She was talking about how New Mexico lags behind every other state in the reintroduction of this native species (which, by the way, is NOT endangered, so there would be no land management issue associated with the program).  If you’re a fan of the slippery little critters, you might hear that and think, “Ack.  Yet another list where New Mexico falls last. How embarrassing.”  That’s what I thought, until Conn started talking about otter sourcing.  Yes, otter sourcing.

Conn says a decade ago when LOTS of states were launching otter reintroduction programs, there was a lively trade in Lontra canadensis, and even the grand opening of an otter farm somewhere in Louisiana.  Yarr! Step right up ladies and gentlemen!  It’s otter boom times!

Alas, by the time New Mexico showed up to the fair with ticket in hand, the carnies were closing up shop.  Now the opportunities to snap up a couple of otters are few and far between.  That’s why, says Conn, it was so disappointing when New Mexico recently had to turn down an offer of six river otters for the Gila because of controversy over the program’s potential impact on endangered fish.

Well, if the state ever does decide to move forward with an otter release, at least we can rest assured that, given what we know about the laws of supply and demand, there’s sure to be a black market somewhere.

Commissioners approved the resolution Tuesday after they were told by forecasters that the drought is expected to last another three months.

The Clovis News Journal reports the fire ban becomes effective immediately and contains limited exceptions for agriculture, such as controlled burns, under certain conditions.

The settlement includes funds for restoring habitat as well as the transfer to the state of 715 acres of land adjacent to the City of Rocks State Park.

State Parks Director Tommy Mutz says the land transfer include half of Table Mountain and a wetland site that’s ecologically significant.

As part of the settlement, the copper company will also reimburse the federal government nearly $60,000 for its remaining unpaid injury assessment costs.

Trustee Dave Martin says the state and federal trustees will prepare a draft restoration plan for public review that will propose projects that can be implemented with the settlement money.

Wherever you fall on the political spectrum, it’s hard not to find inspiration in Varner’s passion, humor and ability to get things done…all after retirement, nonetheless!  May we all succeed in revealing a bit of our own Varner-spark.  Whatever the cause.  Whichever the party.

KRQE reported Saturday that a worker at the Eagle Rock Convenience Center saw colleagues accepting residential waste laden with the hazardous material and reported it to managers, who ignored his claims.

The worker took his allegations to the Office of the Inspector General, which confirmed the claim after an investigation.

Acting City Solid Waste Director Jill Holbert says the agency overlooked the possibility that residential waste could be contaminated. She says the main source of the asbestos appeared to be tiles from homes.

The inspector general found the site had no procedures to screen for hazardous materials.

Holbert says workers have since been trained to identify and screen for asbestos.

But before I get to that, I want to share something I saw on Bernalillo County Commissioner Wayne Johnson’s website while working on this story about the proposal for septic system inspections.  In his bio, Johnson says he “came to New Mexico the unusual way… he was born here.”

So let me preface what I’m about to say with the fact that I’m, apparently, a “usual” New Mexican.  Which means there are likely many other “usual” New Mexicans hailing from the water-infested parts of the world who also have some learning to do (even the ones who took Earth Science– which I did!  I swear!)

I shall also introduce the following evidence on behalf of the defense:

These are just a few of the first images that popped up when I Googled “aquifer.”  Notice anything similar about them?  Blue.  Great swaths of blue.  Blue representing, what?  An underground lake?  River?  Swimming pool for moles?

What I’m getting at here is that at no point has an aquifer ever been presented to me as what I now understand it to be: mud.

Mud through which water travels at exceedingly slow speeds (even in the permeable desert).  This is a crucial point in understanding what’s going on in any story having to do with contamination of the groundwater.  Contamination does not hit the aquifer and instantly dilute like pee in a public pool.  No, the contamination travels at the same speed as the liquid carrying it: slowly.  Which is why, even though the Kirtland jet fuel spill is only 3,000 feet from the nearest drinking water well, it will take years for it to get there (not to make its clean up seem any less critical, because it will get there eventually).

Local water guy célèbre Bruce Thomson was recently kind enough to take his several decades of hydrology experience and, for my benefit, funnel it into the fine work of art and instruction you see here. 

Should this leave all you other “usual” New Mexicans wanting more, here are a few sites offering good, basic tutorials.  Things you’ll need to know if you ever want to pass as an “unusual” New Mexican.

The funk beat alone makes this one from the USGS worth a listen.

This one from the Idaho Museum of Natural History is also helpful, but still with the blue!  Come on people, how hard can it be to draw in a few pebbles?!

Ah, thank you Encyclopedia of the Earth.

The Las Cruces Sun-News (http://bit.ly/xy5jAG ) reports the House of Representatives voted Sunday to increase from two to four the number of bighorn permits that will be auctioned or raffled to hunters.

According to the state Department of Game and Fish, a hunting permit for one bighorn once brought $190,000 at auction.

The bill was approved last week by state senators. It now goes to the governor for consideration.

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lynnkitchellstock.deviantart.com

PHOENIX (AP) — A necropsy on an endangered Mexican gray wolf that died in December shows the animal was shot to death.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is offering a $10,000 reward for information on who shot the animal in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest in eastern Arizona.

A citizen reported seeing the injured wolf on November 23 near Big Lake, Ariz., and state wildlife officials captured it on Dec. 3. It died before it could be taken to a veterinarian.

The wolf was born earlier in 2011 and was wearing a radio-tracking collar.

There are only about 58 Mexican gray wolves in Arizona and New Mexico.

They were added to the federal endangered species list in 1976 after nearly going extinct. The federal government began a reintroduction effort in 1998.

It’s also the grand total of fines levied against oil and gas companies for drilling violations on public lands over the course of a decade.

Whether you’re of the “no fracking” ilk, or the “fracking-with-regulation” ilk, this report from Democrats on the House Natural Resources Committee should make you sit up a little straighter in your chair.

Among its key findings:

• In the years between 1998 and 2011, 2,025 safety and drilling violations were issued to 335 companies drilling in 17 states.
• Of those, 27 percent were classified by Committee staff as “major environmental or safety violations.”
• About a fifth of those had to do with deficiencies in casing and cementing (in fracking, the first line of defense in protecting water from drilling liquids).
• Out of all the 2,000+ violations, only six percent resulted in fines, totaling the aforementioned $273,875.
• Identical violations, sometimes within the same state, resulted in different penalties.

In New Mexico:

• 438 violations were cited (second in number only to Wyoming), resulting in 23 fines.
• The largest single fines, all $5,000, were against Apache Corporation for drilling a well without approval, J Cleo Thompson after ignoring 5 previous citations about a blowout preventer, and Chesapeake Operating for failure to get approval to expand a drilling pad.
• The companies with the highest number of citations include Cog Operating (25), Burlington Resources (24), Devon Energy (23), Energen (20), EOG Resources (19), Williams Production (16), and Conoco-Phillips (16)
• Apache racked up the biggest total in fines: a whopping $7,000.  Oh, and Apache’s profits last year?  $16 billion.

Not that big fines necessarily equal oversight, but what other indication do we have that it’s happening?

A spokesman with New Mexico Oil and Gas Association says the organization expects to have a response in a few days after looking over the details and substance of the report.