It s the latest flashpoint in a decades-long battle to find a home for the nation s nuclear waste and it s being waged by unlikely allies and competing interests in the hamlets north of New York City in the shadow of Indian Point s nuclear reactors and in the oil and gas fields of New Mexico.
In New Mexico, anti-nuclear groups and environmentalists have joined with the oil and gas industry in the Permian Basin to prevent Holtec from building an interim site midway between Carlsbad and Hobbs to store the nation s waste.
And in New York, local officials eager to find new uses for the Indian Point site have squared off against environmental groups who think it might be safest to keep the spent fuel there.
New Mexico makes hostile environment for oil, gas producers: Energy organizaiton by Elyse Kelly, The Center Square | December 29, 2020 11:00 AM Print this article
The New Mexico State Land Office will no longer allow oil refineries to use fresh water from state trust lands.
Companies holding easements that allow them to pump fresh water from government lands were notified of the policy change by Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard in a letter.
New Mexico has been in severe drought conditions this year. Garcia Richard’s letter noted the scarcity of fresh water in the state, and said the change is intended to push companies into using recycled or produced water.
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New Mexico’s fossil fuel market finished 2020 in recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and historic losses in the value of oil and gas and production levels throughout the state.
After April’s market crash to as low as -$40 per barrel, the lowest price in history, and a dramatic drop in New Mexico’s rig count by more than 60 percent in the months after the pandemic struck the state in March, the late fall and early winter saw some slight rebound.
But the market was still far off from the record-setting, pre-pandemic growth.
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By Susan Montoya Bryan, Associated Press
New Mexico is partnering with a national health care company to provide free, at-home COVID-19 test kits.
State health officials said Tuesday that the kits can be ordered via Vault Medical Services website. All that s needed is an internet connection, email address and a photo.
Recipients can mail the sample back for processing after self-administering the test with a virtual testing supervisor. Results will be returned within 24 to 48 hours of being received by the lab.
State officials acknowledged the lack of broadband access around New Mexico and said the new at-home option is meant to bolster the in-person testing clinics that have been operating since the pandemic began.