New Mexico Monument Project Seeks Input On Air Tour Plan-Associated Press
The public will have a chance to weigh in on a plan to allow air tours over Bandelier National Monument in New Mexico.
The National Park Service and the Federal Aviation Administration are asking for public comment on the draft of the proposed Air Tour Management Plan.
Under the plan up to 101 air tours would be allowed each year across nine defined routes. That number is based on the average number that were reported over the monument between 2017 and 2019.
Comments can be submitted through the Park Service's planning, environment and public comment website now through Oct. 3. The project's plans are also available to look at on the website.
There are concerns air tours could damage wildlife and other natural and cultural resources.
Bandelier National Monument is among two dozen parks in the National Park System considering air tour management plans. It is about 30 miles northwest from Santa Fe and protects more than 50 square miles of historical Native American territory.
23 Homes On The Navajo Nation Finally Getting Electricity- Associated Press
Tribal President Jonathan Nez has finalized a subgrant agreement between the Navajo Nation and Navajo Tribal Utility Authority to extend power lines to homes in the community of Tonalea, providing long-awaited electricity to at least 23 families.
Several Tonalea residents scheduled to receive electricity attended Saturday’s signing of the agreement for the 23 homes located in the former Bennett Freeze area.
Selena Slim said she has lived in Tonalea her entire life without electricity and spends $75 on a regular basis to purchase gasoline for her generator to provide electric power for her home.
Slim recalled when schools switched to virtual learning at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, she had to pay even more money for gasoline to provide internet service for her children to complete online instruction.
At Saturday’s signing, Nez spoke about the importance of building and improving the tribe’s infrastructure to provide long-term benefits for communities and families.
In 2019, Nez and tribal Vice President Lizer approved $3 million for the design and construction of a new chapter house, which is near completion.
The tribe’s reservation is the country’s largest at 27,000 square miles and it covers parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah.
Kirtland Air Force Base To Break Ground On New Laboratory - Associated Press
Kirtland Air Force Base will be home to a state-of-the-art laboratory for development of space technology, officials said.
Officials there will break ground next week on the Wargaming and Advanced Research Simulation Laboratory.
The $6 million, 10,685-square-foot facility will be used for simulations and analysis involving space technology research and development. This includes creating a virtual terrain where warfighters can act out scenarios using energy and space technology.
It all falls under the Air Force Research Laboratory Space Vehicles Directorate.
The groundbreaking event is scheduled for Sept. 8 at 10 a.m.
Albuquerque Jail Offers Treatment For Opioid Addiction – Associated Press
The Metropolitan Detention Center in Albuquerque has begun a program to give buprenorphine to people in jail who are already using it to treat their opioid addictions.
The Albuquerque Journal reports that the buprenorphine maintenance program can provide an average of 22 inmates per day with the medication.
Recovery Services of New Mexico -- a treatment organization run by BayMark Health Services -- received a contract to provide the medication at the jail late last year. The county signed a two-year contract agreeing to pay the organization just under $250,000 for services and $312,400 for the medication itself.
Recovery Services has been providing another medication-assisted treatment -- methadone -- in the jail for years.
For now, Recovery Services will provide buprenorphine only to those who had already been using the medication before they were locked up. However, Evan Gonzales, a spokesman for Bernalillo County's Department of Behavioral Health Services, said, the county will explore expanding the program to start people on the treatment.