Non-Local News Releases

ALBUQUERQUE, NM – October 30, 2024 –Cibola National Forest & National Grasslands (NF & NG) did not proceed on ignitions today for the Tablazon prescribed fire (RX) project on the Sandia Ranger District due to unfavorable conditions.

Fire managers will continue to assess conditions in the coming days to ensure they fall within the range outlined in the prescribed fire plan before proceeding with the Tablazon RX fire. A final decision to proceed with a prescribed fire depends on agency administrator approval, resource availability, and favorable conditions including fuel moisture levels, air quality and forecast weather. If conditions are not met, the decision will be made to postpone until favorable conditions allow for successful operations.

N.M. Delegation Welcomes Over $4 Million From the Infrastructure Law to Enhance Safety, Reduce Delays at Railway Crossings, and Grow Local Economies in Clovis and San Juan County

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), and U.S. Representatives Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.), Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.), and Gabe Vasquez (D-N.M.) welcomed a combined $4,570,920 for two projects in New Mexico from the U.S. Department of Transportation to strengthen the nation's supply chain, reduce costs, and grow New Mexico's economy.

This fishing report, provided by the Department of Game and Fish in cooperation with Dustin Berg of www.gounlimited.org (“supporting disabled anglers”), has been generated from the best information available from area officers and anglers. Conditions encountered after the report is compiled may differ, as stream, lake and weather conditions alter fish and angler activities.

WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Tell us about your latest New Mexico fishing adventure, or your catch of the week. Send it to us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. We may include your story in our next report. For catches of the week include: name, age, hometown, date, location, type of fish, length and weight if possible, and bait, lure or fly used. Fish weights and measurements are provided by the angler and printed here as received. Photos containing sensitive material may be altered or excluded at the Department's discretion.

SANTA FE – The New Mexico Department of Game and Fish Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) Program is pleased to announce the following 2024-2025 grant cycle awards totaling $162,700: 

OHV Education and Trail Safety Grants -  

• $20,000 to Region II Emergency Medical Services, Inc., to distribute newly developed public-safety media campaigns that will help reduce preventable pediatric traumatic brain injuries among young OHV operators in Doña Ana, Grant, Hidalgo, Luna and Sierra counties. 

• $14,000 to the Red Rock Motorsports Club, Inc. of Gallup, New Mexico, to upgrade OHV park facilities and maintenance and erosion-mitigation projects at the City of Gallup’s Red Rock Motorsports Park. 

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LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The New Mexico Department of Agriculture (NMDA) has hired Les Owen to serve as its new Deputy Director/Secretary. Owen returns to NMDA – where he previously worked in natural resources policy planning – after serving as the Conservation Services Division Director at the Colorado Department of Agriculture for eight years.

Over the course of his career, Owen has held positions as a 4-H agricultural extension agent and as a research associate in what is now New Mexico State University's Department of Animal and Range Sciences. Owen has dedicated much of his career to effective agricultural land use and range management, energy development, soil and water conservation, wildlife habitat and endangered species conservation, as well as the management of natural resources in support of agriculture through communication, coordination and collaboration with federal, state and local government agencies and organizations.

Owen was raised on his family's ranch near Corona, New Mexico.

May Implement on Wednesday October 30
ALBUQUERQUE, NM – October 28, 2024 – Pending favorable conditions, fire managers on the Cibola National Forest & National Grasslands (NF & NGs) may implement the previously announced Tablazon prescribed fire (RX) on the Sandia Ranger District on Wednesday, October 30, 2024.

Fire crews plan to burn approximately 207 acres, split into several different units in the Tablazon Canyon area, in the Manzanita Mountains. Tablazon is located south of HWY 333, south of Lower Pine trailhead and east of FSRD 462. Map attached. Visitors may be impacted by the Cedro, Bear Scat, Lower Pine, Tablazon and Coyote trails system. Smoke may be visible in the surrounding areas of Tijeras, Edgewood, Moriarty and Albuquerque.

SANTA FE – The New Mexico Higher Education Department is granting student debt relief to more than 500 health professionals working in New Mexico as part of the agency’s Health Professional Loan Repayment Program, further strengthening an important mechanism for health professional recruitment and retention in the state. 

The 524 new awardees for Fiscal Year 2025 will receive student debt relief on the condition of maintaining a three-year commitment to working in high-need communities across the state. The recipients are 150 allied health practitioners, 134 mental health professionals, 132 nurses, 94 medical doctors and 14 dental professionals. 

 Order Number 03-03-02-24-12

Albuquerque, NM, October 28, 2024 – A Temporary Area Closure Order (03-03-02-24-12) has been reissued within the Mt. Taylor Ranger District, Cibola National Forest, McKinley County, New Mexico. The previously announced launch dates in October were postponed by White Sands Missile Range. A launch is tentatively rescheduled for Saturday, November 2 with a backup date of Sunday, November 3 requiring an area closure order within the Mt Taylor Ranger District.

This Order shall be in effect from November 1, 2024, at 2:00 PM, through November 3, 2024, at 4 PM unless rescinded.