Remote Surveillance Trailer in Los Alamos, NM

Courtesy SFNF

SFNF NEWS RELEASE

Santa Fe National Forest (SFNF) fire managers are planning to actively manage the lightning caused Laguna Fire located in the Coyote Ranger District, 8 miles north of New Mexico State Road 96 and west of the Chama River Canyon Wilderness. Currently, 80 personnel are on the Laguna Wildfire.

The wildfire was first reported Wednesday June 25, 2025, and is burning in an area that has undergone the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process and previously been thinned and treated with prescribed fire. The objectives for the Laguna Wildfire prioritize the safety of firefighters and the public while protecting water quality in watersheds, water systems, and springs by minimizing fire intensity and uncharacteristic severe fire effects.

Fire managers will start firing operations as early as this week with the aim of restoring the ecological process of fire across approximately 13,000 acres of forest land. To conduct a firing operation, firefighters cut away vegetation to make a line of bare soil ahead of a fire and then using aerial and hand ignitions burn the vegetation between that line and the actively burning fire front.

“We manage fire-adapted landscapes, and the Laguna Wildfire is an opportunity to create a resilient ecosystem that reduces the future risk of catastrophic severe wildfire to communities,” stated Anthony Madrid, SFNF Deputy Forest Supervisor.

Fire managers evaluate various strategies for managing wildfires caused by lightning. These strategies can range from full suppression to actively managing the wildfire to restore its natural role in the landscape. Decisions regarding wildfire management are influenced by several factors, including firefighter safety, availability of resources, terrain, weather forecast, previous prescribed burns, vegetation management projects in the area, and potential threats to public safety and property.

SFNF leadership is collaborating with local communities, Tribes, and federal, state, and local agencies to reduce wildfire risk for private landowners in the area. There are currently no risks to nearby communities, and no evacuations will be necessary. A closure order for the area surrounding the Laguna Wildfire is expected to be issued for the safety of the public andfirefighters.

When firing operations begin, smoke may be visible and impact communities on NM State Road 96 including Gallina and Coyote, and the towns of Abiquiu, Llaves, and Cuba. Motorists are advised to slow down and proceed with caution.

Laguna Wildfire updates will be provided on Inciweb, NM Fire Information, Santa Fe National Forest website, and social media (Facebook and X).

About the Forest Service: The USDA Forest Service has for more than 100 years brought people and communities together to answer the call of conservation. Grounded in world-class science and technology– and rooted in communities–the Forest Service connects people to nature and to each other. The Forest Service cares for shared natural resources in ways that promote lasting economic, ecological, and social vitality. The agency manages 193 million acres of public land, provides assistance to state and private landowners, maintains the largest wildland fire and forestry research organizations in the world. The Forest Service also has either a direct or indirect role in stewardship of about 900 million forested acres within the U.S., of which over 130 million acres are urban forests where most Americans live.

A crack in this new gasket would have allowed a slow leak in the line to erode the earth around it enough to cause the recent sinkhole in White Rock. Photo Courtesy LAC

COUNTY NEWS RELEASE

A new, but faulty, gasket appears to be the cause of the sinkhole that recently appeared on the road near the intersection of NM-4 and Rover Boulevard in White Rock.

The water transmission line feeding White Rock and running parallel to NM-4 was replaced earlier this year under a Los Alamos Department of Public Utilities (DPU) project. Contractor Wagner Construction led the effort, which included a section of pipe that crossed under the roadway in White Rock. Shortly after the project was completed, a sinkhole began to appear under the far-right eastbound lane of NM-4 as it approaches the intersection at Rover Blvd.

Personnel from DPU and from the New Mexico Department of Transportation coordinated repair efforts as representatives from Wagner Construction, which is based in Minnesota, returned to Los Alamos in response to news of the sinkhole last week.

The faulty gasket was installed at a joint that enabled the pipeline to cross under the road. It passed a pressure test when it was installed, however a crack was discovered on the gasket when Wagner worked to repair the sinkhole. This crack would have allowed a slow leak in the line to erode the earth around it enough to cause the sinkhole.

