As part of its “Just Transition” plan for Hayden, Xcel Energy is proposing the creation of a 19-megawatt biomass plant at the Hayden Generating Station with the two aging units at the coal-fired power plant set to be retired in 2027 and 2028. The biomass unit would utilize primarily forest waste resulting from fire prevention activities and residual debris from beetle-killed trees, according to the Xcel report. Xcel’s Clean Energy Plan proposes to double the amount of renewable energy on the system and invest up to $15 billion across Colorado while taking advantage of $10 billion in Inflation Reduction Act tax credit benefits to reduce costs and support customers, communities and workers. [Steamboat Pilot and Today]The move comes in tandem with complaints by the utility that rooftop solar could sink its very existence.
9/25/23
Now Xcel wants to burn biomass at Colorado coal plant
9/24/23
Trump appointees reject suit to block exploration in Sky Islands
EarthJustice attorney Scott W. Stern asked the 9th Circuit Court in San Francisco to intervene, arguing for an expedited ruling as "ground-disturbing development activities" involving the challenged projects would begin as early as September 15, 2023. South32 has two projects in the Patagonia Mountains. Along with the small Flux Canyon project, the company has launched the Hermosa project, which will move to extract high-grade zinc-lead-silver and "battery-grade" manganese that could be central to building high-capacity batteries for electric cars. For months, the projects have faced a salvo of challenges and in June, EarthJustice sought a preliminary injunction against the Forest Service, arguing the Patagonia Mountains "and the rare and imperiled species they host—now face a severe threat." [9th Circuit rejects attempt to stall mining projects near Patagonia]Half of all migratory birds in North America move through the Patagonia, Arizona flyway along the San Pedro River and Sonoita Creek. Standing water at any mine that extracts heavy metals puts wildlife at risk.
9/21/23
Looks like my home town has changed some
“People say they’re stealing American jobs. Find me one person who wants to work as hard as they do,” said Amanda Odegaard. Odegaard is the business manager for Hilltop Dairy just outside Elkton, South Dakota. The majority of Hilltop’s 24 employees immigrated from Central and South America. Felipe Huerta emigrated from Mexico in the early 2000s. He has worked at Hilltop for 14 years. He started on the milking floor and now is the farm’s breeder. [Spanish-speaking immigrants help revitalize rural America]Yes, socialized agriculture, socialized dairies, socialized cheese, socialized livestock production, a socialized timber industry, socialized air service, socialized freight rail, a socialized nursing home industry, socialized water systems and now a socialized internet are all fine with Republicans in South Dakota but then they insist single-payer medical insurance is socialized medicine.
9/20/23
Mertz: BHNF a 'mess'
After a century of fire suppression, a decades-long moratorium on prescribed burns, a lack of environmental litigators and GOP retrenchment the Black Hills National Forest has been broken for decades.
I’d be glad to. It’s a good article that sums things up pretty well. In short, things are a mess on the Black Hills NF right now. Last spring, Jeff Tomac, who was the Forest Supervisor, was removed from his position by the Regional Forester, Frank Beum. To this day, there has not been an explanation why. People suspect, myself included, it was because he wouldn’t play ball in the overcutting of the Forest and he paid a price for that.
Subsequently, they have had a series of Acting Forest Supervisors. The Forest has some great employees, but they are under tremendous pressure (from the RO and WO [Regional Office and Washington Office]) to keep getting the cut out at levels that they can no longer produce. Everyone in the Agency knows what a mess the Black Hills is right now, and no one wants to touch it with a ten-foot pole. It’s just a sad situation and it’s not the fault of the Forest employees. [Dave Mertz, blog comment]Mertz believes discussions about the US Forest Service will heat up during farm bill negotiations because for some stupid reason the FS is in the US Department of Agriculture instead of in Interior where the agency belongs.
