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Water Overuse

Agriculture Center Pivot Irrigation on Curry County Ranch - Photo Credit Danny Fish

Groundwater Crisis in Eastern NM

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Time to Treat Our Aquifers Like Infrastructure

New Mexico is standing at the edge of a crisis that many cannot see—because it lies beneath our feet. Groundwater, our state’s most vital and fragile water source, is vanishing faster than it can be replenished. In Eastern New Mexico, this crisis is no longer a distant threat, because Eastern New Mexico is almost out of water.  The threat is here. It is now.

For those of us working in land and water conservation, especially in the Ogallala Aquifer region, the warning signs have been flashing red for years. The Ogallala Aquifer—one of the largest in the world—underlies eight states and provides life-sustaining water for agriculture, communities, and military installations. But it is a finite, non-renewable resource. In Eastern New Mexico, we are draining it. It’s irreplaceable; the consequences are mounting.

More than 95% of our local groundwater is used for irrigation farming. But irrigation isn’t just “watering crops.” It is water-intensive, industrial-scale pumping that, year after year, removes vast volumes of groundwater from ancient paleochannels—buried drainage channels carved before the aquifer was formed. Because they are the deepest parts of the Ogallala Aquifer, paleochannels hold the last accessible groundwater in the region.

Center-pivot irrigation Curry County Ranch, now abandoned.  Photo: Danny Fish

In fact, from 2018 to 2023 alone, we lost more than 20% of the remaining groundwater in the paleochannel region northwest of Cannon Air Force Base.

That loss isn’t just data—it’s a large permanent loss of the remaining water supply.

For every year irrigation farming continues in the paleochannel, we lose the equivalent of four years of future groundwater availability for our communities’ future. At this pace, the aquifer will be functionally depleted over most of the Eastern New Mexico High Plains region by 2028. The 2017 report Lifetime Projections of the High Plains Aquifer in Eastern New Mexico by New Mexico Tech geologists Geoff Rawling and Alex Rinehart warned us—loud and clear—that only about 10 years of water remained for agricultural use in Curry and Roosevelt Counties. We’re nearly there.

Despite its importance, groundwater is too often treated as invisible or secondary—governed inconsistently, measured incompletely, and managed with outdated frameworks.

Emptying the huge but finite Ogallala aquifer is the legacy of policies that reward extraction over conservation, like an economy based on mining.  We learned the finite limits of Ogallala Aquifer groundwater and then did nothing to reduce its rapid and thorough depletion.  Supplemental wells were authorized and drilled to restore production volumes as the saturated groundwater zone thinned. High commodity prices incentivized water-intensive crops. Meanwhile, severe sustained drought accelerated groundwater pumping to replace the absent precipitation. Climate change increased evapotranspiration.

Statewide, many communities face similar concerns. Groundwater supports not only agriculture, but drinking water systems, ecosystems, and industrial sectors across New Mexico. Yet despite its importance, groundwater is too often treated as invisible or secondary—governed inconsistently, measured incompletely, and managed with outdated frameworks.

But it’s not too late—if we act decisively and collaboratively.

And to lead, we must understand the full picture.

That begins by recognizing that groundwater is infrastructure. It may not be visible like a road or a dam, but it functions as the underlying support system for our economy, food supply, ecosystems, and national defense. Without it, communities cannot survive, agriculture cannot function, and our military readiness is compromised.

Recognize that groundwater is neglected infrastructure. Without it, communities cannot survive

We don’t think twice about maintaining highways or reinforcing bridges—yet we often overlook the aquifers beneath us that make everyday life in New Mexico possible. Groundwater storage and availability should be treated with the same level of urgency and investment as any other critical asset. Groundwater expert Maurice Hall puts it plainly: we must stop treating groundwater as a passive byproduct of weather and start managing it as the lifeline it is.

That’s why we’re honored to feature Maurice in this month’s Water Advocates speaker series. His upcoming workshop—“Groundwater as Essential Infrastructure”—invites us to rethink how we view, manage, and protect this hidden but essential resource. He’ll explore why New Mexico depends more heavily on groundwater than any other state and why proactive management has been the exception—not the rule.

Join us June 19 from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. for this important conversation.

