• The state of New Mexico’s water supply is uncertain. New Mexico’s population is expected to increase by over 15 percent by 2030. New demands on our water supply are increasing while our supplies are growing more precarious.
  
  
• At the heart of New Mexico’s water scarcity problems are inadequate laws and community planning. New Mexico’s water law is decades behind that of other Western states, lacking consistency, enforcement and adequate mapping and measurement.
  
  
• A clear majority of New Mexicans have serious concerns about the state’s water supplies, according to a September 2006 poll by the Albuquerque Journal. Eighty five percent of voters polled statewide said they were somewhat or very concerned about New Mexico’s water future.

A Water Vision for New Mexico’s Future

• Residential, commercial and industrial growth in areas where there are few protections and little water threatens to overwhelm New Mexico’s water resources. Existing water plans fail to incorporate a long-term perspective of how we’re going to meet this increased demand with existing water supplies.
  
  
• Governor Richardson has declared the 2007 legislative session the “Year of Water.” We are now at a crossroads. Historically, New Mexico water law has not done enough to make sure that New Mexico is using its water sustainably and balancing our use with a renewable supply.
  
  
• New Mexico is going to continue to grow, but we need to be disciplined and grow sustainably. A failure to incorporate long-term water planning at a local, regional and state level will leave New Mexico’s communities of the future in jeopardy. In order to protect New Mexico’s open space, rural landscapes, culture and economic vitality, we need to do better to plan for the future.

Water Plans for Certain Entities (HB 1234/SB 1118)

• Environment New Mexico is working to ensure that the New Mexico legislature adopts House Bill 1234 and Senate Bill 1118. These bills would require that the 40-year water plans already submitted to the State Engineer by cities, counties and other local bodies include specific information about the area’s water supply, water uses and water demand, identifying a plan to fill in any “gaps” between water supply and demand. 
  
  
• Sponsored by Rep. Peter Wirth and Sen. Carlos Cisneros, these bills would complement the regional water plans, and provide cities, counties and their citizens a better understanding of their water future.
  
  
• Existing language requiring these water plan submissions has not been updated in 20 years and could be strengthened in four key ways:
  
  
1. By incorporating specific, consistent criteria that would need to be included in all plans, so that the information produced is consistent and reliable;
   
   
2. By requiring that the plans be made public;
   
   
3. By requiring that they be approved by the local governing body, so that these plans can be more useful as on-the-ground planning documents that can help to drive local decision-making; and
   
   
4. By requiring that the plans be updated regularly.
   
   
• In our desert state, where water is our most precious resource, we should be at least as careful with our water as we are with our money. Creating useful water development plans is the best first step to balancing New Mexico’s water use with a renewable supply.