Non-Local News Releases

PECOS, N.M. – Monastery Lake has been closed to fishing until further notice due to unsafe ice conditions.

Ice fishing is not allowed at Monastery Lake. The lake, which is leased through the Department's Open Gate program, is located at the Benedictine Monastery just north of Pecos. A layer of ice has formed on the lake, prompting the closure.

The closure will be lifted when there are sufficient open areas of water available to allow fishing from the bank.

SANTA FE – Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham attended a historic meeting today in Washington, D.C. with governors and representatives of seven Western states to discuss the Colorado River Compact. 

The governors of New Mexico, California, Colorado, Arizona, Utah, Wyoming and Nevada were convened by U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgam. The governors issued the following joint statement after the meeting:   

"Today's meeting gave each governor an opportunity to explain their position with respect to the Colorado River Basin issue. All acknowledged that a mutual agreement is preferable to prolonged litigation. Importantly, the governors will continue to seek an agreement that helps provide certainty to the entire basin for the short and long term, including as it relates to federal funding of water projects." 

In all construction zones, motorists are asked to reduce speed, obey posted signs, and use extreme caution, as well as continuing to be cautious of heavy equipment and construction personnel in the area. PLEASE NOTE: Conditions are subject to change without notice. Double fines for speeding in work zones may be in effect.

White Sands Missile Range Notification

For information regarding closures, you may call WSMR at 678-1178 or 678-2222 for updates.

Highway 380 is scheduled to be blocked one time at 06:00 am.  This block will last approximately two hours. Blocks will be at GOLD block which is located at MM3 and SILVER block which is located at MM49. Be advised all blocks are subject to change without notice.

Interstates: 

Statewide, NM - State Police will be conducting sobriety checkpoints, saturation patrols; and registration, insurance, and driver's license checkpoints in all New Mexico counties during February 2026.

We are bringing awareness to these events to reduce impaired driving-related fatalities through continued media attention and intensive advertising.

These checkpoints are helping to change society's attitude about driving while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs.

Draft New Mexico Unit Fund Pilot Cycle II Policy seeks your input. The Draft New Mexico Unit Fund Pilot Cycle II Policy establishes the policy and processes the NMISC will use to identify and fund projects from the Unit Fund's next funding cycle.  The Draft Pilot Cycle II Policy builds on the application and implementation process from the previous Pilot Cycle policy for planning and design projects. In response to stakeholder feedback, key changes include: 

         •     Adding construction as an eligible project type,  

• Updating the fund vision, project goals, and evaluation criteria,  

LAS CRUCES- White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) will have a planned road closure on US 70 for Friday, January 30, 2026.

US 70 is scheduled to be blocked once at 7:10 a.m. for approximately one hour, lifting around 8:10 a.m. This block will be located at RED Block (Top of San Augustin Pass/Mile Marker 164) and YELLOW Block (White Sands National Park /Mile Marker 200).  The Las Cruces Gate, Owen Road, and Nike Avenue will also be affected. 

All roadblocks are subject to change without notice, please call WSMR at 575-678-2221/2222 for updates or go to New Mexico Department of Transportation:  www.nmroads.com or call 511.

SOUTHWEST CATCHES OF THE WEEK

Bill Evans Lake: Eric Ockerhausen caught two trout using flicker shad on Jan. 21. "I was trolling trout lures behind my kayak and there was a lot of surface activity," he said. "People on the bank had good luck with PowerBait."

New rule speeds leasing and permitting for federal oil and gas development

(Washington, D.C., Jan. 27, 2026) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Forest Service finalized revisions to its regulation governing federal oil and gas resources on National Forest System lands. The revision modernizes and streamlines the process for managing energy development across millions of acres.

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum announced the updated rule today, emphasizing the Trump Administration's joint commitment to eliminating outdated and burdensome processes and advancing President Donald J. Trump's Executive Orders on Declaring a National Energy Emergency and Unleashing American Energy.