Regional

More than 34,000 active duty troops live at Fort Bliss in El Paso. But a lot of civilians pass through the base as well. That’s – in part – because of its commanding general, Maj. Gen. Dana Pittard, who leaves his post Thursday.

Pittard has served in the military for over three decades, but coming to Fort Bliss about three years ago was coming home. His turned his personal connection into a connection for Fort Bliss.

More than 34,000 active duty troops live at Fort Bliss in El Paso. But a lot of civilians pass through the base as well. That’s – in part – because of its commanding general, Maj. Gen. Dana Pittard, who leaves his post Thursday.

Pittard has served in the military for over three decades, but coming to Fort Bliss about three years ago was coming home. His turned his personal connection into a connection for Fort Bliss.

  Five African spurred tortoises are sitting patiently at the Animal Services Center of the Mesilla Valley awaiting either their owner or someone willing to adopt them.

   The tortoises, native to the Saharan desert of North Africa, are not the first of their kind to arrive at the shelter. According to Executive Director Dr. Beth Vesco-Mock, a 40-pound African spurred tortoise was brought to the shelter in 2011.

  Chemists, biologists and engineers at The University of Texas at El Paso are developing a treatment to remove endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs) in reclaimed water and drinking water.

EDCs are chemicals commonly found in household and industrial products, including BPA in plastics and nonylphenols found in detergents and pesticides, that are capable of disrupting hormonal balance within humans and wildlife and leading to reproductive disturbances.

Santa Fe, NM - As part of the national Blue Star Museums Program, New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs’ 15 state-run museums and historic sites will once again offer free admission to active duty military personnel and their families from Memorial Day through Labor Day 2013.

           Doña Ana County Sheriff’s deputies are interviewing witnesses and gathering additional information after a weekend homicide in Berino.    This is Doña Ana County’s first homicide of 2013.

   Investigators say 41-year-old Juan Perez was unresponsive when they arrived at a residential area off Saltbush Road on the afternoon of May 18, 2013. According to witnesses, Perez had been consuming alcohol with several other people throughout the day before he allegedly got into a fight.

  Silver City, NM--Work is progressing at the Wastewater Treatment Facility six acre Solar Array, and on schedule to be operational in June.  An impressive spread of 3,949 photovoltaic panels is mounted on the site and the wiring is buried in conduit beneath them.  Pat Casey, owner of C-5 Construction in Silver City, has been under contract for the trenching work for the extensive underground electrical conduit runs. C-5 has also been involved in other earth work and will be building protective structures on the facility.

  The City of Las Cruces is netting results in the Bags to Benches recycling program.  Las Cruces Parks & Recreation challenged residents to collect 30,000 plastic bags, or 600 lbs of plastic, in a six month span in order to be awarded a new park bench made of recycled materials.  In half that time, city residents had helped to collect 1000 lbs.  The first bench has arrived and is waiting at city hall for a permanent location.