skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

New Mexico Spills the Dirt on Healthy Soil Practices

play audio
Play

Friday, March 11, 2022   

Just three years after the New Mexico Healthy Soil Act was approved by lawmakers, the Land of Enchantment is boasting more "soil health champions" than any other state, according to the Soil Health Champions Network.

The Act authorized the New Mexico Department of Agriculture to provide financial assistance to help residents implement conservation projects focusing on one or more of five "healthy soil" principles.

Robb Hirsch, co-founder of the Healthy Soil Working Group and education director at the Climate Change Leadership Institute, said urban and rural New Mexicans, both consumers and producers, benefit from better soil health.

"Ninety-five percent of the food we eat comes from out of state," Hirsch pointed out. "We could increase the amount of food we consume from our local ranchers and farmers, and if we do that, we can grow our economy in a very regenerative way."

Last month, New Mexico lawmakers approved $1 million in funding for the soil program.

A major healthy soil principle is keeping the ground covered, which typically means cover crops, planted to "cover" the soil rather than for harvesting. While cover crops are common in the Midwest, Hirsch noted they are also critical in arid and semiarid regions like New Mexico, because they can prevent or reduce soil erosion and enhance soil health.

"When you cover the soil and cover the ground, and you have biodiversity at work," Hirsch explained. "You have a soil that actually infiltrates and captures the little water that we do get, instead of running off with flooding."

Three years ago, the World Resources Institute ranked New Mexico first among U.S. states facing extreme water stress due to climate change. Hirsch added it is all the more reason to advocate for healthy soil.

"Soil is a most precious life force, fundamental to our well-being," Hirsch contended. "We should invest majorly in it here in the Land of Enchantment."

The New Mexico Department of Agriculture recently announced its Healthy Soil Program will accept grant applications from farmers and ranchers for funding to help them manage their working lands using these principles. Applications will be accepted from March 18-May 12.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021