Whether these are rural newspapers, the daily weather report on television, or the state’s largest paper, not giving readers information about climate change – and what scientists say will occur in New Mexico as the region continues warming – does a great disservice to the public. Continued warmer temperatures also affect air quality and public health, as well as the health - and flammability - of the state’s grasslands and forests. Farmers need to worry not only about water supplies, but also pest control and a growing season that’s longer than it was just a few decades ago. Or about how groundwater levels are dropping in places throughout the state. Like, about how warming temperatures will continue to affect snowpack and surface water flows. It’s not the easiest time to be in agriculture.”Ī lot more could be said about New Mexico’s current climate conditions. In that recent news story, the reporter quoted Roosevelt County Extension Agent Patrick Kircher saying, “It certainly is a challenge with the current climate conditions. The plan also notes that hay for livestock is trucked from Colorado because it’s too expensive to grow in eastern New Mexico. According to the region’s draft water plan, the number of dairies has dropped, too, and there’s no demand from dairy farmers for loans. In Roosevelt County, where per capita income is $18,086, the amount of irrigated acreage decreased by 34 percent between 20. And while the reporter mentions insurance money, it’s also worth noting that farmers have to rely on federal subsidies, too.Īlready, it’s tough to make a living as a farmer. In a Portales News-Tribune story reprinted by the Albuquerque Journal this week, there was coverage of how the hot, dry weather is affecting farmers: “(Z-7 Farms Owner Rick) Ledbetter said he anticipates more crop failures if there is no rain or moisture, leading to the reliance on insurance money in the coming months.”įarmers in eastern New Mexico already rely heavily on dwindling groundwater supplies-and are still suffering economic blows from the last drought. On Monday, temperature records were broken or tied in Capulin, Roswell, Clayton, Clines Corners, Santa Fe, and Tucumcari.Ĭue the small talk and the paper fans, because there’s not much more to say about New Mexico’s weather lately.Īt least that’s what you’d think when turning on television news or picking up most of the state’s newspapers. Land and ocean temperature information for June, 2016.
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