Berganza delivered the comments in a live interview with KTSM anchor Andy Morgan, discussing community and regulatory monitoring that show repeated PM2.5 and dust spikes in the borderland, as reported by KTSM. Local advocates say the pattern of high readings has become more frequent this year and is not limited to a single neighborhood.

The Hispanic Access Foundation's "El Aire Que Respiramos" program released data this fall showing that Latino communities across multiple states regularly encounter PM2.5 concentrations above the EPA's recommended safety threshold, and the group says community sensors in El Paso have helped document local exposures. In a November release, the foundation said the program pairs low-cost sensors with training and engagement so residents can use the data to push for cleaner air, as outlined by the Hispanic Access Foundation.

Earlier this year, several dust storms sent PM2.5 readings to levels that local monitors and scientists described as some of the worst on record for the region, and in one case an hourly monitor registered values far above federal daily limits, as reported by Marfa Public Radio. Researchers say those spikes were driven by unusually strong winds and prolonged drought that left soils exposed and ready to blow.

El Paso's combination of prolonged drought, stronger spring winds and a high proportion of unpaved roads, particularly across the border in Ciudad Juárez, has long made the area vulnerable to blowing dust, local reporting and experts note. Those conditions helped place El Paso among the higher-ranked U.S. metros for particulate pollution in the 2024 IQAir analysis, according to El Paso Matters.