water resources issues in the lower rio grande june 3, 2005 j. phillip king, p.e. assc....
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Water Resources Issuesin the Lower Rio Grande
June 3, 2005
J. Phillip King, P.E.Assc. Professor/Assc. Dept. HeadDept. of Civil Engineering, NMSU
Consultant, EBID
Major LRG Water Issues
• Drought and Project Water Allocation – Reclamation, EBID, El Paso #1, Mexico
• Active Water Resource Management (AWRM) alternative administration regulations – OSE, Lower Rio Grande Water Users Organization (LRGWUO)
• Conversion of surface water to non – agricultural uses in LRG – EBID, Las Cruces, Doña Ana MDWCA, OSE
Caballo
ConveyanceSystem
IrrigatedLand
Groundwater
DrainFlows
Atm
osph
ere
SeepageExfiltration
Pum
ping
Return
Diversion
Bypass (spill)Delivery
Deep Percolation
StormFlow
Bypass (spill)
Seepage
Release
Rio G
rande
M&IUsers
PumpingDeep Perc.
Discharges
Imported WaterExported Water
Non-irrigatedLand
Rio Grande at El Paso
Pum
ping
Dee
p P
erco
lati
on
ETPrecip
ETPrecip
Drainage
ET Precip
Surface Water-Groundwater Interaction in the LRG
0.03%
0.49%
0.53%
0.76%
1.27%
6.81%
90.11%
Irrigated Agriculture
Public Water Systems
Commercial
Livestock
Domestic wells
Power
Industrial/Mining
Water Use by Sector in LRG
97 percent of LRG water use is irrigation or public water systems
The Rio Grande Project
• Water rights appropriated January 23, 1906• 90,640 water-righted acres in Elephant Butte Irrigation
District (EBID) in New Mexico• 69,010 water-righted acres in El Paso County Water
Improvement District No. 1 (EPCWID) in Texas• 60,000 acre-feet of water for the Republic of Mexico by
the Treaty of 1906• Construction largely completed by 1917; drainage
system built in 1920s• Operated as a single irrigation system by Bureau of
Reclamation• City of El Paso began treating surface water in 1940s• Districts paid off construction costs in late 1970s
Current Project Water Allocation
• BOR allocates water to US districts and Mexico– Based on water available for release storage
and actual river efficiency– Mexico gets their water first, and the
remainder is divided between EBID and EP#1 proportionately (57%/43%)
• Districts allot water to farmers based on BOR allocation and system conveyance efficiency
Drought Response
• Conjunctive management of surface water and groundwater– Robust river-connected aquifer used for
agriculture, M&I, domestic use– Short surface water supplies prompt
increased groundwater withdrawals– Groundwater withdrawals affect river
efficiency
Rio Grande Project Release and Diversion
0
200,000
400,000
600,000
800,000
1,000,000
1,200,000
0 200,000 400,000 600,000 800,000 1,000,000 1,200,000 1,400,000
Caballo Release, AF
Pro
jec
t D
ive
rsio
n,
AF
51-78
79-02
03-04
1:1
Motivation for AWRM
• Manage surface water and groundwater intelligently to maximize beneficial use in New Mexico
• Maintain hydrologic health of the LRG• Protect senior water rights from impairment in
the absence of a completed adjudication• Protect downstream users in Texas and Mexico
from overuse in LRG• Provide mechanisms for out-of-priority users to
offset impacts on senior and downstream water users
Complications
• Rio Grande Operating Agreement• Project authority over surface water, OSE
authority over groundwater• Lack of clarity in relationship between surface
water and groundwater rights• Junior basic necessities
Current Status of AWRM
• State-wide regulations finalized• Metering order issued for all groundwater
diversions in LRG except single domestic wells• State is developing draft basin-specific
regulations for LRG to be released for review by LRGWUO in May - delayed 2 months
• LRGWUO directed technical committee to develop alternative administrative plan
Foundations for Special Water Users Associations
• Developed by EBID, City of Las Cruces, and the State Engineer
• EBID Policy 2003-GA8, approved November 19, 2003
• 73-10-48 NMSA
SWUAs
• Allow entity to use surface water for M&I and other uses within District boundaries– Ownership of Project Water rights– Lease of Project Water rights– Transfer of Project Water
SWUA Details
• Assessed as EBID constituents• Share pro rata in shortages• Surface water rights maintain EBID’s 1906
priority date• SWUA must lease all of the water from a parcel;
land must be fallowed• Special Combined Unit: Small tracts (<2 acres)
can be consolidated and treated as farm tract for ordering and billing
• Maintained as Ag use until demand for direct M&I use develops
Existing System of Annual Water Transfers
Total Allotment
Agricultural Users
ConservationPool
AgriculturalWater Used
Structure for Transfers of Water to Special Water Users AssociationsTotal
Allotment
Agricultural Users
SWUA
Agricultural Pool
Municipal Pool
AgriculturalWater Used
MunicipalWater
(SWTP)
Conservation Pool:
Leases:Parties
NegotiatePrice
Who Can Form SWUAs?
• Municipalities
• Counties
• State Universities
• Member-owned community systems
• Public utilities
• Interstate Stream Commission
Relationship of SWUAs to AWRM
• SWUAs provide an alternative to strict priority administration– SWUAs allow junior users to move up in
seniority/priority– Common priority date among EBID SWUAs
and irrigators create pro rata sharing of shortages
• Market-driven process
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