A rural area of southeastern New Mexico is being touted as an interim storage site for the country's high-level nuclear waste.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports that Gov. Susana Martinez reached out to the Obama administration earlier this month to consider the 1,000-acre parcel as a place for storing spent radioactive fuel rods from power plants.
In an April 10 letter to Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz, which was obtained by the newspaper, Martinez praised area residents for being able to "carve out a niche in the nuclear industry."
A spokesman for Martinez says the letter is only a preliminary endorsement.
Regional officials say the potential disposal ground could bring jobs and economic growth.
A facility in Texas is also campaigning to become the chief dumping ground.