Wagner has repaired the pipeline infrastructure and repairs to the road above it are in the works. NM-4 drivers can expect the right turn lane on NM-4 to remain closed until the road work is complete, which should occur sometime this week (May 12-16).

Miles Iverson, left, and JoyMei Lincoln are the winners of the Los Alamos Community Winds 2025 scholarships. Courtesy photo

LACW NEWS RELEASE

The Los Alamos Community Winds (LACW) announced this year’s scholarship winners for 2025 at their Spring Concert Performance on May 10, 2025. The LACW scholarship recognizes graduating Los Alamos High School (LAHS) seniors who demonstrate a strong commitment to having a Music-Filled Life by continuing to play instrumental music now and into the future.

LACW’s scholarship winners are:

“We look forward to hearing how each of these scholars sustain music as they move forward in the next phase of their life.’ –LACW

Senior officials with the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management Los Alamos Field Office and legacy cleanup contractor Newport News Nuclear BWXT-Los Alamos LLC provide responses during the public Q&A period at the Environmental Management Cleanup Forum.

Comprehensive sampling and monitoring program outlined at public forum

LOS ALAMOS, N.M. — Protecting water supplies is a key priority of the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) legacy cleanup mission.

Earlier this month, senior officials from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Environmental Management Los Alamos Field Office (EM-LA) and its cleanup contractor stated that they have instituted a robust monitoring and remediation program.

“My priority has been and remains to be ensuring that the legacy cleanup mission is implemented safely, efficiently, effectively and transparently,” EM-LA Manager Jessica Kunkle said at an Environmental Management Cleanup Forum held June 12.

“It is my goal to continue to be transparent with EM-LA’s engagements and share progress on our priority cleanup work, including our legacy waste operations, as well as our soil and water investigation and remediation,” Kunkle added.

Newport News Nuclear-BWXT-Los Alamos LLC (N3B), the legacy cleanup contractor at LANL, has instituted a comprehensive approach to protecting water quality that includes monitoring and managing various water supplies, along with addressing contaminated soils that could pose a threat, according to N3B acting Environmental Remediation Program Manager Vince Rodriguez.

Vince Rodriguez, acting Environmental Remediation program manager for legacy cleanup contractor Newport News Nuclear BWXT-Los Alamos LLC, provides a comprehensive overview on keeping water supplies protected for the Los Alamos National Laboratory legacy cleanup mission.

Protecting Water Quality and Addressing Groundwater Plumes

“Protecting the water supply is the ultimate goal,” Rodriguez said. “What we are doing — working with DOE, N3B, the pueblos — and the actions that we are taking ensures that the water quality is protected at all times.”

One aspect of the LANL legacy cleanup mission focuses on addressing two groundwater plumes: a hexavalent chromium plume and the royal demolition explosives plume, according to Rodriguez. While neither plume currently threatens offsite water supplies, EM-LA and N3B are working to monitor and control potential migration while cleanup remedies are developed.

For the hexavalent chromium plume, EM-LA and N3B are using an interim measure, a pump-and-treat system that has treated almost 460 million gallons of groundwater since May 2018, Rodriguez said.

Today, the interim measure is running 24 hours per day, seven days a week, Kunkle said, praising the system’s performance.

“Since partial restart of the interim measure in September 2024, chromium concentrations at and near monitoring wells have shown significant decrease based on the latest May sampling data,” she said.

Soil Cleanup Progress

To help prevent water contamination, EM-LA and N3B work to address legacy soil contamination through LANL’s 34 “Aggregate Areas,” each of which is within a single watershed or canyon. Aggregate Areas contain Solid Waste Management Units (SWMUs), where waste was placed, and/or Areas of Concern (AOCs), which may have had a release of hazardous waste or hazardous constituents. Since May 2018, 435 SWMUs or AOCs have been investigated and, if necessary, remediated, Rodriguez said.

