel Creek.
Sacred mountain threatened by uranium mining interests
The prospect of new uranium mines is testing state protections of a mountain in northwest New Mexico. Mount Taylor is sacred to the Navajo Nation, the Hopi Tribe, and the Pueblos of Laguna, Acoma and Zuni. Tribal members described a millennia-long relationship with the mountain at a meeting of the Radioactive and Hazardous Materials Committee last Friday.
The meeting was held at the Laguna Pueblo Village of Paguate. The five tribes sought and won legal protections for the mountain in the late 2000s.
New Mexico In-Depth reports that there are two proposed uranium mine that fall within the protected area around Mount Taylor.
State regulators were unable if a mining permit could be denied based on concerns about cultural sites. Despite mine developers saying they want to be good neighbors, lawmakers expressed concerns. State Senator Angel Charley pointed out that the Trump administration wants to remove tribal consultation from the federal review process for such projects.
Oracle spent millions on Project Jupiter advertising
The New Mexico State Ethics Commission on Wednesday said that Oracle spent more than $3.4 million on advertisements in New Mexico. The tech giant sought to influence the air quality permitting process for the Project Jupiter Data Center. Projections show that the data center could emit as many greenhouse gases as New Mexico's largest cities combined.
Source New Mexico reports that ad the push may have been the largest lobbying advertising campaign ever disclosed in the state.
The efforts included media production, polling and consulting. In addition to television ads, Oracle also funded paid canvassers, social media influencers and the website ProjectJupiterTogether.com.
The air quality permit hearing remains on hold while the New Mexico Supreme Court reviews a challenge to the hearing process.
The limitations of New Mexico's legal protections for immigrants
New Mexico has laws to protect immigrant communities from the Trump administration's mass detention and deportation system. But Public News Service’s Roz Brown reports on the limitations of the law.
