Facts

  • Herbicide use is common in New Mexico. Four different herbicides have been approved for onions; nine for chiles and lettuce; between 11 and 18 for apples, potatoes, pecans and peanuts; 20 to 25 for grapes, grain sorghum and various rangeland treatments; over 30 for barley; over 45 for corn; and 50 for wheat.
  • CAFOs are major sources of water and air pollution. One 1,200 pound dairy cow produces the same amount of manure as 20-40 humans. A 2,000-head industrial dairy produces as much bodily waste each day as a human community of 40,000. Much of this waste is stored in lined, open-air lagoons. About 90% is spread onto fields, where it can spill into rivers or playas or leach into groundwater.
  • Erosion: New Mexico has the most highly erodible cropland in the nation (90%). It had the most severe and serious wind erosion of any state during the dust bowl. The CRP program has greatly reduced the risk of erosion in the High Plains.