9/19/23
California to tax guns and ammo to slow violence, raise awareness
More than 3,000 Californians’ lives were lost to gunfire last year, about half of them by homicide. Sustaining these public safety initiatives in cities across the state takes predictable, continuing funding. Recognizing this, Los Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore has backed this legislation, citing a sharp decline in firearm-related homicides since violence intervention programs were implemented. If we can have a federal tax on guns dedicated to conserving wildlife, a state tax dedicated to reducing human carnage is eminently reasonable. [Opinion: Here’s how a California tax on firearms would prevent gun violence and save lives]
What if people under 21 can't buy guns? California wants a new amendment to the U.S. Constitution that would the change the minimum age to buy a gun. https://t.co/IbJhRqxBI7
— USA TODAY (@USATODAY) September 15, 2023
9/18/23
Xcel whines that rooftop solar could be 'fatally disruptive'
“Our goal is to be sure any homeowner who’s interested in going solar in the county has an easy on-ramp to achieving that,” said Tanner Simeon-Cox, a program director with Solar United Neighbors. Xcel Energy, the state’s largest utility that uses fossil fuels to generate 58% of its Colorado electricity, has, along with many utilities, viewed distributed energy as potentially fatally disruptive to its business model. [Interested in rooftop solar? New co-op kicks off in Boulder County to get residents cheaper rates]In Colorado Xcel charges homeowners 17 cents a kilowatt hour in base rates but only pays 8 cents per kWh to subscribers with rooftop solar who sell their home grown power. So, don't tie your system to the grid but if you use it as a backup keep your own electricity completely separate from the utility that reads your meter.
Rooftop solar is booming. Monopoly utilities don’t like it.https://t.co/jpFB9wwmeD
— Derek Cressman (@DerekCressman) September 13, 2023
9/17/23
Teams from the Black Hills headed to Farmington for annular eclipse
Peggy Norris, the former deputy director of education at the Sanford Underground Lab will lead the trip. She says they’re going to Farmington with a mission from NASA. “NASA has some specific goals to take some scientific data during the eclipse of the changes in the atmospheric conditions – like how it gets cool, and what happens at 85,000 feet where the balloon is,” Norris said. [Bill Janklow's idea of public radio]ip image: annular eclipse at sunset from May, 2012.
9/16/23
APD out of control
Albuquerque police killed more people last year than nearly any other police department in the country, perpetuating a reputation for excessive force that even the U.S. Department of Justice hasn’t managed to rectify despite a nearly 10-year effort. In 2022, the city’s police force logged a record 18 shootings — killing 10. That grim number of fatalities was exceeded by only three U.S. cities — Los Angeles, New York and Houston — all of which dwarf Albuquerque in population. When law enforcement agencies investigate a police shooting, deference can seem blatant, critics say. Across much of the state, for example, State Police lead the investigation into a police shooting and forward their findings to the local DA’s office. In the last 10 years, such a case has never led to criminal charges. [Hundreds of police killings. Two prosecutions. No jail time.]Albuquerque is the very definition of free market trickle down economics where the outlaw motorcycle gangs or OMGs trade firearms to the cartels and splay vengeance on the rank and file thugs on the streets when profits lag.
9/15/23
Humanity has driven Earth past six of nine planetary boundaries
This planetary boundaries framework update finds that six of the nine boundaries are transgressed, suggesting that Earth is now well outside of the safe operating space for humanity. Ocean acidification is close to being breached, while aerosol loading regionally exceeds the boundary. Stratospheric ozone levels have slightly recovered. The transgression level has increased for all boundaries earlier identified as overstepped. As primary production drives Earth system biosphere functions, human appropriation of net primary production is proposed as a control variable for functional biosphere integrity. This boundary is also transgressed. Earth system modeling of different levels of the transgression of the climate and land system change boundaries illustrates that these anthropogenic impacts on Earth system must be considered in a systemic context. [Earth beyond six of nine planetary boundaries]In 1991 after the Soviet Union fell Republicans began their war on the environment substituting a new Green Scare for the old Red Scare. This blog was established in 2010 as a vehicle for rewilding the American West.
The CO2 Coalition, established by William Happer, a senior director with the White House National Security Council, has received more than $1 million from energy executives and conservative foundations that fight regulations since it was founded four years ago. The group is stacked with researchers who cast doubt on climate science. Other members have spent years fighting regulations that would reduce fossil fuel consumption. The largest donation — $170,000 — came from the Mercer Family Foundation, a top donor to President Trump. The Mercers have also contributed more than $7 million to the Heartland Institute, which attacks climate science. The Charles Koch Institute provided $33,283 to the CO2 Coalition, while the Wisconsin-based Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation donated $50,000. The Sarah Scaife Foundation contributed $135,000, and the Florida-based Thomas W. Smith Foundation gave $75,000. EOG Resources Inc., an oil and gas company spun off from Enron Corp., gave $5,000. The Randolph Foundation in New York provided $40,000. [Trump adviser created group to defend CO2]In March the CO2 Coalition was booted from the National Science Teaching Association’s convention in Atlanta.