The water beneath our feet is not just a resource—it’s the infrastructure of survival

Maurice will also share how groundwater governance is evolving across the West, offering insight into new models of aquifer stewardship, state policy, and collaborative action. Whether you’re a producer, policymaker, planner, or community leader, this session will open your eyes to what’s possible when we begin to treat groundwater not as an afterthought, but as a foundation for the future.

Bring your questions. Bring your ideas. Bring your commitment. Because the water beneath our feet is not just a resource—it’s the infrastructure of survival, and it’s time we start treating it that way.

Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/Zugf2LXrS0WF3e-XgI8zUw

Dr. Ladona Clayton is Executive Director of the Ogallala Land & Water Conservancy and a NM Water Advocates board member and volunteer. Ladona is leading water conservation efforts in Curry County in an official collaboration that includes Clovis, Curry County, Cannon Air Force Base, and local irrigators.

US Drought Monitor amalgam 5-22-25

Water Authority Drought Message Contradicts Reality

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As of May 2025, the U.S. Drought Monitor shows that Albuquerque is gripped by Drought Stage D3—Extreme Drought. Nearly 97% of Bernalillo County is in the same condition, along with most of New Mexico’s Rio Grande Basin.

Yet, the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority says we’re in Drought Stage D0—a designation that, in the Authority’s framework, means customers are conserving more water than the utility’s target. This internal metric, however, is not a hydrologic drought indicator. It contradicts observable realities and misleads the public.

This disconnect matters. The Authority is heavily pumping groundwater to meet demand. The Middle Rio Grande’s surface water is already over-allocated, and vast stretches of the river from Elephant Butte to Albuquerque will likely be dry this summer. Despite this, the utility tells customers there’s no cause for concern.

Two slides below are copied from a water resources presentation posted for the May 21 Water Authority Board meeting. They show that the utility’s definitions are decoupled from actual drought conditions, such as those recognized by federal agencies.

At the same meeting, the Board adopted its FY2026 budget. Discussion revealed that customer conservation is reducing utility revenue, threatening the Water Authority’s ability to meet debt service and annual operating costs.

So what does the utility do? It downplays the drought. Never mind that:

  • 2025 snowpack produced very little water.

  • Middle Rio Grande water users are consuming water legally allocated to downstream users under the Rio Grande Compact,

  • Without urgent state action, the region’s cumulative water debt could exceed the Compact’s legal limit this year or next, subjecting New Mexico’s water management to judicial discretion.

From the Water Advocates’ perspective, the problem is deeper than misleading messaging. No one is taking effective charge. No public agencies are acting with the urgency that increasing aridity coupled with extreme drought conditions demand.

The Water Authority undermines its own credibility — and fails its customers and the region’s economy — by using internally defined drought stages that obscure reality rather than reflect it. We urge the Authority to adopt transparent, science-based drought metrics and to communicate honestly with the public about the very real risks we all face.

Dry Rio Grande

“Most important bill for OSE” dies on the 2025 Senate Calendar

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One of the primary focuses of the New Mexico Water Advocates is advocating for critical support staff (capacity) and improved tools (such as modern computing capacity and software) for the Office of State Engineer and the Interstate Stream Commission.  This past legislative session, the NM Water Advocates learned that two bills with the same purpose had been introduced in the House (HB348) and in the Senate (SB210), the main purpose being to raise the penalty for violations of State Water Law*.  The existing penalty is a paltry $100/day, first set in 1907 and not updated since.  Either bill, if passed, would have raised the penalty to $2000/day; for context, $100/day in 1907 is equivalent to over $3,400/day in 2025 dollars.

These two bills each cleared their first committee in the respective chambers in the first month of the 2-month session, but then stalled respectively in House Judiciary and Senate Judiciary, i.e., not being scheduled for a hearing.

The bills were bipartisan, with Republican Senator Jim Townsend joining as a cosponsor on both the SB and HB.  NMWA appealed via email to the chairs of both of the Judiciary committees to schedule the bills; the HJC finally heard the bill on March 14, one week before the session ended and it passed unanimously with a couple of targeted, friendly amendments.   When asked for a couple examples of water rights violations that this bill would help likely reduce, the OSE Chief Counsel cited illegal wells drilled to provide water to the O&G industry and illegal diversions of water to the cannabis industry.  Additionally, there were only voices of support for the bill during the public comment period in HJC.

