Divining Rod May 2006

• Year: 2006
• Title: Divining Rod
• Author: New Mexico Water Resources Research Institute
• Description: May 2006
• Publications - Doc Type: Other

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of the survey was administered to the 300 attendees at the
October 2005 50t1 annual water conference in Las Cruces. A
follow up wave was administered to 1,900 New Mexicans
registered on the New Mexico Water Resources Research
Institute's mailing list. The survey consisted of a request to
rank the importance of 46 water issues to help guide NMSU's
future water research agenda. These included 15 water supply
areas, 19 water demand problems, and 11 water institutional
issues.
Respondents were asked to rank the importance of those
46 areas in terms of their importance for future research,
teaching, and service directions for the university. Among
the 244 returned surveys, the top 9 issues are listed below.
The intent of the Center is to help NMSU serve as the
objective platform to bring together a large number of
different perspectives to provide balanced contributions to
discussions and debates on New Mexico's water resources
2
plans, water policies, water programs, water administration,
and water legislation.
The Center recognizes the importance and needs of
agriculture, cities, industry, and the environment. It also
recognizes the importance of responsible growth, building,
and sustaining of New Mexico's economy, producing and
sustaining high paying jobs, and responsibly managing the
state's water supplies.
The Center also acknowledges the importance of
promoting awareness of critical water issues at all levels,
including the highest decision- making level, to facilitate
efficient conservation, protection, development, planning,
management and use of water in all its dimensions on an
environmentally sustainable basis for the benefit of New
Mexicans.
Future Divining Rod newsletter articles will describe
NMSU's current research activities and expertise regarding
the critical water issues identified in the survey and discuss
NMSU's water research agenda in more detail.
Top Issues in New Mexico for Future Water Research,
Teaching, and Service
• Improve existing supply enhancing technologies.
• Assess levels of vulnerability of New Mexico aquifers.
• Examine cost effective methods to promote water conservation.
• Improve water use efficiency and increase economic returns for
water used.
• Increase safety of wastewater treated for use as drinking water.
• Promote conjunctive use of surface water and groundwater.
• Develop better measures for reducing water pollution.
• Understand what influences water use by agriculture,
municipal, industrial, and environmental users.
• Understand effects of land use changes on water pollution.