This was an important presentation and discussion on the ongoing aridification of New Mexico caused by higher temperatures. David Gutzler and David DuBois presented how and why New Mexico is drying, what we can expect, and the certainty of the science. The science of global warming impacts on New Mexico’s climate will guide us in how we manage and protect our scarce and life-sustaining water supplies.
A state climate adaptation plan in the desert Southwest that does not address water supply fails to live up to its name. Yet New Mexico's Climate Adaptation and Resilience Plan treats the state's permanent drying — and the water bankruptcy already gripping communities from the Lower Rio Grande to Clovis — as a footnote.