Currently, there are more than 480 SWMUs and AOCs in the Aggregate Areas that have received certificates of completion from the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED), and another 120 requests for certificates of completion are pending with NMED.

More Than 48,000 Samples Collected Since Legacy Cleanup Contract Began

N3B also conducts sampling and monitoring for water, soil and vapor to provide critical insight into the effectiveness of various cleanup approaches and to determine the extent of contamination. Since the start of N3B’s contract in May 2018, more than 48,000 water, soil and vapor samples have been collected, Rodriguez said, adding that the summer sampling includes a four-day raft trip along the Rio Grande River.

N3B’s sampling program helps demonstrate that “our stormwater and engineering control systems are working,” Rodriguez said. “It also confirms that cleanup is effective. Any time you do a cleanup, you’re going to do confirmation. That is the goal here: to ensure whatever we’re cleaning up, we’re cleaning it to a point that meets the applicable standards. Whether it’s through air, whether it’s through water, or whether it’s through soil, that’s what sampling tells us.”

-Contributor: Michael Nartker

LANL News:

Eighty years after the end of World War II, locals and travelers are more interested than ever in what remains of the top-secret lab and makeshift town that supported the Manhattan Project. Here’s a guide of what you can see in a day’s journey back in time.

Head out from Santa Fe around 10 a.m. to sidestep early-morning commuters, many of whom are driving to work at Los Alamos National Laboratory. Head north from Santa Fe on U.S. Highway 84/285 on a drive that should take 35 to 45 minutes. In Pojoaque, turn left (west) onto N.M. 502. Although this road has been widened and paved over many times in the past 80 years, you are now on the route that Manhattan Project scientists, staff and members of the U.S. Army took up the hill to the town that didn’t exist.

What’s it like to live and work in Northern New Mexico? Explore here

Crossing into new territory

The road takes you through scenic country and four Native American pueblos: Tesuque, Nambé, Pojoaque and San Ildefonso. As you cross the Rio Grande, note that you’re at historic Otowi Crossing and you’ll see the old Otowi Bridge on your left, which is on the National Register of Historic Places. “Otowi” is a Tewa word meaning “gap where the water sinks” — and that part of the landscape endures. During the Manhattan Project era, Edith Warner ran a teahouse here, and J. Robert Oppenheimer had a standing weekly reservation. Other scientists of the day — such as Norris Bradbury, Phillip Morrison, Edward Teller, Stanislaw Ulam, Hans Bethe, Enrico Fermi and Niels Bohr — all used pseudonyms to make their reservations, as it was the only restaurant for miles, and they didn’t need an official day pass to Santa Fe to go there.

For many New Mexicans, Otowi Crossing became symbolic of the boundary between the known world and the Atomic Age. Warner and this period in history are immortalized in the books “The House at Otowi Bridge” by Peggy Pond Church and “Woman at Otowi Crossing” by Frank Waters.

Heading onward, the road rises in elevation, making it clear why Los Alamos was known as “the Hill”, as it still is today. Stay on N.M. 502 to the town of Los Alamos, which is where Los Alamos National Laboratory is based in a county of more than 19,000 people. Near the city limit, you’ll see Main Gate Park, a replica of the main gate as it looked in 1943. (Another version was reconstructed for the 2023 film “Oppenheimer.”) This can be a fun photo-op stop as well as a rest area (with a public restroom) and a place to pick up brochures and maps.

Surveying the science

Venturing into downtown Los Alamos, your second stop is the Bradbury Science Museum, operated by the Laboratory. Located at 1450 Central Ave. and open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday and 1-5 p.m. Sunday, the museum is free and showcases artifacts from the Manhattan Project, including a replica of the Fat Man bomb that was detonated over Nagasaki, Japan, in 1945.

In addition to the Manhattan Project, the Bradbury’s exhibits document the science of the Laboratory’s 80-year history, including advances in supercomputing, nuclear nonproliferation, biotechnology and climate science. For most people, the museum is the closest they will get to understanding what happens at the national security lab, which is closed to the public. Beginning July 15, visitors can see the museum’s new installation, “Trinity 80th Anniversary Exhibit,” which takes a close look at the people who caught on film daily life and major moments of the Manhattan Project, like the Trinity test.

