I am writing today to announce the closure of the New Mexico Independent. After three and a half years of operation in New Mexico, the board of the American Independent News Network, has decided to shift publication of its news…
While environmental activists played their part yesterday during demonstrations at the capitol building, going so far as to dress up as solar panels and to sing the tune of “You Are My Sunshine,” their counterparts, the anti-cap-and-trade contingency who has…
Roughly one quarter of University of New Mexico students are unimpressed with the state’s flagship public school, according to a survey that questioned college students about their higher education experiences.
A wilderness area proposed by U.S. Senators Jeff Bingaman and Tom Udall could be more open to motor vehicle traffic after the senators decided to make changes to the Organ Mountains –Desert Peaks Wilderness Act that would give Border Patrol more access.
The bill would create large wilderness and conservation areas in Doña Ana County, including the Organ Mountains and Potrillo Mountains. Wilderness areas are generally closed to cars, trucks, ATVs and other forms of motor vehicles. But in response to Border Patrol concerns and requests from residents, the proposal has been changed to allow Border Patrol vehicles to operate across a large swath of the area near the border.
The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee is expected to discuss the bill soon. If it makes it through that committee, the bill will then proceed to the full Senate.
Here’s an excerpt of a release that Bingaman’s office put out yesterday, explaining the carve-out:
Because of the way the boundary was originally drawn by the Reagan Administration, the Border Patrol has a buffer of only 1/3 of a mile from the international border and is currently limited in its ability to conduct routine vehicle patrols north of Highway 9.
Acknowledging this border security challenge, S. 1689 proposed to release nearly 16,000 acres along the southern border that had previously been designated as wilderness study area. It also expanded the buffer from 1/3 of a mile to approximately three miles and carved out specific areas that Border Patrol requested to place its Mobile Surveillance System vehicles. These moves, among others, were developed in direct consultation with Border Patrol and aimed at providing law enforcement with increased flexibility in the area.
But at a February Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing in Las Cruces, residents asked the lawmakers to further strengthen the security provisions. Again working with Border Patrol, the lawmakers developed the new proposal unveiled today. It includes the nearly 3 miles of non-wilderness buffer area contained in the original bill, but adds an additional 2-mile “Restricted Use Area.” This area would prohibit motorized access by the general public, but it will permit the Border Patrol to conduct routine patrols and construct communication and surveillance infrastructure as it would on regular multiple-use land. The revised bill now proposes to un-designate over 30,000 acres of land currently designated as wilderness study area.