[aside: SB210 was never scheduled for a hearing in SJC, but that became moot when HB348 moved along quickly near end of session]

It was then passed unanimously on the House Floor two days later, assigned to the Senate Conservation Committee (SCONC), where it passed unanimously the next day, March 18, again with only voices of support from the public.  Recently confirmed State Engineer Liz Anderson stated in the SCONC, “This is the most important bill for the agency (OSE).  We can’t enforce against illegal water use with the current penalties.  We need this (updated penalty) to modernize our administrative structure. “

With three days to spare before practical end of the session, HB348 seemed to have momentum.  It was placed on the Senate calendar.  NM Water Advocates expected the Senate Majority Leader to make sure the bill could get a vote by the full Senate.  However, it unfortunately did not get scheduled for a vote before the session ended on Sat, Mar 22 and therefore the bill failed for another session.  It’s a shame the urgency was apparently not communicated to Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth.

*From the FIR for HB348

OSE notes the maximum penalty for a water law violation was set in 1907 at $100 per day and has not been changed since. Analysis from OSE notes in most enforcement cases, the agency seeks payback of water rather than money. This is typically done through compelling the enforced-on party to reduce future diversions by the quantity of water which was previously over-or illegally taken or diverted. OSE has found this practice is a successful deterrent against future diversions or breakings of water law. The HJC amendment clarifies that OSE may not pursue monetary penalties (in the situations of over diversion of legally held rights, e.g., for farmers and ranchers,) and may only pursue repayment of water for over diversion of water rights.

Screenshot 2025-02-12 at 11.38.36 AM

Strengthening The Design of Regional Water Security Planning

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📌 Why It Matters

New Mexico’s water security is in crisis. New Mexico’s water security is at a tipping point. Decades of overuse, combined with climate-driven scarcity, are depleting aquifers and threatening the state’s ability to sustain communities, agriculture, and industry. Clovis, Portales, and eastern New Mexico communities and farmers are already experiencing severe impacts from the depletion of the Ogallala Aquifer after a century of pumping. Without action, similar collapses will happen elsewhere across the state.

Aquifer depletion is not the only crisis. New Mexico is also overusing its surface water resources, putting additional strain on the Rio Grande and depriving downstream users, including in-state farmers. In the Middle Rio Grande, overuse amounts to approximately 26,000 acre-feet per year, while in the Lower Rio Grande, it reaches 18,000 acre-feet annually. The Rio Grande’s flow near Santa Fe has declined by 25% since 1988 and continues down due to global warming.

Despite these mounting challenges, state leaders are actively pursuing new industries that demand large amounts of water—exacerbating shortages and placing further strain on already overdrawn resources.

A State water problem-solving tool.  The 2023 Water Security Planning Act mandates that the NM Interstate Stream Commission (ISC), subject to funding, “shall establish and conduct a regional water security program pursuant to the provisions of the Water Security Planning Act.” The regional water security planning program is intended to be a New Mexico regional and community water resilience problem-solving tool.

🚨 Key Issues with the Discussion Draft Approach

❌ Planning starts before defining the actual problems – Expensive, time-intensive efforts should not begin without clear data on water availability, use, and future risks.
❌ Water rights are protected, but water supply is not – Long-term sustainability measures must ensure water remains available for downstream users and future generations.
❌ Plans list prioritized projects but do not evaluate solutions – Scenario-based analysis must weigh feasibility, costs, impacts, and water savings before prioritizing projects and policies that in combination are the chosen initial regional water security plan.
❌ Public engagement is procedural, not meaningful – Stakeholders need real input in problem identification, solution evaluation, and decision-making.
❌ Implementation is uncertain – Plans must include funding mechanisms, monitoring, update, and accountability to ensure follow-through.

✅ Proposed Guiding Principles for Effective Regional Water Security Planning

✅ Water planning is to solve water problems; the problems must be named.
✅ Data-driven problem definition must come before intensive planning.
✅ Legal water rights must be balanced with long-term water supply protection.
✅ Water planning must be grounded in independent science and holistic analysis.
✅ Regional planning must be efficient, practical, and produce actionable solutions.
✅ Stakeholder engagement must be structured to ensure meaningful participation.
✅ Planning efforts must be well-funded and include clear implementation pathways.