Carbon dioxide (CO₂) averaged about 420 ppm in August 2023
— Zack Labe (@ZLabe) September 11, 2023
10 years ago August averaged about 395 ppm
+ Preliminary data (@NOAA_ESRL): https://t.co/81JQavZo7r pic.twitter.com/EZx4dMH9M0
9/14/23
New Mexico, Minnesota Oklahoma sued to block traitor from state ballots
John Anthony Castro, a 2024 Republican Presidential candidate, has filed a lawsuit against former President Donald Trump and New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver. The lawsuit was filed on Friday, Sept. 8. It looks to remove Trump from the New Mexico Republican primary election and the 2024 presidential ballot in the state. [KOAT teevee]And.
Some prominent Minnesotans filed a lawsuit Tuesday asking the state Supreme Court to keep former President Donald Trump's name off the 2024 Minnesota presidential primary and general election ballot. The lawsuit was filed by a group called Free Speech For People, on behalf of several Minnesota voters including former DFL Secretary of State Joan Growe and former state Supreme Court Justice Paul Anderson. [MPR News]And.
The write-in candidate John Anthony Castro claims Trump provided aid or comfort to those who participated in the Jan. 6 insurrection. The suit is filed in the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma. Trump and the Secretary of the Oklahoma State Election Board are named. [KJRH teevee]
The silver lining on this Fourteenth Amendment issue, however, is that I have not as yet seen one single article that has raised serious question about the applicability of Section 3 to the former president.
— @judgeluttig (@judgeluttig) September 10, 2023
This excerpt from @mckaycoppins' Romney book is pretty ugly for McConnell. This is about the *first* Trump impeachment. https://t.co/I7LW3GtRA9 pic.twitter.com/QqZaGivdni
— Jim Newell (@jim_newell) September 13, 2023
Did you know that at least eight public officials have been formally adjudicated to be disqualified and barred from public office under Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment since its ratification in 1868? https://t.co/d4c2NTYKfa
— Citizens for Ethics (@CREWcrew) September 12, 2023
9/12/23
Food giants' merger concerns AGs, locals
9/11/23
Women flocking to New Mexico, Colorado for reproductive care
9/10/23
Arizona next to tackle American football?
The reality looks even more grim following a recent study published by the Boston University CTE Center. Diego Mastroeni, an Associate Research Professor at Arizona State’s Neurodegenerative Disease Research Center, says the outlook for teenage brain development is concerning. Researchers have found that the worst damage to brains comes from repeated blows to the head, rather than one large collision. Athletes will often fail to notice the smaller hits. “Most of those you don’t really feel,” Mastroeni said. [CTE study reveals alarming numbers about athletes who died before reaching 30]The NFL, the Fox group and the Trump Organization are among the country's most hated companies. Dissolving the NFL then ending college and high school ball can't happen soon enough.
9/9/23
The SDGOP is splitting and it's good
The state’s all-Republican, three-member congressional delegation — Sens. John Thune and Mike Rounds, and Rep. Dusty Johnson — did not attend the event in the ice arena at The Monument. Their absence was loudly noted several times by a crowd of about 7,000. In a piece of rhetoric aimed at South Dakota’s agricultural industry, Trump boasted that “farmers picked up big, fat, beautiful checks” during his administration, thanks to his efforts to secure government payments to farmers during the pandemic. [Trump rally highlights Republican division with booing of absent Thune, Rounds, Johnson]Now, in addition to a traitor piling on already stressed farmers the state's Republican-glutted public utility commission has rejected one carbon dioxide pipeline and all but sank another proposed by Summit Carbon Solutions splitting Republicans even more.
9/7/23
After success in New Mexico CREW leading suit to block traitor Trump from Colorado ballot
Wednesday's suit against Trump was filed, with CREW's attorneys, by six Republican and unaffiliated Colorado voters, including former state, federal and local officials. CREW President Noah Bookbinder said that the organization is bringing the lawsuit because “it is necessary to defend our republic both today and in the future.” [ABC News]New Mexico was one of seven states where fake electors were recruited to steal the 2020 presidential election for Trump.
The 14th Amendment disqualifies Donald Trump from office.
