Yucca Growth Infrastructure, LLC-YGI Microgrid Air Quality Construction Permit Application

Comment From: Aaliyah Dominguez

6/24/26 @ 6:08 AM

Dear NMED staff,
My name is Aaliyah . I am a New Mexico resident, living in Portales , and I am writing because I am concerned about the risks and harms Project Jupiter poses to New Mexicans. I am submitting this comment to urge the New Mexico Envir...↓

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Comment From: Celina Martinez

6/24/26 @ 12:21 AM

I urge the NMED to deny Air Quality Construction Permit Application 10883 for the Yucca Growth Infrastructure (YGI) Microgrid in southern Doña Ana County. Granting a permit to emit over 10 million metric tons of CO2 annually violates NMED's mission t...↓o protect public health and prevent air quality deterioration, disproportionately harming BIPOC and low-income communities.

The application relies on an unproven, unregulatable, and inadequately tested design:

* Unprecedented, Unproven Scale: YGI proposes using 2,275 Bloom Energy Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFC). Though several projects have been announced with much fanfare, the largest operating Bloom installation is a 40 MW facility - 60 times smaller than what is proposed here. Scaling this technology to a mega-utility application remains entirely unproven.

* Suspect Estimates & Inadequate Testing: The emissions data provided is based on testing of a single, 65 kW unit four times for four hours. Extrapolating data from a unit 37,876 times smaller than the proposed plant capacity - and adjusting it with an arbitrary 15% safety margin - fails to provide credible empirical evidence. The emissions data provided by the company cannot be trusted.

* Enforcement Impossibility: The design routes 2,275 individual cells through separate stacks with no add-on pollution control mechanisms or integrated continuous monitoring for particulate matter, VOCs, or shifting CO2 intensity. NMED cannot practically enforce compliance under 20.2.72.210 NMAC across thousands of individual, degrading units.

* Severe Public Health & Environmental Impacts: The microgrid will emit 161.2 tons/year of CO and 124 tons/year of VOCs near existing EPA non-attainment zones. It will generate a thermal plume and a "heat island" effect, raising downwind temperatures by up to 3.6°F in a sweltering desert climate, threatening vulnerable populations.

Furthermore, concentrating 10M metric tons of climate-warming CO2 into 275 acres - exceeding the combined emissions of Albuquerque, Santa Fe, and Las Cruces - creates localized health risks. Emerging 2025–2026 research links elevated CO2 levels to permanent changes in human blood chemistry, oxidative stress, and cognitive decline. Because CO2 sensitivity exists on a normal spectrum, even minor baseline increases can induce anxiety and panic attacks in sensitive individuals.

Viable alternatives exist. The June 2025 Lazard Levelized Cost of Energy Report confirms that renewables are the lowest-cost resources to deploy and tech leaders are already powering massive data centers using firm solar-wind-battery configurations.

YGI must not be allowed to greenwash a fossil-fueled plant that erases New Mexico's climate progress. NMED must reject this permit, or at the very least schedule a formal public hearing to investigate these severe community impacts.

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Comment From: Isabel Roberts

6/23/26 @ 7:13 PM

Dear NMED staff,

I am writing because I am concerned about the risks and harms Project Jupiter poses to New Mexicans and the dangerous president it sets for citizens across the Nation. I am submitting this comment to urge the New Mexico Environment...↓ Department to reject Yucca Growth Infrastructure, LLC's air permit application for the YGI Microgrid in Doña Ana County.

I grew up in Dona Ana county in the Robledos Mountains and have seen the effects that prolonged drought has had on this environment. There used to be tadpoles during the monsoon season. They are no longer here. There is not enough rain and moisture to sustain them. There used to be unique insects that would make themselves known every season. They are no longer here. The environment is continuing to devolve due to the stressors of drought and increased heat that will only become more acute under the impacts of climate change. The soil will become hydrophobic, dust storms will become more severe, and agricultural production will fail. We will continue to lose biodiversity and our loved ones. These are the impacts of climate change that this project will exacerbate.

My Father's Father died when he was nine years old due to cancer. This loss forever changed my family and we are still suffering his death into my generation. He died due to toxic waste contaminating drinking water from mining operations near his home. The fuel cell proposition for this project will produce concentrated hazardous waste. There is no indication of where this toxic waste will be deposited. Likely, it will find its way into the bodies of the Santa Teresa Elementary schoolers and High Schoolers who are located within five miles of this project site. The toxins won't stop there. They will find their way into the homes of unprecedented and unevaluated amounts of people. Hazardous chemicals will leach into soil, air, and water. How many children, spouses, and loved ones is NMED willing to expose to this irrevocable harm? Chemical exposure is a slow death that this project promises for those it impacts. The data center will not be held liable for this harm. It is here to make profit, no matter how many deaths it takes. Because of this, the fate of hundreds of thousands of people now rests within NMEPs hands.