The ISC’s approach is not just inadequate—it’s a missed opportunity for real water security solutions. The NMISC 1/21/25 Discussion Draft Rules & Guidelines to implement the 2023 Act are minimal and don’t make sense. The discussion draft says nothing about the planning process other than constraints. It fails to address water security problems and risks. It appoints Planning Councils that will have dozens of members. It limits state funded planning efforts in each region to just two years and only two public meetings.

Limiting regional planning to two years does not allow sufficient time for comprehensive data collection, scientific modeling, stakeholder engagement, and long-term resilience strategy development. A more realistic timeline must be established based on the complexity of each region’s water challenges.

A colleague who read the discussion draft summarized the basic problem.
“For clarity, I offer this simple tool called CPR for Problem Solving. With very few exceptions it pretty much covers all the bases in any situation needing effective problem solving.
(C) WHAT = Content
(P) PROCESS = How
(R) RELATIONSHIP = Who

The rules and guidelines have a lot to say about WHAT, very little about PROCESS, and literally nothing about RELATIONSHIP. Relationships are FUNDAMENTAL to the success of a project of this scope and complexity. We are people!! We base so many of our decisions on the WHO. “

With these serious omissions, the discussion draft is an unsatisfactory initial response to the ISC’s fundamental statutory charge, which is to create, lead, and manage a program of regional water security planning that increases New Mexican’s water security.  The ISC’s successful open houses in 2024 required contractors to provide most of the logistics and publicity. That increased awareness and caused some thinking. Now we need some thoughtful discussions and real process expertise input to lay out an effective statewide program.

For the planning program to be effective, the rules must provide a clear, high-level framework for the Regional Water Security Planning Program, defining objectives, responsibilities, and implementation processes. The rules must describe the relationship and roles of ISC, regions, and communities so that the planners and decision-makers understand the limits and trends of their water supplies and evaluate alternatives for improving their resilience. Groundwater only regions must evaluate what it would take to protect groundwater quality and quantity to meet the needs of future generations of New Mexicans.

Planning program roles must reflect the will of the legislature, which was to delegate the authority and responsibility for regional planning to the regional councils. The ISC’s roles include the initial statewide program design, promulgating the required rules and guidelines, funding and assisting regions in multidisciplinary ways, assuring the state gets value from its public water planning investments, and approving regional water security plans. Under the law, the ISC’s approval of a regional water security plan means the ISC endorses the plan and recommends it to the Legislature for matching implementation funding.

Regional councils are to lead planning efforts based on local needs, with ISC providing data, models, and technical and financial support either directly or through contractors. The ISC will provide statewide hydrologic data and modeling tools, but regional councils must also conduct localized assessments to ensure that planning reflects site-specific realities and community priorities. Regions will define their shared values and solutions to water security challenges and must conduct substantial public education, outreach, and involvement. The ISC ensures alignment with statewide objectives and approves plans. Coordination must be sufficient so that neither ISC nor regional councils are surprised by the others’ decisions.

The Discussion Draft Rules and Guidelines must describe in more than cursory detail the ISC’s design of the Regional Water Security Planning Program.  They must incorporate the principles of rational water planning.  They must define and require good process.   They should be based on a vision, and that vision must be articulated.

🚀 Next Steps
Public comments on the draft Rules and Guidelines are due Feb 21.  This essay and its companion regarding Guiding Principles for water planning contain the basis of the Water Advocates comments.  Following the 30-day comment period, the ISC says it will consider the comments and then issue a second version of the Rules and Guidelines to be promulgated.

It’s unclear what opportunities the ISC will provide as part of its promulgation process for engagement and further consideration of comments before it finalizes the Rules and Guidelines, or what its schedule will be.

 

Dry Rio Grande

Rio Grande Compact: We’re Still in a Heap of Trouble

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The inconvenient truth is New Mexico’s economic well-being depends critically upon water.  We are already in one of the driest periods in the last millennium.  The New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources projects about 25% less water availability within the next 50 years due to climate change.  With increased pumping because of drought, groundwater levels across most of the State are dropping, in some cases to the point of running out. 

