19 staff members, 10 students tested positive.

SANTA FE— The Public Education Department on Oct. 29 announced 29 new positive cases of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours. Rapid response has been initiated, and all pertinent information has been verified with the schools and school districts. The following new cases have been reported:

§  Four cases in McKinley County. All of the infected individuals are staff members who were last on school property Oct. 27 and 28.

§  Five cases in Bernalillo County. All of the infected individuals are staff members who were last on school property Oct. 28.

§  One case in Chaves County. The infected individual is a student who was last on...

State delegation requests a full accounting of federal PPE distribution

WASHINGTON—U.S. Senators Tom Udall, D-N.M. and Martin Heinrich, D-N.M. and U.S. Representatives Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., Deb Haaland, D-N.M. and Xochitl Torres Small, D-N.M. urged officials in the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services  to distribute adequate supplies of personal protective equipment  from the Strategic National Stockpile  to New Mexico so the state and its Native communities may properly prepare for the coming winter months. New Mexico is currently experiencing a spike in COVID-19 infections, as its rate of new infections is one of...

SANTA FE – Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and state behavioral health officials highlighted resources Oct. 27  to support New Mexicans during the ongoing health emergency.

“For many, the pandemic is a source of fear, anxiety, and uncertainty – but there is plenty we can do to take care of ourselves and our loved ones,” the governor said. “And it’s essential that we take time for genuine self-care. That’s how we’ll find the calm and stability to weather this time – together.”

“Even when we’re quarantining, we’re still all in this together,” New Mexico Behavioral Health Collaborative CEO Bryce Pittenger said. “Please reach out to mental health providers...

Week ending Friday, October 23, 2020

Pre Dust Bowl?

A new study finds dust levels are rising in the American Great Plains due to farming practices and climate trends that scientists say are reminiscent of the lead-up to the 1930s Dust Bowl period. The University of Utah research finds that the amount of dust has risen up to 5percent per year, which coincides with the expansion of cropland and seasonal crop cycles. Writing in Geophysical Research Letters, the scientists suggest farming practices could now be exposing more soil to wind erosion, albeit much less than when 1920s Midwestern farmers were tilling the topsoil with mechanical plows. This led to the Dust Bowl after severe...