Hot spots kept firefighters from being able to fully contain a brush fire in the bosque outside Pojoaque that was sparked at about 1pm yesterday. That, according to the Santa Fe New Mexican, which reports firefighters from three counties plus the US Forest Service, State Forestry and Espanola fought 60 mile per hour winds. No injuries were noted by the New Mexican. The fire was contained later Tuesday afternoon, after blackening some 30 acres of bosque west of Pojoaque.
The Associated Press reports that environmentalists are challenging decades-old permits that allow one of New Mexico’s major irrigation districts to pull water from the Rio Grande, saying the district has failed to prove to state regulators that it’s putting the water to beneficial use. The lawsuit filed in state district court in Santa Fe comes as federal officials warned Tuesday that climate change is expected to leave even less water in the river for municipalities, farmers and endangered species. The Rio Grande stretches from southern Colorado, through New Mexico and Texas and down to Mexico. More than 6 million people in several major cities depend on it and it irrigates more than 3,100 square miles of farmland in the U.S. and Mexico. Federal water managers over the last four years have tried to define current and future imbalances in supply and demand throughout the basin. The US Interior Department recently reported that, “The reliability of the Rio Grande to meet future needs in the study area is severely compromised by a growing gap between demand and availability and the potential for diminishing supplies due to climate change and competing uses.” They pointed to warmer temperatures, less precipitation and diminishing snowpack. They also warned that low flows would become more frequent due to climate change. In recent years, stretches of the river have gone dry in New Mexico and flows often don’t reach the Gulf of Mexico. The flows are the focus of the legal challenge filed this week by WildEarth Guardians. The environmental group claims the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District — which delivers irrigation water to more than 100 square miles of cropland in central New Mexico — has failed to prove to the state engineer’s office that the water being diverted under permits issued more than 80 years ago is being put to beneficial use. Under state law, the state engineer has a duty to require a user to submit that proof if the permit is to stand.
A former Corrales municipal judge and disbarred attorney has been indicted for allegedly embezzling workers' compensation benefits. Prosecutors say a Bernalillo County grand jury has charged Luis Quintana with two counts of embezzlement including one of more than $20,000. They say one felony count carries a maximum penalty of nine years in the state prison and a $10,000 fine. The other felony count is punishable by up to a three-year prison term and a $5,000 fine. Quintana was representing one worker who suffered a head injury and eventually died late last year. He's accused of embezzling his clients' benefits, totaling more than $31,000. Quintana was disbarred by the New Mexico Supreme Court in May 2015 and suspended as municipal judge without pay earlier this year. He's scheduled to be arraigned on April 1.
The New Mexico Attorney General's Office is pushing for an initial court hearing to present fraud charges against a former state senator after several judges have recused themselves from the case. Revised charges against former Democratic Sen. Phil Griego were filed Tuesday in state First Judicial District Court in Santa Fe. Four judges have bowed out of taking the case since a nine-count criminal complaint was filed against Griego on Feb. 29. Griego maintains his innocence and has not yet formally entered a plea. Prosecutors say Griego used his role as a legislator to receive personal compensation in a real estate deal and then failed to disclose it as required by state law.
The Valle de Oro National Wildlife Refuge on the southern edge of New Mexico's largest city will be getting an extra $1 million in funding. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced the funding Tuesday, saying the refuge will use it to engage urban communities and youth in conservation and outdoor recreation. The refuge is located a few miles from downtown Albuquerque. It has been working with the community to create opportunities to connect with families and students. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Dan Ashe says Valle de Oro has the potential to become an essential ecological, education and creational resource for the Albuquerque area and the region. The refuge was established in 2012.
Some University of New Mexico students will have to pay more per semester now that regents have approved a 2.5 tuition hike and a 10 percent increase in student fees. The regents voted on the increases during their budget summit Tuesday. The university's administration had proposed a 3 percent tuition increase, but regents moved to lessen the amount after hearing from faculty and student representatives. Regents did approve tuition increases for the university's branch campuses, but agreed to a 1.1 percent tuition decrease for medical school students. The university faced a funding shortfall in the wake of a legislative session that saw state lawmakers trim higher education spending due to evaporating revenues. University officials also are expecting lower enrollment next fall. No word on whether the school plans to reduce or eliminate the two-week paid vacation it provides to all UNM staff during each winter break in December.
New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas is supporting efforts by the U.S. Education Department to clarify rules for forgiving student loans in cases where the borrowers are defrauded. Balderas is among the several attorneys general who sent a letter this week to Joseph Smith, the Education Department's special master. The attorneys say they're familiar with the fraud and abuse committed by certain schools in an effort to secure federal loan funds and the devastation that follows for borrowers. They agree with the department's goal of making the process of forgiving loans transparent and fair. They also called for changes to the draft rules, including removing any statute of limitations. They argue victimized students are often unfamiliar with their legal rights and unaware of the violations until years later, if ever.