NMED's mission is "to protect and restore the environment and to foster a healthy and prosperous New Mexico for present and future generations." If NMED allows this project to continue it is abandoning those it is tasked to protect. It is leaving them at the will of those who will take their water and pollute it further, sell it back to them, and leave NMED with the consequences of generations of cancer patients, environmental degradation, and loss beyond comparison.

I am so deeply wounded that this project was ever allowed past the desks of County Commissioners of Dona Ana. This area is our home. This area is worthy of protection. The people are entitled to clean air, water, and the protection of those charged with their care. Please do right by the land, people, and air. Please do right by New Mexico.

Reject YUCCA Yucca Growth Infrastructure, LLC's air permit application for the YGI Microgrid. I ask the department to please hold a bilingual public hearing near the Santa Teresa community, so that residents can learn about the risks associated with fuel cell technology.

Do not let this community down. Reject this proposal and continue to fight for the health and safety of New Mexicans now and for generations to come.

Thank you,
Isabel Roberts

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Comment From: Alex Atcitty

6/23/26 @ 6:50 PM

Dear NMED staff,

My name is Alex Atcitty, I am a New Mexico resident from Albuquerque. I am writing to you to express my disapproval of Project Jupiter and to urge you to reject Yucca Growth Infastructure, LLC's air permit for the YGI Microgrid in...↓

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Comment From: Shannon Lionetti

6/23/26 @ 6:49 PM

Dear NMED staff,
My name is Shannon Lionetti. I am a New Mexico resident, and I am writing because I am concerned about the risks and harms Project Jupiter poses to New Mexicans. I am submitting this comment to urge the New Mexico Environment Depart...↓

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Comment From: Esperanza Chairez

6/23/26 @ 6:42 PM

Dear NMED staff,

My name is Esperanza Chairez, and I live in Las Cruces, NM. I am writing because I am concerned about the risks and harms Project Jupiter poses to my home. I am submitting this comment to urge the New Mexico Environment Department ...↓to reject Yucca Growth Infrastructure, LLC's air permit application for the YGI Microgrid in Doña Ana County.

As someone born and raised in Las Cruces, I am deeply concerned with the ways that Project Jupiter has rammed through our public democratic bodies, and is forcing itself onto my community here in Doña Ana county. I was opposed to the project's gas turbines before they abruptly changed their plans, and am still opposed to their proposed fuel cell "microgrid."

This new permit application still demonstrates a HUGE and concerning level of greenhouse gas emissions and toxic pollutants. Santa Teresa and our borderlands communities already experience a vulnerable air shed, with some days of horrible air quality and this project would only make our air worse. Isn't your mission "to protect and restore the environment and to foster a healthy and prosperous New Mexico for present and future generations" ? Granting these permit applications would be a direct contradiction to that mission. As a young person living in Las Cruces this proposed energy generation has paid no regard for present or future generations.

This technology generates toxic waste, and the process for handling this waste is still unclear! Bloom was fined for improper hazardous waste handling in Pennsylvania and Maryland. In 2020, Bloom was fined $210,000, and then $1,161,000. When I asked a Bloom employee about the toxic waste at a recent public event in Sunland Park, they were unable to answer my question as to where this waste would go and told me that it would simply go "to whoever can take it." This is unacceptable, and deeply alarming given that neither fuel cell technology nor their proposed "centralized" waste system has never occurred at this scale.

For these reasons and more, I urge the NMED to outright reject YUCCA Yucca Growth Infrastructure, LLC's air permit application for the YGI Microgrid. I ask the department to please hold a bilingual public hearing near the Santa Teresa community, so that local residents can learn about the potential dangers associated with fuel cell technology.

Respectfully,
Esperanza Chairez

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Comment From: Jake Greene

6/23/26 @ 3:46 PM

I am concerned about the various pollutants that this project will create and put into the air we all breath. Asthma runs in my family and I know the terror of having to rush my little sister - blue in the face - to the hospital in the middle of the...↓ night. She had a childhood case of asthma all her short life - she died at 43 years of age. My mother struggled with asthma much of her life and I developed an adult onset case by my mid thirties. In fact, we moved from California's central vally to Santa Fe county in 2001 to leave behind the nation's third worst airbasin to experience the clearer air of New Mexico. I carry a rescue inhaler but have never used it since moving here. I fear my asthma may return if this project is allowed to emit 37+ tons of NOx and 75+ tons of particulates annually into the atmosphere. Moreover, I am concerned the men, women, and children who live near this development will be subjected to the same ailments and more (lung cancer, strokes, heart attacks, brain damage, and others) my familty suffered with, including premature death, if this project is allowed to use our air as a sewer. Thus, I believe this project should not be permitted at all but, if it is permitted, it should be held to strictly enforced standards already in place in New Mexico, including meaningful fines and stoppages until the development meets those standards.

