Legislation would replace Gila diversion group Written by Geoffrey Plant on February 3, 2021
A bill introduced last week in the New Mexico Legislature threatens to sideline the New Mexico Entity of the Central Arizona Project’s role in determining how the remaining money in the N.M. Unit Fund totaling more than $80 million is spent in four southwestern New Mexico counties under the terms of the 2004 federal Arizona Water Settlements Act.
The group’s consulting role is enshrined in state and federal statutes, but House Bill 200, titled “Water Trust Board & N.M. Unit Fund,” seeks to rewrite New Mexico water law and hand the Entity’s responsibilities for vetting water projects over to the New Mexico Water Trust Board.
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Engineering company Telesto Solutions created the final design for the soon-to-be-built permanent Upper Gila Irrigation Association diversion, plans for which have been in the works for nearly a decade. The design, along with a preliminary design for the Fort West Irrigation Association diversion, was revealed during a virtual tour this week.
The Nature Conservancy’s Martha Cooper hosted a virtual tour of two planned permanent diversion structures in the Cliff-Gila valley Wednesday, the uppermost of which the Upper Gila Irrigation Association diversion is ready to be constructed as soon as the Gila Basin Irrigation Commission secures a final piece of funding.