“The Bradbury Science Museum is a place for families to engage in exhibits and learn together,” Director Patrick Moore said. “About a third of our exhibit space is on the Manhattan Project, and many visitors come here for our origin story. The rest of our museum is about Lab research and is ideal for middle schoolers through adults.”

Peeking behind the fence

The National Park Service has worked diligently to preserve many of these buildings and sites as part of the Manhattan Project National Historical Park, and tours of the Los Alamos site are offered twice a year with advance registration through a lottery system. Tour dates and lottery registration information is always listed on the Lab’s website for the park.

“The Manhattan Project National Historical Park is probably different from any other national park you’ll ever visit because it’s surrounded by Lab property in active use,” Program Manager Jonathan Creel said. “We’re not open every day all the time, but before the park was created, only Lab staff members (and sometimes not even them) could visit this historic place and understand the importance of accomplishing so much with so little. Gradually, we’re making it more accessible to more people.”

About 180 people will get to visit the park on the next round of tours. However, for those who don’t have the opportunity, there’s plenty more Manhattan Project history to be seen.

A few blocks down Central Avenue, you’ll find Ashley Pond and the Manhattan Project National Historical Park Visitor Center (475 20th St., near the corner of 20th and Central) on your left and Fuller Lodge, Bathtub Row and the Los Alamos History Museum (1050 Bathtub Row) on your right.

Entering the park visitor center, you’ll see a massive photo map on the wall depicting how Los Alamos looked during the Manhattan Project, and a line from the movie “Oppenheimer” — “Build a town and build it fast” — may echo in your ears. Not much of the era remains today because frankly, early Los Alamos was simply not built to last, but the map can help you compare and contrast Manhattan Project-era Los Alamos with what’s still standing now.

Thankfully, Ashley Pond is much greener and grassier than it was 80 years ago and is a great place to take a break or have a picnic. In the evenings, enjoy the free Los Alamos Summer Concert Series.

Beholding the backstory

Across the street, Fuller Lodge is the flagship building of the now-defunct Los Alamos Ranch School, a boarding school for boys from 1917 to 1942. The U.S. government bought the school for use in the Manhattan Project. Fuller Lodge functioned as a meeting place and community center during the project and still does today, though it is now owned and operated by Los Alamos County. Inside, the Fuller Lodge Arts Center Gallery and Gift Shop showcases works by local makers.

Visiting the adjacent Los Alamos History Museum, you’ll learn about the Manhattan Project with an emphasis on the life and stories of its participants as well as the era’s material culture. The houses dotted along the property were originally those of Ranch School teachers and later Manhattan Project leaders. They were the only facilities on the Hill with bathtubs, hence the name Bathtub Row. Along Bathtub Row, you can see and enter the Hans Bethe House, and stand outside the J. Robert Oppenheimer House next door. Fuller Lodge and the two houses were both filming locations for the movie “Oppenheimer.” The Oppenheimer home is currently closed for historic preservation purposes.

Connecting history to today

Driving down Central Avenue, turn left on Diamond Drive, where you will cross the Omega Bridge, built in 1951. During this post-war time period, property previously used for the Manhattan Project became the Los Alamos townsite, and the Laboratory moved across the canyon to its present location. Turning left on East Jemez Road, on your right you will see Los Alamos National Laboratory as it is today: 40 square miles of facilities employing approximately 18,000 people working on national security missions, which extend beyond military applications to include the security of the country’s energy supply, food supply, environment, public health and economy.

Today’s main gate is significantly larger than the original — but make note, no photographs are allowed, even from your car.

From this point, you can stay on East Jemez Road, which will take you back to N.M. 502 — or on to N.M. 4 if you want to visit other scenic sites in the region such as Bandelier National Monument or the Valles Caldera National Preserve.