— Citizens for Ethics (@CREWcrew) September 6, 2023
How?
It's simple: Section 3 of the 14th Amendment makes clear that anyone who swore an oath to the Constitution and then engaged in or incited insurrection is clearly disqualified from office.
That means Trump. pic.twitter.com/onyCgALU66
9/6/23
More evidence Trump targeted Indigenous people
This work provides insights into the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on American Indian/Alaska Native patients and highlights the need for interventions and resources to address health disparities in the COVID-19 pandemic. The Navajo Nation, which extends into Utah, Arizona, and NM, surpassed New York as the most COVID-19-affected US region per capita early in the pandemic (May 2020) (22). Within the same period, data from the National Indian Health Board showed that AI/AN individuals accounted for 43% of COVID-19 cases in NM (23). [Disproportionate impact of COVID-19 severity and mortality on hospitalized American Indian/Alaska Native patients]Donald Trump tried to exterminate Native America but infected many of his own supporters soon after a visit to New Mexico in 2019 then again in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
9/4/23
HHS: cannabis could be moved from Schedule I by year’s end
For the industry, the reclassification would allow them to make federal tax deductions that are currently prohibited for businesses involved in the sale of Schedule I or II drugs. Because of this prohibition, the cannabis industry has faced a significantly higher effective tax rate, and state governments have taken it upon themselves to provide state-level tax relief for their regulated markets.“While HHS’s scientific and medical evaluation is binding on DEA, the scheduling recommendation is not,” the HHS spokesperson said. “DEA has the final authority to schedule a drug under the [Controlled Substances Act] (or transfer a controlled substance between schedules or remove such a drug from scheduling altogether) after considering the relevant statutory and regulatory criteria and HHS’ scientific and medical evaluation. [Top Federal Health Agency Says Marijuana Should Be Moved To Schedule III In Historic Recommendation To DEA]
The bipartisan, bicameral bill would align DEA & FDA policy to increase access to research and limited medical use of psychedelic-assisted therapy. These innovative, groundbreaking therapies will help veterans & patients struggling with PTSD and treatment-resistant depression.
— The Daschle Group (@DaschleGroup) June 23, 2023
9/3/23
NIMBY threatening Colorado geothermal development
Since 2019, when the legislature ordered the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission to reprioritize health and environment as they considered drilling permits, the state has been adding provisions to advance one of the few untapped sources of clean energy in Colorado: geothermal. To get electricity from a geothermal plant in the Mount Princeton area to the Sangre de Cristo Electric Association, for example, the plant would have to tie into an Xcel Energy high-voltage transmission line running from near Dillon to just west of Salida and then into the San Luis Valley through two main lines, one owned by Xcel Energy and one shared with Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, according to Tri-State spokesman Lee Boughey. The Lost Creek group also worries about noise pollution and odor the proposed plant would create. Hits to the housing market, damaged real estate value, and viewshed impact round out the Lost Creek group’s complaints. [A fight is brewing to build Colorado’s first geothermal plant as neighbors oppose development]In 2021 the Bureau of Land Management sold a geothermal lease in Hidalgo County, New Mexico despite a 2016 blowout near a $43 million geothermal electricity plant erected by Cyrq Energy in 2013 when Republican Susana Martinez was governor. Cyrq Energy has four working geothermal projects including Lightning Dock Geothermal Power Plant near Animas. It's a 15.3 MW binary geothermal plant with two production wells and 7 injection wells that sells power to Public Service of New Mexico (PNM) with firm baseload power.
9/2/23
Sicangu Oyate edging closer to trust status at Mato Paha
Meade County Commissioners oppose a renewed proposal from the Rosebud Sioux Tribe to place 38.14 acres of land at Bear Butte into a land trust status. Earlier this month the tribe submitted the request to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, stating that the land would “advance tribal economic development and the ability to be self-sufficient, assist tribal self-governance and self-determination, and restore the ancestral tribal land base by replacing tribal lands lost through the allotment system.” The application states that the Rosebud Sioux Tribe would use the land for youth activities, and both cultural and spiritual purposes.
“Bear Butte has been and continues to be a profoundly important sacred site and is vital to the spiritual, ceremonial, and religious needs of the Sioux people,” the application states. In 2016 the Rosebud Sioux Tribe issued a similar request, which Meade County Commissioners opposed.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, trust land qualifies as a reservation if it has been validly set apart for the use of Tribes. Therefore, once the land is put into trust status the Rosebud Sioux Tribe and the Bureau of Indian Affairs would be responsible for providing all services, and the county would no longer have jurisdiction over the property.