These statewide issues foretell slow train wrecks and do need attention.  However, there is one water issue in the Middle Rio Grande that is urgent, potentially a fast train wreck.  This article describes that urgent issue. 

What’s happening?

The 2023 Rio Grande Compact data shows that New Mexico’s Middle Rio Grande (MRG) region (Los Alamos Highway to Elephant Butte Reservoir) has again consumed more than its legally allotted share of the river’s flow.  We have been regularly failing to deliver sufficient water to Elephant Butte Reservoir as required to meet our obligations to downstream water users (see cumulative balance graph). 

For more than a decade, the trend has been downward.  This past year the shortfall was 29,400 acre-feet (about 9.6 billion gallons).  Our cumulative debt is now 121,500 acre-feet.  At 200,000 acre-feet debt, we violate this three-state treaty (CO, NM, TX). 

So why worry?

For years, water users downstream south of Elephant Butte Reservoir have not received their legally entitled share of the river’s flow.  Both those southern New Mexicans and Texans downstream are rightfully unhappy.

Projecting forward with the 2023 shortfall, the MRG would reach the Compact violation at the end of 2026. 

New Mexico is still litigating toward a U.S. Supreme Court decision on the twelve-year-old lawsuit concerning deliveries southward from Elephant Butte Reservoir to Texas.  This lawsuit has already cost New Mexico taxpayers statewide about 80 million dollars, and counting.         

Unless ongoing excess water uses are curtailed, the MRG’s average annual under-deliveries suggest that New Mexico will clearly violate the Compact. This would surely lead to an additional lawsuit in the U.S. Supreme Court.  This time, the lawsuit and likely adverse ruling would add costs far beyond what we’ve endured thus far during the Lower Rio Grande lawsuit.

Even worse, any potential adverse judgement could involve serious consequences to New Mexico and MRG water users:  a large monetary penalty, requirements to provide years of over-deliveries thereby depriving the MRG users of water, and/or federal court control over our use of water.  It’s a hammer hanging over our heads.

We need to act now!

When you find yourself in a hole, stop digging.  Without a doubt we must reduce our over-use of MRG water to reverse the cumulative downward trend.  This will take prompt hard work, and shared sacrifices.

It is in the vital interests of we, the MRG water users – big agricultural and water utility agencies, smaller agencies, community organizations, individuals – to work together immediately.  Rather than let the State Engineer direct a potentially lopsided solution, or worse, have him do nothing, we should act –come together and collaboratively determine an agreement on how each of us will manage our uses to achieve our Compact obligations.  Usage reductions should be sufficient, equitable, and designed to minimize the overall impacts.  Of course, we must establish management strategies that will implement the agreement throughout the future years.  We need to act now!


Bob Wessely has worked with and led the Water Assembly, now Water Advocates, for twenty-five years. Partnering with the Middle Rio Grande Council of Governments, the Assembly coordinated the planning process that resulted in the 2004 MRG Regional Water Plan.

In Bob’s previous 30-year career, he co-founded and served as Technical Director of SciSo, Inc., an Albuquerque software system engineering and management consulting firm supporting diverse industries nationwide. Although Bob holds a PhD in Theoretical, Solid-State Physics, at heart he is a systems engineer who enjoys finding solutions for problems important to NM and its communities, especially water.

Illustration of Portales Water Tank

From Portales, NM – “If Only I had Known”

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If I had only known! How many times have you said that in your life? Grab some caffeine and join me for a tour of our possible water future.

Do you remember that time when you meant to go see someone but something came up, only to get a call that something had happened to them? If you had only known. What about that time you decided to dabble in stocks, play some poker, took that sure bet, and lost everything? If you had only known. Then, there’s that time you bought a beautiful car, and three weeks later the transmission flew into pieces. If you had only known. 

We can’t predict the future with total accuracy, BUT, in many cases, we can get what would be called a ‘weighted decision’ of good odds. High probability.

Some of our City leaders that have been here for a decade or more have possessed information that foretold the future of Portales regarding our water resources. They were given the chance to be proactive. They chose this action, or that action, or more often than not non-action and now find themselves in the uncomfortable position of  ‘if we had we only known.’