LAPS NEWS RELEASE

It’s the start of Senior Week at Los Alamos High School for the Class of 2025. The week includes several activities, including Senior Sunset, Senior Picnic at Urban Park, and Senior Walks at the elementary schools and middle school, culminating in graduation on Saturday, May 24 at Sullivan Field.

The ceremony will begin at 9:00 am. Tickets are not required to attend the graduation ceremony. Gates will open at 8:00 am. Families with graduates with last names beginning with A – Lo are asked to enter through the gates closest to the United Methodist Church. For families with graduates with last names beginning with Lu – Z, please enter through the gates closest to Mesa Field. Seating will be on a first come, first served basis.

This year, the Sullivan Field parking lot will be for handicapped parking only. Other parking will be available at Griffith Gym and Duane Smith Auditorium. Additional parking may be found at one of the neighboring churches, including Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church, Trinity on the Hill Episcopal Church and First United Methodist Church. There is no parking in the lot behind UNM-LA.

The 2025 graduation ceremony will be live streamed beginning at 8:30 am. The link will be posted on the Los Alamos High School website.

The Athletics Department would like to remind everyone that food is not allowed on Sullivan Field. Please do not bring any seeds or gum to graduation. Bottled water is allowed. In addition, all chairs must have a blanket or towel under the legs. Visitors will be turned away at the entrance if they do not have a blanket or towel to place under their chair. Please respect the facilities and help us keep them undamaged for our teams and community partners.

Sullivan Field and the track will be closed Thursday, May 22 through Tuesday, May 27 forgraduation preparations and ceremonies. Sullivan Field and the track will also be closed to thepublic on Tuesday, May 20 for Senior Sunset from 7 pm – 9 pm.

Graduates and one guest are invited to Senior Appreciation Night starting at 6 pm on Saturday. A Los Alamos tradition since 1984, SAN is sponsored by Los Alamos businesses and organizations, and features games, music, a carnival, photos, skating, climbing, a movie, andprizes.

Jemez Mountain Brewhouse in Jemez Springs. Courtesy photo

JMB NEWS RELEASE

Join Jemez Mountain Brewhouse as we celebrate our third year in business with music and entertainment between Thursday, May 22 and Monday, May 26. Each day features many local and regional musicians and entertainers.

There is much to be thankful for at JMB, starting with our hardworking staff. They have been making delicious food and delivering excellent service. We also know we wouldn’t be here without our loyal local customers. Thanks to the Jemez Springs Village officials, and to everyone in the New Mexico beer community that have helped us along the way. Thank you to the Regional Development Corporation (RDC) for their 2025 TEAM Fund award. The RDC award will help us keep our brewing side of the Brewhouse climate-controlled, and is the second award that JMB has received from the organization. We appreciate their continued support for small businesses like ours.

This past year has provided lots of opportunities to celebrate. We brewed our first batch of beer on-site in August of 2024! We have continued to host Open Mic Nights on Mondays and increased the number of our Karaoke nights. We’ve hosted more regional musical touring performers and local musicians alike. We’re ready to tap our eighth beer brewed on-site (After Midnight, American Pale Ale), just in time for the celebration. On most Monday nights (excluding May 26) you can find our pizza slices in Los Alamos at the Bathtub Row Brewing Coop starting at 5pm. We have even hosted a few wedding receptions and private parties at the Brewhouse. Did we mention we’re brewing on-site? We’re pretty excited about that!

Join us Thursday to listen to Canyon Standard Time, and Friday for John McEvoy, and Mark Whitcomb & John Urban. Start off Saturday with Yoga in the park at 11:00 with Meg and then come hear Kent Taylor at noon, or Lane Stevens at 2:00, or Josh Martin from 5-8:00. On Sunday Greg Mertz, Kent Taylor, and Peter Harrington all have their own timeslot. At noon on Monday Tom Swetnam, local historian, will give an informative talk about Jemez Springs, Devin Rivera will entertain you with comedy at 1:00, Maximus Wilkins plays at 2:00, and Jamiversary concludes with Adrian Wall performing at 5:00. Check our social media pages for updates!