While the Rosebud Sioux Tribe application is for just over 38 acres, there are other Tribes that have even greater land holdings at Bear Butte. The Lower Brule Sioux Tribe owns 1,080 acres, and the Northern Cheyenne Agency owns 560 acres. [Black Hills Pioneer]
9/1/23
FBI, NM LEOs seize 150 firearms in Bandidos raid
In addition to moving drugs, the court documents allege that Bandidos members in El Paso were involved in the transporting of firearms that were then smuggled into Mexico to the cartel in exchange for methamphetamine and cocaine. The FBI had search warrants for 25 Bandido members homes throughout New Mexico. In the raids, 151 guns and thousands of rounds of ammo, ballistic vests, fentanyl, methamphetamine, cocaine and a stolen police radio were recovered. [KRQE teevee]
On Thursday morning, FBI and New Mexico State Police SWAT teams launched early morning raids in towns across New Mexico, searching the homes of the 25 Bandidos members identified as having made “imminent threats” to kill or hurt rivals involved in the fatal shootings in May. Evidence seized included more than 150 firearms, and three men were arrested on state charges as the investigation into possible racketeering and other crimes continues. The searches occurred in Albuquerque, Alamogordo, Farmington, Hobbs, Gallup, Capitan, Ruidoso, Rio Rancho, Los Lunas and several smaller communities. [Trying to head off 'threats' of revenge, FBI teams hit Bandidos across NM with search warrants]Red River, New Mexico is a town of about 600 souls that gambled on some 28,000 bikers but was terrorized by members of rival gangs so the mountain hamlet will no longer advertise its Memorial Day event as a motorcycle rally destination.
8/31/23
Arizona scrambling to undo Republican damage to public land on southern border
The federal government is finally ready to drop its lawsuit against the state over the storage containers it contends were erected illegally last year on Forest Service land by then-Gov. Doug Ducey. But it's going to cost Arizona taxpayers another $2.1 million to put this all behind them. That's on top of the $95 million the state paid to AshBritt Management & Logistics to install the ersatz border barrier in the first place. And it doesn't include another nearly $66.6 million, also of taxpayer dollars, to tear it down, transport the containers to Tucson and start restoring the site to the way it was before the controversial barrier went up. The deal marks the end of what had been a highly publicized move by Ducey to close gaps in the reinforced barrier that was started by Donald Trump and canceled by Joe Biden his first day in office. [High costs for shipping container wall at Arizona's southern border almost over]In southeastern Arizona operations owned by Freeport-McMoRan Inc, Morenci and Miami are ravaging water supplies and reducing entire mountain ranges to piles of waste rock in Tonto Apache lands.
The GOP are spreading a hysterical lie that Biden "opened the floodgates" in the border wall to let migrants through.
— Laiken Jordahl (@LaikenJordahl) August 29, 2023
⁰Yes, the floodgates are open. But they were under Trump too. If closed, the wall would be flattened by flooding, as has happened before.pic.twitter.com/all4gzg3Wq
FACT CHECK: there has not been a single documented fentanyl seizure at the "open gates" in the wall.
— Laiken Jordahl (@LaikenJordahl) August 30, 2023
90% of fentanyl is seized from U.S. citizen traffickers at ports of entry, not asylum seekers, like those crossing in the desert between ports & turning themselves in to CBP. pic.twitter.com/CeyfyXRIGu
8/30/23
Column: movie raises awareness of nuclear fallout
The movie “Oppenheimer” shows the destruction from the blast of the first atomic bomb, known as the Trinity test, on July 16, 1945, roughly 200 miles south of Los Alamos, N.M. It’s a sad fact that a Hollywood movie was needed to spur political action to correct a major public health injustice. The victims of New Mexico deserve to be compensated for the suffering they have endured. It should have happened decades ago. But Congress can finally right this wrong by honoring those who’ve been ignored for far too long. [Haviland, In New Mexico, ‘Oppenheimer’ offers new hope for long denied compensation]Learn more from the Associated Press.