Yet, they DID know, with high probability, but the decision was made to ride out the storm and wait for the Ute Lake Pipeline to save Portales. I have heard it said too many times that “no one on the City Council is a water expert.” Then, why don’t they listen to the hired experts? You know, the ones we have paid millions of taxpayer dollars to tell us about our water future probability.

The point is, it has been projected with high probability that Portales will run out of water prior to the pipeline being finished. A multitude of independent experts (Charles Wilson, Geoffrey Rawling, etc.) were paid large amounts of money (your money) for their water intelligence to study our situation. This expertise established the phrase and concept of “bridging the gap” between where we are now and Ute Pipeline delivery of surface water. For example, it was recommended that our City reduce water consumption from 900 million to 700 million gallons per year to bridge that gap. Today, we have failed 4 years in a row by 200 million gallons per year, by continuing to use 900 million gallons per year. So, over a full year of our projected water savings (800 million gallons) is gone.

There is a substantial probability (Whipple Report, 1994) that the Ute Pipeline Project will not deliver the amount of water originally projected. This Project is estimated to be completed in 2030 and requires two years to be tested, thereby producing benefit no earlier than 2032. There are  also a multitude of factors (money, weather, physics) that could delay this project and/or reduce its promised capacity.

As a community, as we speak, our actions are literally choosing IF we run ourselves out of water and how many years we want to be without water.

The ultimate point is this is not about green grass, washing your car, or resolution documents. You can cite ‘quality of life’ as your motivating force for rescinding water restrictions, and I ask what is our quality of life with no water? You can cite ‘people moving away’ or ‘property value declining’ as reasons why the City Council recently voted to reduce Stage 3 Emergency Water Restrictions from a level 3 to a level 2 to allow people to begin watering their yards, and I further ask how much will your property be worth or how many people will move away from a City that has insufficient water?

I honestly don’t think (opinion) this situation can be totally repaired. There is a very good possibility we will never be able to return to our version of ‘normal.’ Kind of like what Covid did to us. Understand that I, 100%, hope that I am wrong, but we may have to change the way we think in order to ‘water survive.’ I do think we can intervene and turn this situation around and have an excellent quality of life for many years to come BUT not on the current path we are following.

I have been told “no one knows Mike, you might be wrong Mike, that’s a pessimistic view Mike.” I accept that, but I’m also 100% fine with it. If I’m right, then our governance better wake up and start trying to understand the dynamics that are happening to our water resources and act accordingly instead of five years from now saying, one more time, “If we had only known.”

If I’m wrong, you and I will both have more water. . . 

Mike Davidson was born and raised in Portales, New Mexico. Since Portales went on Stage 3 Emergency Water Restrictions in June 2023, he has launched and administered the Portales Water Facebook page and advocated fiercely for water security. He is currently a member of the Water Advisory Committee and played a central role in its creation. 

 

wa945c-Rio Grande Compact Credits_Debits-Through-2023

From the President’s Desk: Water Policy Progress and Tipping Points

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On April 9, 2024, I witnessed amazing progress in local governments’ approaches to water policies crucial for New Mexico’s future. Bernalillo County elected officials and staff clearly acknowledged in new amendments to a draft high-level plan that New Mexico and the Middle Rio Grande are in an acute water crisis and that water is a Bernalillo County land use constraint. This marks the first official acknowledgment of hydrologic reality in Bernalillo County in a long time.

Bernalillo County Steps Up. Bernalillo County Commission held its second hearing (video for April 9 Zoning meeting available here) regarding the draft 2024 Bernalillo County Comprehensive Plan. The County’s Natural Resources Section manager recommended substantial amendments and additions to the water management chapter, quoting extensively from the Leap Ahead Analyses and the NM Water Policy and Infrastructure Task Force Report. He recommended acceptance of the comments and facts cited in my March 20 letter, including that the Middle Rio Grande consumed 154,000 acre feet of the Lower Rio Grande’s water since 2018.

The County’s sustainability director emphasized the importance of rural communities, farms, and public green spaces as core Bernalillo County values that are crucial to sustainability. Three elected County Commissioners voiced their active support and encouragement.

This progress is significant. I believe the April 9 hearing may mark a tipping point for the Middle Rio Grande’s progress to face its water future.

