Middle Rio Grande Regional Water Plan

Executive Summary
The Middle Rio Grande Water Planning Region, which includes most of Sandoval and Bernalillo
counties, all of Valencia County, and a very small portion of Torrance County (Figure ES-1), is
one of 16 water planning regions in the State of New Mexico. Regional water planning was
initiated in New Mexico in 1987, its primary purpose being to protect New Mexico water
resources and to ensure that each region is prepared to meet future water demands. Between
1987 and 2008, each of the 16 planning
regions, with funding and oversight from
the New Mexico Interstate Stream
Commission (NMISC), developed a plan to
meet regional water needs over the ensuing
40 years. The Middle Rio Grande Regional
Water Plan was completed and accepted by
the NMISC in 2004.
The purpose of this document is to provide
new and changed information related to
water planning in the Middle Rio Grande
region and to evaluate projections of future
water supply and demand for the region
using a common technical approach
applied to all 16 planning regions
statewide. Accordingly, this regional water
plan (RWP) update summarizes key
information in the 2004 plan and provides
updated information regarding changed
conditions and additional data that have
become available.
Figure ES-1. Middle Rio Grande Water Planning Region
Based on updated water use (Figure ES-2) data from 2010, Figure ES-3 illustrates the total
projected regional water demand under high and low demand scenarios, and also shows the
administrative water supply and the drought-adjusted water supply. The administrative water
supply is based on 2010 withdrawals of water and is an estimate of future water supplies that
considers both physical availability and compliance with water rights policies. Because of its
reliance on surface water, the region has a high degree of vulnerability to drought, especially for
irrigated agriculture, and the estimated annual shortage in drought years is expected to range
from 207,357 to 282,108 acre-feet. Consequently, the region has recommended several highpriority
strategies to meet future demand, including stormwater management, treated effluent
reuse, and watershed management, better management of existing supply through adjudication of
water rights, measuring all water uses and losses, and water resource databases, and supporting
the economy through consistent funding for water projects and building local markets.
Middle Rio Grande Regional Water Plan 2017
ES-1