8/29/23
TRNP horses are not what you think
The Park Service is revising its livestock plans and writing an environmental assessment to examine the impacts of taking no new action — or to remove the horses altogether. Removal would entail capturing horses and giving some of them first to tribes, and later auctioning the animals or giving them to other entities. Another approach would include techniques to prevent future reproduction and would allow those horses to live out the rest of their lives in the park. [National Parks Service proposes plan to remove wild horses from North Dakota National Park]Now, in an era when western states are scrambling to preserve habitat for bison, wapiti, bighorn sheep, pronghorns, deer, the threatened Greater sage grouse and all the other wildlife at risk to the Republican Party how is running nurseries for introduced species like free-roaming horses and burros either conservative or sustainable?
GonaCon is an immunocontraceptive vaccine that is developed and used by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. According to the Department, when GonaCon is injected into an animal, it induces the body to make antibodies against its own Gonadotropin-releasing hormone. This then causes infertility in the injected animals. While GonaCon has proven to be an effective tool in managing fertility in wild and feral mammals, this includes the wild horses of Theodore Roosevelt Park — meaning that some are calling for a study on the vaccine to view the effects it has on the equine population. [Are the wild horses of Theodore Roosevelt National Park infertile?]Ironic that in a country that exports more weapons of mass destruction than all others combined and relentlessly hunts nearly anything that moves Equus ferus is still seen as a pet.
The study by a graduate biology student at the University of North Dakota said the park horses show little influence of Spanish mustangs and are most closely associated with draft horse breeds, including Shires and Percherons. A ranch Shire-Paint cross stallion performed well, and was considered the park’s dominant stallion for almost a decade. In 1991, an estimated 15% of the herd was traced to the stallion. The herd’s Percheron influence might stem from the HT Ranch, an immense horse ranch in the Little Missouri Badlands headquartered near Amidon, south of the area that became the park. Ranch owner A.C. Huidekoper imported Percherons -- a large, powerful breed -- and a thoroughbred stallion to crossbreed with mares he bought from the Marquis de Mores, who bought them after the ponies were seized from Sitting Bull and his followers when they surrendered at Fort Buford in 1881. Huidekoper, a contemporary of Roosevelt’s, called the cross the “American horse,” which became the prototype of the “Indian pony” that was favored for years by ranchers in the area, prized for its endurance and agility. [Study: National park wild horses are ‘distinctive,’ not closely related to any one breed]ip image: free-roaming horses browse on private ground in Santa Fe County. Click on it for a better look.
8/27/23
Ethnic cleansing a real part of Trump legacy
As a nation and global society, we are still recovering from two life altering events: a pandemic and the Trump presidency. While the memories of these events seem to fade with time, as a former tribal leader, I am here with a stark warning: We cannot forget Donald Trump's record, especially on tribal matters, or that of his supporters and enablers. Trump drained funds from the very programs created to fulfill the federal government’s trust and treaty responsibilities to Tribes. Year after year, tribal leaders had to fight against his proposals to cut funding for Native education and health programs. It is crucial to remember that he submitted budget requests to Congress every year that could have zeroed out funding for Bureau of Indian Education facilities and the only existing CDC Tribal budget item. At times, Trump was outright transparent about his thoughts and feelings about the Native peoples. When asked about issuing a proclamation for Indigenous Peoples’ Day, he outright proclaimed, “Not as long as I’m president.” He appalled the nation when he could not even hold back expressing his racism during a White House event planned in honor of our national heroes, the Navajo Code Talkers. [Amber Torres, Trump’s Tribal Record: The Destructive Era]Some nations are still suspicious. One of the most popular national monuments in New Mexico is just across I-25 from our place but remains closed because it’s co-managed with the Cochiti Pueblo.
