Vasquez, NM Delegation Secure Key Funding to Rebuild Roads Outside of WIPP in Carlsbad

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Thursday, September 24, U.S. Representative Gabe Vasquez (NM-02), U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-NM), and U.S. Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-NM) secured $10 million in federal funding to repair the US 285 Relief Route, a critical road for freight trucks transporting nuclear materials to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) near Carlsbad. The New Mexican delegation, along with the New Mexico Governor’s Office, worked closely to ensure that the federal government fulfilled its promises related to this project.

“WIPP serves a critical role for nuclear waste storage in our state and for our nation," said Vasquez. "This funding is much needed to ensure the safety and improvement of transportation of volatile materials to the facility. We cannot accept any shortcuts or funding shortfalls with a mission this sensitive, and this important. I am proud to have secured this funding working with Senator Heinrich despite the ongoing challenges releasing these funds from the Department of Energy.”

“Last appropriations cycle, I fought like hell to secure this funding – to get New Mexico more of the funding we deserve for our role in maintaining the nation’s only deep geologic repository for radioactive defense waste. I am extremely proud to have succeeded in delivering this $10 million to help rebuild the roads to, from, and around WIPP and strengthen the infrastructure that workers and the Carlsbad community rely on every day,” said Heinrich. “But our work isn’t done. I’ll keep fighting to increase the federal government’s support of road and infrastructure improvements in New Mexico, including through my WIPP Economic Assistance Assurance Act.”

“WIPP is critical to our national security, and it is vital that we have the infrastructure needed to support its operations and safely manage the disposal of nuclear waste,” said Luján. “I’m proud to have worked to bring this $10 million in federal funding home to rebuild the roads around WIPP that workers and the Carlsbad community rely on. I look forward to continuing my work to deliver for communities in every corner of New Mexico.”

WIPP, located near Carlsbad, New Mexico, is the nation’s only deep geologic repository for the disposal of transuranic waste generated by the United States’ nuclear weapons program. Since opening in 1999, WIPP has played a critical role in supporting the national defense mission by managing legacy nuclear materials and supporting national security-related cleanup efforts across the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

In 2025, Rep. Vasquez’s proactive and vocal efforts working alongside local stakeholders prevented the federal government from closing WIPP and leaving New Mexico without a key nuclear waste treatment plant.

###