Environment, infrastructure top New Mexico priorities for spending COVID-19 relief dollars

Millions of dollars were dedicated to plugging abandoned oil and gas wells after New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed a spending bill passed during the second Special Legislative Session of 2021.

The session was convened Dec. 3 primarily for the Legislature to approve redistricting proposals but also included House Bill 2 serving as spending plan for federal COVID-19 relief dollars under the American Rescue Act, heading into the 30-day regular budget session slated to begin in January 2022.

In total, HB 2 allocated $479 million to multiple state agencies including the Energy, Minerals and Natural Resource Department (EMNRD) which manages oil and gas operations in the state and leads conservation efforts of state land.

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Of those dollars, a total of $43.5 million was earmarked for environmental conservation and outdoor recreation purposes.

The bill invested $3.5 million to the cleanup of orphaned oil and gas wells, which are abandoned by operators, often leaving the state to pay for remediation.

Plugging abandoned wells and remediating the land can cost millions of dollars depending on characteristics of the sites and the wells built.

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Earlier this year, EMNRD estimated there to be up to 700 such wells in New Mexico.

The Department also received $20 million through HB 2 to build or renovate facilities at state parks throughout New Mexico, addressing a backlog of deferred maintenance projects.

“The legislature has recognized the importance of outdoor recreation and environmental protection by funding improvements to state parks and remediating lands impacted by the oil and gas industry,” said EMNRD Cabinet Secretary Sarah Cottrell Propst.

“With the governor’s signature today, we are putting significant investments in our outdoor recreation economy and protecting human health and the environment.”

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Outdoor recreation gets a boost

To further conserve lands for outdoor recreation, HB 2 sent a total of $10 million to New Mexico’s Outdoor Recreation Division within the New Mexico Economic Development Department.

This meant $7 million for the Division’s Trails+ program which provides grants to improve and renovate hiking trails throughout the state and $3 million to New Mexico’s Outdoor Equity Fund which supports developing educational programs in an effort to see more children engage in outdoor recreation activities.

Economic Development Cabinet Secretary Alicia Keyes said the dollars would help diversify New Mexico’s economy and build its growing outdoor recreation industry, creating jobs and protecting the environment.

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“Gov. Lujan Grisham has been a champion for building the outdoor recreation economy in New Mexico,” Keyes said. “She knows this is an important industry that can grow jobs in all corners of the state, but especially help rural communities as they identify outdoor recreation businesses and invest in these assets to benefit families and create jobs.”

Outdoor Recreation Division Director Axie Navas said the funding will allow the Division to grow the Trails+ program 14 times and triple the reach of the Outdoor Equity Fund.

By the end of 2021, the Division awarded more than $506,000 in grants to 25 organizations through the Trails+ program, and another supported 57 organizations through the Outdoor Equity Fund, estimating the program support participation in outdoor activities by 22,000 New Mexican children.

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“This funding is a long-term investment in the state’s people and landscapes,” Navas said.

Meanwhile, the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) got $10 million through the bill to administer its River Stewardship Program, which will award grant funds to projects throughout the state aimed at improving New Mexico’s rivers and streams.

Projects receiving the funding will be focused in restoring wetlands, addressing flooding and drought impacts, while reducing pollution in protecting wildlife.

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“By investing in our rivers and wetlands, we are making New Mexico less susceptible to climate change impacts and ensuring our watersheds continue to support cultural, economic, and life-sustaining traditions in our state,” said NMED Cabinet Secretary James Kenney.

“Today is also an economic win for New Mexicans because this funding creates and supports local jobs in communities through on-the-ground project design and construction.”

Infrastructure also a key priority of American Rescue Act spending

New Mexico’s infrastructure needs were also a top priority for Lujan Grisham and lawmakers when devising plans to spend the federal relief dollars.

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The bill sent $10 million each to developing electric vehicle charging stations, along with work at regional airports and the Clean-up New Mexico Roadway Beautification program, through the New Mexico Department of Transportation (NMDOT).

About $142 million was appropriated to road projects in several counties from urban Bernalillo and Doña Ana counties to rural areas like Eddy, Lea and San Juan counties known for industries like oil and gas.

“The department is grateful to the legislators for making the general appropriations and authorizing the NMDOT to expend millions of dollars to high priority initiatives like roadside litter, supporting environmental infrastructure, aviation economic development and attend to projects in various stages of design, construction or near completion, said NMDOT Cabinet Secretary Michael Sandoval.

Here’s a list of road projects funded by the bill:

• The Interstate 40 corridor in McKinley and Cibola counties.

• A new state road in Santa Teresa in Dona Ana County.

• New Mexico Highway 128 from Carlsbad to Jal in Eddy and Lea Counties.

• New Mexico Highway 180 in Grant County.

• Bobby Foster Road to Mesa Del Sol in Bernalillo County.

• Interstate 25 from Montgomery Boulevard to Comanche Road in Bernalillo County.

• Cerrillos Road in Santa Fe County.

• Pinon Hills Boulevard in San Juan County; and

• New Mexico Highway 39 in Mosquero in Harding and San Miguel Counties.

Another $133 million went to expanding broadband access throughout the state, and $25 million was dedicated to housing assistance for people who are homeless along with improving access to affordable housing.

Adrian Hedden can be reached at 575-618-7631, achedden@currentargus.com or @AdrianHedden on Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Carlsbad Current-Argus: Lujan Grisham signs plan for spending federal COVID-19 relief dollars