8/24/23
Today's intersection: Zorro Ranch sells as Santa Fe lawyer surrenders
The Santa Fe County assessor lists the new owner of the 7,560-acre property near Stanley as San Rafael Ranch LLC, a limited liability corporation that was filed only July 28 with the New Mexico Secretary of State’s Office. No immediate identity for the individual behind San Rafael Ranch LLC was available other than its registered agent, Santa Fe attorney Charles V. Henry IV. Epstein purchased the Zorro Ranch in 1993 from former Gov. Bruce King. [Epstein's Zorro Ranch in Santa Fe County sold; price not disclosed]
Eastman is charged alongside Trump and 17 others, who are accused by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis with scheming to subvert the will of Georgia voters in a desperate bid to keep the Republican president in the White House after he lost to Democrat Joe Biden. [Santa Fe's John Eastman is one of America's most infamous attorneys]In a 2016 deposition Virginia Giuffre told a court that when she was sixteen Epstein madam, Ghislane Maxwell aided and abetted her rapes there. Giuffre went on to work for Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
NEW: John Eastman’s State Bar of California profile has been UPDATED with a consumer warning: ⚠️ THIS ATTORNEY HAS BEEN CHARGED WITH A FELONY ⚠️ https://t.co/hiT8eNa1zV pic.twitter.com/qs1xpBCo1R
— Mueller, She Wrote (@MuellerSheWrote) August 23, 2023
8/23/23
All Aboard Northwest reaches out to blogger
Hello Larry,
I just wanted to follow-up with you about your comments on the Dakota Free Press article "Idaho wants Amtrak."
I want to thank you for your comments and ideas supporting passenger rail in South Dakota (your personal blog) and let you know about a Federal Railroad Administration study that may be the impetus to get South Dakota "on the map." I am an invited stakeholder with this Study through my professional work.
I lead a regional transportation advocacy organization, All Aboard Northwest. All Aboard Northwest has been created as the Greater Northwest Passenger Rail Working Group in response to a request from eight US Senators. We are the region-wide organization and work with state groups like the Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority. It is our mission that all people and states in the region have an equal voice in the future of passenger rail. We are advocating for long-distance passenger rail since the operational costs for them come through Federal Amtrak Appropriations; not from states or communities like "state-supported" service.
Thank you for your interest, I just wanted to flag this study for you to follow as well.
Dan Bilka
Co-Founder & President, All Aboard NorthwestCoordinator, Greater Northwest Passenger Rail CoalitionDirector, Rail Passengers AssociationFmr. South Dakota Representative
A new poll shows a staggering majority of Americans want to see more investment in trains. (via @thrillist)
— Vox (@voxdotcom) August 17, 2023
https://t.co/RdZDyCgrYF
8/18/23
Pinyon jays destined for ESA protection
U.S. wildlife managers announced Wednesday that they will investigate whether a bird that is inextricably linked to the piñon and juniper forests that span the Western United States warrants protection under the Endangered Species Act. The pinyon jay’s numbers have declined over the last half-century as persistent drought, more severe wildfires and other effects of climate change have intensified, leaving the birds with less food and fewer nesting options as more trees die or are removed. [U.S. wildlife managers to review plight of New Mexico bird linked to piñon forests]They even used to be seen in the Black Hills of South Dakota but no longer according to SDSU Graduate Student Emily Macklin and Professor Amanda Cheeseman PhD.
8/17/23
Santa Fe trade route likely ancient
8/16/23
Today's intersection: industrial agriculture and anthrax in North Dakota
We modeled location-specific effects of land use on grassland bird habitat use for four grassland bird species (bobolink [Dolichonyx oryzivorus], grasshopper sparrow [Ammodramus savannarum], Savannah sparrow [Passerculus sandwichensis], and western meadowlark [Sturnella neglecta]) in North Dakota, a state experiencing rapid growth in both energy sectors. Our analysis showed that grassland birds responded more negatively to biofuel feedstocks (i.e., corn and soybeans) on the landscape compared with oil and gas development. Our results indicate that expansion of oil and gas development has negatively affected habitat use by some grassland birds, but this impact was more localized when compared to biofuel crops. [Trending against the grain: Bird population responses to expanding energy portfolios in the US Northern Great Plains]And.
There are now 16 premises affected by anthrax in southwest North Dakota; 15 laboratory-confirmed cases and one probable case based on clinical signs. One confirmed case is in eastern Hettinger County with the remaining cases in Grant County. The cases were confirmed by the North Dakota State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory. “While typically only a few anthrax cases are reported in North Dakota every year, it can cause devastating losses in affected herds,” Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring said. “Weather and soil conditions have contributed to the number of cases we’re seeing this year.” [North Dakota beef cattle anthrax cases increase; Hettinger County now affected]
⚠️ Yellow jackets eating a mouse carcass ahead!
— U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (@USFWS) August 16, 2023
Did you know yellow jackets will harvest meat in late summer? In 24 hours, wasps completely cleaned this mouse carcass. Workers bring chewed up meat back to the nest to feed the larvae.
🎥 Courtney Celley/USFWS pic.twitter.com/Yko5re3FId