Turning to the subject of the local population - men, women, and children living near this project - Doña Ana County has been a nonattainment zone for years — that is, county air quality does not meet federal standards. It is simply racist and an environmental injustice to site this project in the county. As a part of New Mexico state government, the Environment Department would be engaging in intolerable behavior toward the state's citizens by approving this project, given what we all know about the effects of the pollution it will generate. Approving this project ipso facto sentences a portion of nearby men, women, and children to lifelong ailments, a lessened quality of life, and premature deaths. It simply is wrong to approve this development wmeetingsithout hearing from people in person. Thus, the Department must hold local public meetings in English and Spanish to understand how the people feel about the impacts of this project.

There is also the matter of the trustworthiness of one proponent, Bloom Energy. According to what I have read, Bloom has been fined over $1.4 million by several states for illegally handling and dumping hazardous wastes. These wastes included cancer-causing benzene, heavy metals such as lead, arsenic, and chromium, and toxic compounds, including sulfur. Furthermore, there is evidence Bloom falsified records to hide what the company did and to escape responsibility for the malfeasence. If agua es vida, we cannot put our limited water at risk by allowing this company to move forward with this project. Nor can we risk our soil and air to a company of dubious repute and honesty.

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Comment From: Jake Greene

6/23/26 @ 3:44 PM

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Comment From: Elaine Thomas

6/23/26 @ 3:43 PM

Dear NMED staff,
My name is Elaine Thomas. I am a New Mexico resident, living in Albuquerque,NM, and I am writing because I am concerned about the risks and harms Project Jupiter poses to New Mexicans. I am submitting this comment to urge the New Me...↓

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Comment From: Kandace Donaldson

6/23/26 @ 3:26 PM

I drive past our empty river twice a day, and it scares me every time. Building a data center when we do not have water for our residents is unacceptable

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Comment From: Julieta Magdalena

6/23/26 @ 3:00 PM

I am writing to express my support for Project Jupiter, which I believe offers significant benefits for our community.

Project Jupiter is poised to bring substantial economic growth to Doa Ana County. It is anticipated to create 4,000 construction ...↓

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Comment From: Maria Hernandez

6/23/26 @ 3:00 PM

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Comment From: Mya Merdith

6/23/26 @ 3:00 PM

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Comment From: Helena Van Heningen

6/23/26 @ 3:00 PM

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Comment From: Alexis Corona

6/23/26 @ 2:43 PM

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Comment From: Andy Juarez

6/23/26 @ 2:43 PM

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Comment From: Thomas Aragon

6/23/26 @ 2:43 PM

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Comment From: David Quinomes

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Miguel Gutierrez

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Josue Camacho

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Steven Goebel

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Lamar Burrell

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

I support this project in New Mexico.
Sincerely,
Lamar Burrell

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Comment From: Danny Goena

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Tamera Miller

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Kamal Davis

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Manuel Pulido

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Chris Padulla

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Amber Easley

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Maria quintana Quintana

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Theresa Montano

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Isela Pulido

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Arnoldo Gallegos

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Carlos Buenavista

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Analy Armenta

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Bianca Shaw

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Mary Knox

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Dawn Martinez

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Destiny Jackson

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Maria quintana Quintana

6/23/26 @ 2:42 PM

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Comment From: Tanyiah Flores

6/23/26 @ 2:41 PM

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Comment From: Aaron Deleon

6/23/26 @ 2:41 PM

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Comment From: Marcela Elvira

6/23/26 @ 2:41 PM

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Comment From: Renee Gallegos

6/23/26 @ 2:41 PM

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Comment From: Andrew Astorga

6/23/26 @ 2:41 PM

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Comment From: Phillip Finley

6/23/26 @ 2:41 PM

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Comment From: Debra Conover

6/23/26 @ 2:41 PM

I am neutral about it.

Project Jupiter is poised to bring substantial economic growth to Doa Ana County. It is anticipated to create 4,000 construction jobs and 1,500 project-supported jobs. Furthermore, Project Jupiter has committed $50 million to ...↓

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Comment From: John Joaquin Romero

6/23/26 @ 2:41 PM

Positive on how it's going to bring new jobs to New Mexico

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Comment From: Elizabeth Castillo

6/23/26 @ 2:41 PM

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Comment From: Savannah Rivera

6/23/26 @ 2:41 PM

I am writing to express my concerns for Project Jupiter, which I believe offers significant benefits for our community.

