Blogmaster opinion: This February 12, 2013 Albuquerque Journal article shows us that the San Augustin water grab isn't over. We are now seeing the next stage of the war for water: the use of media to gently nudge public opinion in the preferred direction towards the side of the water grabbers, disguised as legislation created for "the public good". Of course the water grabber's idea of public good isn't very good for the citizens of Catron County or western Socorro County.
Can Pecos water fix work for Rio Grande?
By John Fleck / Journal Staff Writer on Tue, Feb 12, 2013
"Can New Mexico's $100 million solution to drought problems on the Pecos River provide the model for the much larger problems on the lower Rio Grande?
"That is the question posed by Senate Bill 440, introduced in the Legislature last week by Sen. Joseph Cervantes, D-Las Cruces. Cervantes' bill asks for a $120 million appropriation to deal with the 'severe imbalance (that) exists among water rights holders reliant on Rio Grande water supply'.
"If Cervantes gets it (a big 'if''), the money would be used to improve irrigation efficiency, possibly import water to the Rio Grande Basin, and most important, to buy up and retire water rights in the valleys of New Mexico's southern Rio Grande, south of Elephant Butte Reservoir.
"Importing water is a tricky problem, but there are two big and controversial ideas on the table right now: pumping groundwater from a private ranch on the Plains of San Augustin, near Datil, and building a pipeline to ferry some of New Mexico's share of the Gila River to the Las Cruces area." (Note: bold font is blogmaster's emphasis)
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