CURRENT PRESS RELEASE
New Mexico State Auditor Reveals It Is Investigating Camino Real Regional Utility Authority
Wednesday, August 28, 2024
CRRUA Being Investigated for Potential “Fraud, Waste & Abuse”
SUNLAND PARK, NM—On Monday, August 19, 2024, the New Mexico Office of the State Auditor (OSA) responded to Sunland Park and Santa Teresa community members’ request for an investigation into the Camino Real Regional Utility Authority (CRRUA) for any and all violations of environmental protection laws; consumer protection laws; the New Mexico Open Meetings Act; and waste, fraud, and abuse of state and federal funds.
In the OSA’s response, the OSA informed the New Mexico Environmental Law Center (NMELC), which submitted the request on behalf of community members, that the OSA “already has initiated an investigation of CRRUA regarding the concerns of fraud, waste, and abuse.”…
Read full release
Past Press Releases
NM Environmental Law Center & NukeWatch NM Denounce LANL’s Resumed Plans for Radioactive Tritium Releases
Santa Fe, NM – Today the New Mexico Environmental Law Center and Nuclear Watch New Mexico notified the Environmental Protection Agency that its rubber stamping of plans by the Department of Energy and the Los Alamos National Laboratory to vent up to 114,000 curies of...
New Mexico Environmental Law Center Welcomes New Executive Director and a New Era in Environmental Justice
On July 27, 2020 the New Mexico Environmental Law Center is proud to announce and welcome Dr. Virginia Necochea as the organization’s new Executive Director. Dr. Virginia Necochea is a long-time educator, researcher, writer, and community advocate. She is the former...
Community-Based, Environmental and Civil Rights Activists Across Country Issue Statement and Unified Demands
On July 9, 2020 the New Mexico Environmental Law Center (the Law Center) stands in solidarity with a broad alliance of environmental justice groups, activists, allies, and partners from across the country. This week, the Law Center released a call to action...
New Mexico Groups Appeal EPA’s Dirty Water Rule
On Tuesday June 23, 2020 Today three New Mexico based organizations - Amigos Bravos, the New Mexico Acequia Association, and Gila Resources Information Project - joined together to appeal the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Army Corps of Engineers so...
Copper Flat Mine Rescission of Notice
On March 31, 2020, the Mining and Minerals Division (MMD) of the Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department, rescinded its prior determination that the permit application for the Copper Flat Mine is technically complete. According to the MMD’s order, the mining...
Community Groups Sue Air Force Over Kirtland Over Jet Fuel Cleanup
Our clients, the Southwest Organizing Project (SWOP), New Mexico Voices for Children, New Mexico State Senator Mimi Stewart, New Mexico State Senator Antoinette Sedillo Lopez, New Mexico State Representative G. Andrés Romero, and three residents of the impacted area...
Leadership Change at the Law Center
Today, January 14, 2020, we are announcing a change in leadership at the Law Center. The announcement from Douglas Meiklejohn provides details about this transition. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact Doug, Board member Susanne Hoffman-Dooley...
Mt Taylor Mine to Close!
In a stunning victory for Native communities, Rio Grande Resources (RGR), owner of the Mt Taylor uranium mine, notified the Mining and Minerals Division (MMD) of the New Mexico Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department of “cessation of mining operations” and...
Eric Jantz Named Environmental Lawyer of the Year
Eric Jantz, Staff Attorney for the nonprofit New Mexico Environmental Law Center, is being honored by the Natural Resources, Energy and Environmental Law section of the New Mexico Bar Association as Lawyer of the Year. Eric has been with the Law Center for eighteen...
AND THE WINNER IS: LOS ALAMOS NATIONAL LABORATORY
The New Mexico Environmental Law Center bestowed its annual Toxic Turkey Award to Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) for nearly six decades of polluting the human and natural environment and continuous violations of basic principles of environmental justice. The...
EPA Repeal of Water Rule Threatens New Mexico’s Waters and Communities
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Army Corps of Engineers repealed the 2015 Obama-era Rule that clarified the definition of "Waters of the US" (WOTUS). Waters that are included in WOTUS receive protection under the Clean Water Act. The settings for the...
McKinley Uranium Working Group Gains/Loses County Commission Support
On July 30, Percy Anderson and Janene Yazzie of the McKinley County Uranium Working Group, which has been seeking County Commission support for a Blue Ribbon Task Force to study the impacts of uranium mining in the County, appeared to get support from two of the three...
District Court Denies Augustin Plains Ranch Application – Again!
In a brief Memorandum, 7thJudicial District Court Judge Matthew Reynolds granted the Motions for Summary Judgment filed by the New Mexico Environmental Law Center for approximately 80 residents of the San Agustin Plains and by the Catron County Board of County...
Community Groups Send Notice of Intent to Sue Air Force
Today, the Southwest Organizing Project (SWOP), New Mexico Voices for Children, New Mexico State Senator Antoinette Sedillo Lopez, New Mexico State Senator Mimi Stewart, New Mexico State Representative G. Andres Romero, and three individual residents of the impacted...
Victory in Aquifer Science East Mountains Water Case
"Albuquerque District Court Judge Shannon Bacon denied the ground water pumping application of Aquifer Science, a Nevada-based water speculator, to appropriate 350 acre feet of ground water in the East Mountain area of Albuquerque. The Office of the State Engineer had...