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Group Urges Release of Mexican Gray Wolves, NM Grants Approval of Solar Purchase

Mark Dumont via Flickr
Mexican Gray Wolves

Groups Urge Feds To Release More Mexican Wolves – The Associated Press

More than three dozen environmental groups are asking the federal government to release at least five packs of Mexican gray wolves in New Mexico to bolster the genetics of the endangered predators.

The groups sent a letter Thursday to Interior Secretary Sally Jewell and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Director Dan Ashe.

New Mexico wildlife officials declined to issue permits to the Fish and Wildlife Service for releases earlier this year in the Gila National Forest.

The agency also was denied a permit that would've cleared the way for more cross-fostering of pups in the wild.

The state has concerns because the agency has yet to update its recovery plan. Ranchers have long been critical of the program.

There are at least 110 Mexican wolves roaming in Arizona and New Mexico.

Unusual Ringtail Behavior Prompted Closure At Caverns The Associated Press & The Carlsbad Current-Argus

An unusually friendly ringtail caused park officials to shut down the natural entrance to Carlsbad Caverns National Park.

The Carlsbad Current-Argus reports that the normally shy, nocturnal animal was approaching visitors near the cave entrance around 11 a.m. Wednesday.

Carlsbad Caverns Public Affairs Specialist Valerie Gohlke says officials felt it would be best to close the natural entrance until the ringtail moved on.

She says the animal was captured Wednesday afternoon and will be examined by a veterinarian.

Gohlke says ringtails are commonly seen around the cave entrance but she's never heard of one behaving this way.

The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum says the ringtail is closely related to the raccoon.

Studio: No Evidence 'Maze Runner' Cast Took ArtifactsThe Associated Press

Twentieth Century Fox officials say they have found no evidence actors took American Indian artifacts while filming "Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials" at a private New Mexico ranch.

Chris Petrikin, a spokesman for 20th Century Fox, told The Associated Press the studio and the Scorch Trials production apologizes for previous statements suggesting items were taken.

Actor Dylan O'Brien said last month on "Live with Kelly and Michael" that cast members took artifacts from private ranch north of Albuquerque, despite warnings not to take any items like rocks or skulls.

The 24-year-old O'Brien didn't say what was taken.

But Petrikin says the studio has determined no artifacts were removed from Diamond Tail Ranch just south of San Felipe Pueblo.

An O'Brien representative did not immediately return an email from The Associated Press.

Another Councilor In Troubled Border City ArrestedThe Associated Press

Another councilor in a troubled New Mexico border city is facing legal troubles.

Authorities say Sunland Park City Councilor Daniel De Los Santos was arrested Saturday for allegedly providing beer to two 19-year-olds, including his girlfriend. A criminal complaint says the 22-year-old De Los Santos is facing two counts of selling or giving alcoholic beverages to a minor, a fourth-degree felony.

It was not known if De Los Santos had an attorney.

The arrest comes days after Sunland Park councilor Sergio Carrillo was taken into custody at city hall in connection with drug possession charges.

Earlier this year, a former mayoral candidate in Sunland Park pleaded guilty to extortion for secretly recording an opponent receiving a lap dance from a topless woman.

The city drew national attention in 2012 after news of the recording became public.

New Mexico Grants Approval For Xcel Solar Purchase - The Associated Press

New Mexico utility regulators have cleared the way for Xcel Energy to buy solar power from two generating stations that will be built near Roswell.

Xcel announced Thursday that the state Public Regulation Commission approved the purchase of 140 megawatts of solar capacity from NextEra Energy Resources, which is developing the two solar farms.

Officials say the solar farms will be the largest in New Mexico to date.

Xcel will pay NextEra 3.5 cents per kilowatt-hour in 2017. The utility says that's cheaper than the cost of generating electricity at some of Xcel's older natural gas-fueled plants in Texas and New Mexico.

Officials say the solar power will help Xcel's system in the two states achieve an 18 percent reduction in carbon emissions by 2020 when compared to 2005 levels.

Peace Corps Volunteers From 1963 To Meet At New Mexico StateThe Associated Press

A Peace Corps group that trained at New Mexico State in 1963 is returning to campus.

Half of the original members are scheduled Friday to visit the Las Cruces school for a special reunion.

Around 65 men and women came from all over the United States to train from September to December 1963 for a two-year mission in Guatemala.

The members say they joined the Peace Corps because of President John F. Kennedy, who was assassinated in Dallas while they were doing their training.