Project Jupiter is poised to bring substantial economic growth to Doa Ana County. It is anticipated to create 4,000 construction...↓

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Comment From: Dominic Robles

6/23/26 @ 2:41 PM

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Comment From: Robert Pulido

6/23/26 @ 2:41 PM

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Comment From: Jarvis Kanawhite

6/23/26 @ 2:41 PM

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Comment From: Lou Castaneda

6/23/26 @ 2:41 PM

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Comment From: John Hammarstrom

6/23/26 @ 2:41 PM

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Comment From: Carmanlita Broderick

6/23/26 @ 2:41 PM

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Comment From: Victor Pesian

6/23/26 @ 2:36 PM

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Comment From: Mary Forbes

6/23/26 @ 2:36 PM

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Comment From: Cecil Hicks

6/23/26 @ 2:35 PM

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Comment From: April Sanchez

6/23/26 @ 2:35 PM

I think it would benefit new Mexicans with employment opportunities

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Comment From: Niko Rodriguez

6/23/26 @ 2:35 PM

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Comment From: Dominic Robles

6/23/26 @ 2:35 PM

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Comment From: Angelica Rubio

6/23/26 @ 2:35 PM

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Comment From: Draven Cox

6/23/26 @ 2:34 PM

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Comment From: Jt Johnson

6/23/26 @ 2:33 PM

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Comment From: Holden Dubroc

6/23/26 @ 2:32 PM

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Comment From: Courtney Maurer

6/23/26 @ 2:32 PM

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Comment From: Stephanie archuleta

6/23/26 @ 2:32 PM

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Comment From: Samara Villa

6/23/26 @ 2:32 PM

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Comment From: Jenny Dozier

6/23/26 @ 2:28 PM

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Comment From: Amaya Wright

6/23/26 @ 2:28 PM

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Comment From: Crystal Tinguely

6/23/26 @ 2:28 PM

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Comment From: Justin Rodarte

6/23/26 @ 2:28 PM

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Comment From: Gwen Benally

6/23/26 @ 2:28 PM

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Comment From: David Quiver

6/23/26 @ 2:28 PM

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Comment From: Katie Dozier

6/23/26 @ 2:28 PM

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Comment From: Josh Demoss

6/23/26 @ 2:28 PM

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Comment From: Dolores Bartlett

6/23/26 @ 2:27 PM

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Comment From: Juan Perez

6/23/26 @ 2:27 PM

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Comment From: Robert Mondragon

6/23/26 @ 2:27 PM

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Comment From: Mauricio Hernandez Perez

6/23/26 @ 2:27 PM

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Comment From: Jesse Delgado

6/23/26 @ 2:27 PM

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Comment From: Mia Benally

6/23/26 @ 2:27 PM

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Comment From: Fern Borrero

6/23/26 @ 2:27 PM

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Comment From: Justin Rodarte

6/23/26 @ 2:27 PM

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Comment From: Stephanie Danis

6/23/26 @ 2:27 PM

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Comment From: Arturo Hernandez

6/23/26 @ 2:26 PM

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Comment From: Kristin Mondragon

6/23/26 @ 2:26 PM

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Comment From: Candice Garcia

6/23/26 @ 2:26 PM

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Comment From: Jason Roberts

6/23/26 @ 2:26 PM

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Comment From: Adolfo Vasquez

6/23/26 @ 2:26 PM

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Comment From: Eric Mondragon

6/23/26 @ 2:26 PM

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Comment From: Justin Mares

6/23/26 @ 2:26 PM

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Comment From: Lauren Mondragon

6/23/26 @ 2:26 PM

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Comment From: Susan Syring

6/23/26 @ 2:25 PM

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Comment From: Fatima Esparza

6/23/26 @ 2:03 PM

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Comment From: Letitia Watts

6/23/26 @ 2:02 PM

I am writing to express my concerns for Project Jupiter.
Project Jupiter is poised to bring substantial economic growth to Doa Ana County. It is anticipated to create 4,000 construction jobs and 1,500 project-supported jobs. Furthermore, Project Jup...↓

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Comment From: Trista King

6/23/26 @ 11:04 AM

Dear NMED staff,
My name is Trista King. I am a New Mexico resident, living in Albuquerque, and I am writing because I am concerned about the risks and harms Project Jupiter poses to New Mexicans. I am submitting this comment to urge the New Mexico ...↓

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Comment From: Julian Corral

6/23/26 @ 10:11 AM

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Comment From: Amanda Truelock

6/23/26 @ 10:10 AM

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Comment From: Masooma Essa

6/23/26 @ 10:04 AM

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