Looming federal cuts to NMHU’s fire research could threaten its survival
—Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico
Officials from a conservation institute at New Mexico Highlands University say the institute will survive federal cuts through at least the end of the year, but will need help after that.
The New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute at NM Highlands University comprises one-third of the Southwest Ecological Restoration Institutes — SWERI —a collaborative that includes Colorado State University and Northern Arizona University.
As the United States Forest Service slashes spending on research and other scientific endeavors, SWERI’s funding decreased from about $6.6 million to $3 million for the remaining few months of the federal fiscal year. Highlands’ piece of that is $1 million, according to Gilbert “Buddy” Rivera, the chief of staff of the institute at the university in Las Vegas, NM, said during a presentation Tuesday afternoon to the interim legislative Science, Technology and Telecommunications Committee.
The upcoming fiscal year budget eliminates all SWERI funding, according to Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz’s exchange with U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich early last month. During the June 11 exchange, Schultz defended the cuts to SWERI as a necessary money-saving measure.
“The funding in the future is going to have to come more from those universities themselves and other grant opportunities,” Schultz said. “The Forest Service is going to be shifting its funding away from [research and development] in general in the budget.”
Rivera’s comments on the institute’s fiscal future came during a hearing in which he and colleagues demonstrated to lawmakers the wildfire maps they developed that aim to compile “critical” wildfire information for New Mexicans dealing with wildfires. The institute created its first map during the Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon Fire in 2022, compiling multiple different data sources into a single map with fire boundaries, satellite imagery, smoke forecasts, building footprints and more, Rivera said.
The map has been viewed more than 300,000 times, according to Rivera’s presentation. A similar map the team made for the South Fork and Salt Fires in Ruidoso last summer has received more than 175,000 views.
The maps constitute just one component of the work at the institute, Rivera said, which employs between 22 and 26 full-time staff, along with up to four students and interns. The institute also performs ecological monitoring with the help of a field crew and research on “the fire-vulnerable human and ecological systems of the Southwest,” according to the presentation.
Heinrich, in his exchange with Schultz, asked the Forest Service to reconsider the cuts because institutes like the one at Highlands “have really provided the Forest Service an enormous amount of science” amid rapidly changing forest conditions.
Rivera said the institute is staying afloat this summer with the help of outside grants. Going forward, the New Mexico Higher Education Department’s Research and Public Service Projects could help provide a funding stream. The agency recently provided guidance to universities on finding funding for projects the federal government just cut.
But if the Forest Service carries through on its promise to eliminate all SWERI’s funding next year, “we’ll have to do some head scratching,” he said.
Middle Mesa Fire grows to 1,100 acres in northern New Mexico - John Miller, Albuquerque Journal
A wildfire burning east of Navajo Lake in the Jicarilla Ranger District of Carson National Forest grew to 1,100 acres on Sunday night as fire crews added air support to fight the blaze.
The Middle Mesa Fire ignited due to lightning strikes on Friday, according to a news release issued on Sunday by Zach Behrens, public affairs officer for the Carson. The fire was initially estimated at 500 acres but grew moderately due to strong winds from nearby thunderstorms on Friday, burning through the crowns of piñon, juniper, ponderosa and mixed conifer.
The fire was 0% contained as of Sunday night.
Increasing humidity levels and calmer weather over the weekend enabled fire ground crews, deployed on Friday, to expand their attack to include air support. A total of 124 personnel, six fire engines, three water tender, three hand crews, one helicopter, one air attack and tankers were engaged in fire suppression efforts on Sunday. More support was expected to arrive throughout the day.
“Ground crews patrolled and monitored the fire’s edge, especially along Forest Service roads 218 and 218B, extinguishing spots and slopovers,” reads Sunday’s news release. “By air, very large air tankers from the Durango Air Tanker Base (dropped retardant) on the fire’s northern and southern flanks.”
On Sunday night, crews are planning to “conduct a strategic firing operation in front of the fire’s head, where retardant drops are planned for Sunday.”
A flight restriction remains in effect for the area. The release noted that “two small aircraft incursions” into the firefighting airspace on Sunday caused the temporary suspension of air support for the fire. Pilots are asked to check Notice to Air Missions before and during flights to remain aware of flight restrictions.
For updates on the fire, visit the Carson’s Current Wildfire Activity webpage. More information can also be found on nmfireinfo.com and InciWeb.
NM Senators seek seed funding to expand habitat restoration programs - Danielle Prokop, Source New Mexico
New Mexico United States senators introduced federal legislation Friday to expand tree nursery capacity for forest replanting and habitat restoration programs.
U.S. Sens.Ben Ray Luján and Martin Heinrich, both Democrats, joined John Cornyn (R-Texas) to sponsor the bill. The legislation, if passed, would allow funding allocated by the 2022 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to support bigger facilities for seedling nurseries at state forestry, private organizations, nonprofits and higher education institutes.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed more $1.5 billion in state and private forestry, including hundreds of millions for reforestation, but cannot be used for building physical structures to increase the nurseries.
The funding would be available for expanding public forestry development, such as the John T. Harrington Forestry Research Center in Mora County.