The group is slated to have lunch at in the Corbett Center Student Union, tour the campus and have a picnic at Mesilla Valley Bosque State Park. They also will have dinner in Mesilla to reminisce about their time in the town.

Albuquerque Councilor Proposes Indigenous Peoples' DayThe Associated Press & The ABQ Journal

Outgoing Albuquerque City Council President Rey Garduno is calling for the city to celebrate the second Monday in October as Indigenous Peoples' Day.

The Albuquerque Journal reports that Albuquerque doesn't observe Columbus Day, the official holiday recognized by the federal and state government as falling on the second Monday in October.

Garduno read a ceremonial announcement on Wednesday night that called for the city to honor indigenous people on that date.

He told the Journal that Columbus didn't actually discover anything but did pave the way for centuries of genocide. Several other U.S. cities celebrate Indigenous Peoples' Day.

Six councilors signed onto the proclamation, but three others -- all Republican --declined to do so.

Deputy Arrests Armed Ex-Student At A New Mexico High School – The Associated Press

Authorities say a former Espanola Valley High School student is in custody after showing up on campus with a loaded handgun and a knife.

School officials say it's still unclear what the 18-year-old man planned to do Thursday.

His name wasn't immediately released.

School officials say a 15-year-old female student at the school had been communicating with the man online and allegedly invited him to the campus.

They say the girl could also be facing charges.

The man was found in the gymnasium by a school security officer.

While being questioned, the man left the gym and campus but returned 40 minutes later and authorities say he was in possession of a loaded 9 mm Glock handgun and a knife.

He was arrested by a Rio Arriba County Sheriff's deputy.

Officials To Celebrate Valles Caldera's Transition – The Associated Press

State, federal and tribal officials will be gathering this weekend to mark the official transition of Valles Caldera National Preserve to the National Park Service.

U.S. Interior Secretary Sally Jewell will be joined by members of New Mexico's congressional delegation, Native American leaders and other local officials for a celebration at the preserve Saturday.

Valles Caldera is home to vast grasslands, the remnants of one of North America's few super volcanoes and one of New Mexico's most famous elk herds.

The federal government purchased the property in 2000 with the goal of operating it as a working ranch while developing recreational opportunities for the public. Legislation signed last year cleared the way for the property to transition from trust management to the Park Service.

Officials say public access is expected to increase with the change.

Nobel Prize Winner Hails From Small New Mexico Town – The Associated Press

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — One of the three scientists recently awarded a Nobel Prize for chemistry originally fell in love with science as a boy in a small New Mexico town.

The Santa Fe New Mexican reports (http://bit.ly/1R19ymT ) that the Nobel committee announced Wednesday that the chemistry prize went to 69-year-old Paul Modrich and his fellow researchers, Thomas Lindahl and Aziz Sancar.

The trio's research explains and maps how the cells repair DNA, a discovery that helps physicians understand and combat diseases.

Modrich grew up in the blue-collar town of Raton in northern New Mexico. Current residents are jubilant after learning that one of their own received the renowned award.

Modrich told writers at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute that the biological diversity around Raton helped spark his curiosity.

Judge Declines To Order New Auction For Gallup Diocese – The Associated Press

A bankruptcy judge has declined to order a New Mexico diocese to hold a new auction after questioning practices at the diocese's September sales.

The Albuquerque Journal reports that U.S. Bankruptcy Judge David T. Thuma said Wednesday that ordering a new auction could reduce the money available to settle the Diocese of Gallup's bankruptcy case.

He says that would be harmful to the creditors, who are victims of sexual abuse by priests.

The diocese raised about $160,000 from two auctions.

Thuma had asked the diocese to explain why it barred a reporter and a researcher from attending the auction. He advised officials to keep future events open to the public.

An attorney for the diocese argued Wednesday that there was public notice of the auction and anyone who wanted to bid could participate.

3-State Project To Look At Developing Adolescent Brains – The Associated Press

Researchers in New Mexico, Nevada and Louisiana are starting a $5.9 million project to look at how adolescent brains develop.

Lead researcher Vince Calhoun of the University of New Mexico says scientists at the universities of New Mexico and Nevada will scan the brains of 230 children between the ages of 9 and 15, taking three scans of each over the four-year project.

He says Tulane University scientists will analyze DNA from cheek swabs to study a process that regulates the effects of genes.

The brain scans will include magneto-encephalography, which detects and creates images from tiny magnetic fields produced by brain activity, and two kinds of MRIs.

All three institutions will analyze and model various aspects of the data.

A National Science Foundation grant covers the costs.