The Governor and the Legislature Step Back. However, our Governor diverted the attention of the 2024 Legislature in facing New Mexico’s water future. She demanded they authorizing borrowing half a billion dollars to support a private sector badwater treatment scheme. This move, supported by the House Appropriations and Finance Committee chair and vice-chair, failed. The 2024 Legislature stopped the water policy and actions momentum that they created by passing the 2023 Water Security Planning Act. This year, Legislative Finance Committee staff were justifying not recommending funding to implement this landmark new law by saying the work done under the old 1987 law was unproductive. It felt like one step forward and two steps back.

Despite having billions of dollars available, the 2024 Legislature allocated less funding to the Interstate Stream Commission’s water planning program than in 2023. It also appropriated only half of the funds requested to implement the 2019 Water Data Act and nothing to fund drilling aquifer research and monitoring wells allowing us to leverage available federal funding that will soon expire.

Neglected Priorities. Recently, I learned that valued State Engineer professional staff were considering quitting because they lack basic computer hardware capable of running sophisticated hydrology software models and tools. Office of the State Engineer computer servers are incapable of handling the staff’s routine work and are a serious hinderance to their productivity.

Their request for computers didn’t make it into the Governor’s budget, indicating that someone, undoubtedly a budget official, denied it. Who made this decision? Why? My diagnosis: New Mexico State finance officials do not know what they do not know – that water has become an acute problem demanding a solution if our descendants are to have water for their future lives in New Mexico. The bean counters apparently think our water problems are only squabbles. In fact, growing aridity and gross water overuse threatens New Mexico’s existence as home for the young and future generations of New Mexicans.

It’s up to us, as water advocates, to support Bernalillo County’s work and demand that the State of New Mexico do what is right based on the science and data in the authoritative reports previously cited. The perspectives publicly expressed by Bernalillo County elected officials and staff are essential for a thriving future in the Middle Rio Grande. However, the Governor and legislative finance committees’ pursuit of funding for flashy projects while denying state staff the basic tools they require to do their jobs is wrong.

Progress, Momentum and Tipping Points

Despite my disappointment with the 2024 Legislature’s water budget failure and Executive branch’s disinformation, I draw encouragement from Bernalillo County’s responsiveness to truth and data as described above.

Portales officials disregarded the same groundwater research that caused Clovis officials to act. 

Building Local Solutions. We must learn from the successes of NM Water Ambassador Dr. Ladona Clayton’s remarkable achievements over the last decade leading the Ogallala Land & Water Conservancy, created by Curry County and the City of Clovis to secure water for their economy by gaining the willing cooperation of many large groundwater pumpers.  We need to learn from Portales and Eastern New Mexico University running out of water in 2023 and facing a very grim, water short summer of 2024 and forever, because Portales officials disregarded the same groundwater research that caused Clovis officials to act. 

Please thank Senate President Pro Tem Mimi Stewart for insisting on and funding the New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources at NM Tech to resume their great water education program for legislators. This highly successful program of the early 2000s is now reestablished, after our former Governor Susanna Martinez stopped it in 2011. Senator Stewart is a fully aware top state elected official. I hope she will demand more attention during the Interim Committee to our water crisis, which will lead to adequate water funding and new or revised statutes identified by the Water Policy and Infrastructure Task Force as state water policy priorities.

Most State Elected Leaders Are Unaware of New Mexico’s Water Crisis. I recently asked a candidate running for reelection to the New Mexico State Senate if they planned to attend the Water Leaders Workshop funded at Ghost Ranch on May 22-24. I have followed their good work as a New Mexico legislator for several terms. They said they did not understand the nuances. To us it is just basic facts of New Mexico’s crisis, such as gross water overuse everywhere and Portales running out of water in 2023, that that they do not know. They committed to attend.

Take Action. I implore everyone to amplify this message. Contact your State Senator and State Representative to urge them to educate themselves about New Mexico’s water challenges by attending the Ghost Ranch workshop.

Additionally, reach out to Legislative Finance Committee/House Appropriation and Finance Committee Chair Nathan Small and Vice-Chair Meredith Dixon. Tell them to fund water basics and to recognize the urgency of the crisis we face. Water cannot wait. The House Appropriations and Finance Committee’s and the Legislative Finance Committee’s long-standing refusals to fund water management and planning and their denial of New Mexico’s acute water crisis must stop.