“In New Mexico and across the country, our forests play a vital role in every community,” Luján said in a statement. “Tragically, over the last 20 years, our country has lost tree cover at an alarming rate, disrupting our ecosystem and the critical benefits it provides. That’s why I’m leading this bipartisan legislation that addresses this shortage by allowing funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to be used to support the development of seedling nurseries and the rapid expansion of crucial seedlings nationwide.”
New Mexico’s state forester estimated the state needs between 150 and 390 million seedlings to restore forests in burned areas. Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon Fire burn scar will require 26 million seedlings, researchers said.
The state previously received federal funding to increase the capacity of the nursery in Mora County to eventually grow 5 million seedlings per year. Currently, the center produces just 300,000 seedlings annually.
The center, jointly operated by University of New Mexico, New Mexico State University, New Mexico Highlands University and the state Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department would seek funds if the bill passes, officials said.
“This bill will provide New Mexico with much-needed support to develop our state nursery and increase the production of drought-tolerant tree seedlings,” said EMNRD Secretary Melanie Kenderdine in a statement. “This legislation will help us grow and plant trees that will stabilize burned watersheds and reduce damage from post-wildfire flooding.”
DOH reports another measles exposure in Santa Fe — Daniel Montaño, KUNM News
The New Mexico Department of Health announced last Friday a child from another state visited New Mexico while infected with measles, possibly exposing people in Santa Fe.
DOH identified two potential exposure sites. One was at Meow Wolf on Saturday from 10:45 a.m. until 3:45p.m., and the second was at The Hampton Inn at 3430 Cerillos Road from Friday at 10:00 p.m. until Saturday at 12:30 p.m..
Anyone present at the exposure sites should check their vaccination status and report any measles symptoms in the next 3 weeks to their health care provider.
Medical Epidemiologist with DOH, Dr. Chad Smelser said summer travel can increase the risk of catching measles, and he urges residents to make sure they are up to date on the Measles, Mumps and Rubella, or MMR, vaccination before travelling.
Measles symptoms develop between one and three weeks after exposure and can include a fever, cough, runny rose and red eyes, followed by a red spotted rash.
Since the case concerns an out-of-state resident, it does not raise New Mexico’s case count, which stands at 96.
Information from the DOH about measles can be found at their outbreak guidance website.
Two historic sites approved for the State Register of Cultural Properties - Elizabeth Secor, Albuquerque Journal
A state agency tasked with protecting, preserving and interpreting the unique character of New Mexico has approved the addition of two historic districts for state and national registers.
The Cultural Properties Review Committee within the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs is adding Fort Wingate near Gallup and Albuquerque’s University Heights neighborhood to the State Register of Cultural Properties.
“The State Register of Cultural Properties is a program that’s enshrined in the state’s Cultural Properties Act,” said Steven Moffson, New Mexico Historic Preservation Division state and national register coordinator. “Our office, the Historic Preservation Division, has a responsibility to identify and list in the state register properties that meet the criteria for listing.”
Benefits of being added to the state register include being listed as a historic property and potential tax credits for approved rehabilitations, according to a video from the New Mexico Historic Preservation Division. The New Mexico Historic Preservation Division has been working with the community to get these historic sites proposed and approved.
“The University Heights nomination was first a student effort; students in the historic preservation program at (the University of New Mexico) wrote a draft nomination,” Moffson said. “That’s what formed the basis of our effort to list it in the state and national register.”
Moffson says that the University Heights nomination was exciting because, although it was not the largest in terms of acreage, it was notable in terms of density. The area is in the East Mesa area and a block south of UNM.
“It’s one of the densest nominations that our office has done in a long time,” Moffson said. “There’s about 1,000 houses listed in that district.”
According to the National Register of Historic Places registration form, houses in the district have traditional architectural styles from 1925 to the 1960s.
“University Heights, which retains high levels of location, setting, design, materials, and workmanship, also includes association with its significance as an early suburb on the East Mesa of Albuquerque because its gridiron plan is consistent with traditional planning efforts by the city before the Second World War. Its houses reflect architectural trends before and after the war,” according to the form.
Fort Wingate, outside Gallup, was added to the National Register in 1978, but the listing concentrated on the small area of the fort, according to Moffson. The approved proposal expands the boundaries and adds documentation to the Fort Wingate Historic District.
“It really concentrated on military history,” Moffson said. “And what we have done very recently is to identify the importance of the Fort Wingate, as an Indian school.”
The boarding school ran from 1926 to 2009, according to the National Register of Historic Places registration form for the expansion proposal.
“In later years, the school embraced Navajo cultural practices and even taught the Navajo language. Unlike many Indian boarding schools, Fort Wingate is remembered fondly by former Navajo students and other tribal members who wish to see it recognized as a historic site,” according to the form.
Identifying and preserving these historical sites is important because “history is part of the built environment” for people, according to Moffson.
“(History is) part of the buildings and landscapes that they can see, these often remind people of important historic events or important architecture,” Moffson said. “When we lose these important places, they’re often just no longer in mind, and they could be forgotten.”