A different kind of spring

The Rio Grande is drying. NM's forests are taking a hit. So, what's your plan?

The Middle Rio Grande began drying on April 15, and on Monday more than 18 miles were dry south of Albuquerque. We should expect poor conditions to expand in the coming weeks and months — and plan accordingly.¹

Historically, the Rio Grande experienced snowmelt-driven spring pulses, which spurred fish like the endangered Rio Grande Silvery Minnow to spawn.

But this year, biologists have already had to collect minnows² from the drying riverbed. And spawning was induced in hatchery tanks, where the fish were injected with carp pituitary extract.

Here’s a photo of one of the gravid³ minnows:

Gravid minnow after spawning was induced. USFWS.

Last week, when I mentioned river drying at a social event⁴, someone asked me, “Why do you care?” And all I can think is, “How can you not?”

News to know:

Trump Laid Off Nearly All the Federal Workers Who Investigate Firefighter Deaths (Mark Olalde, ProPublica)

A Nightmare Waiting To Happen: Wildfire resources left in limbo with no purchase cards. (Hotshot Wake Up)

Vanishing river, vanishing minnow: An audio postcard from the Rio Grande (Bryce Dix, KUNM)

Interstate board governing Rio Grande will wrangle with drought impacts this Friday (Danielle Prokop, Source NM)

Rio Grande lawsuit scheduled for June trial in Philadelphia (Danielle Prokop, Source NM)

Navajo advocates say prez’s approval of uranium transport, Trump coal order feels like a betrayal (Patrick Lohmann, Source NM)

New Mexico congressional delegates urge Interior secretary to leave national monuments alone (Alaina Mercinger, Santa Fe New Mexican)

Trump administration plans Endangered Species Act rollback (Michael Booth, High Country News)

DOI’s Burgum bows to DOGE

I’m sure you’ve seen the news that U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Doug Burgum ceded authority of his department last week, and handed control over to Tyler Hassen, a U.S. Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) aide.

Jimmy Tobias, over at Public Domain, wrote a short profile of Hassen back in February. Fellow water nerds might recall that Hassen led the DOGE delegation at the Jones Pumping Plant debacle.

After reading the late-night secretarial order last week, I visited the DOGE website to check out documents and read staff listings. You know, to look for all the things you’d find on a normal government website.

But alas, the DOGE website is little more than a mean X feed with some unprofessional-looking spreadsheets and graphics and a dopey contact form to join DOGE. Here’s a screenshot of the homepage today:

NM’s forests hit by drought, disease, & insects

This week, New Mexico State Forestry released its latest Forest Health Conditions Report, and the news is bad: Tree deaths in New Mexico’s forests doubled last year over 2023.

You can read the report yourself, and also look at the data on the state website. But key findings from the aerial survey and analysis include:

• There are 70,000 acres of dead conifer trees – up from the 33,000 acres in 2023.

• A total of 406,000 acres have been damaged by insects, disease and harsh conditions — an increase of 42,000 acres or 12% since 2023.

• Statewide, there’s been a 39% rise in trees losing needles or leaves, and turning brown or red.

In their release to the media, State Forestry noted: “Landowners are encouraged to contact their local Forestry Division District office to develop management plans that can lessen or prevent serious impacts from drought stress, insects and disease, while also curbing the potential for catastrophic wildfire.”

On a more personal note

On Sunday, a bunch of us gathered at the Rio Grande to reflect — and to imagine a better future for the river and everyone who relies upon it, including the more-than-human world.

I’ve jokingly/very seriously called these gatherings “River Church.” I invite people to bring a notebook, paper, phone, or a camera, and I offer a prompt so those who are interested can create a poem, a prayer, a social media post, or just a secret note to themselves.

I think of these gatherings as a way to individually and collectively witness this moment, to commemorate hope, or to touch grief.