Senate approves $1.2 million for county water improvements

The Associated Press
Las Cruces Sun-News
August 03, 2001

WASHINGTON -- U.S. Senator Pete Domenici today confirmed that the Senate has approved $1.2 million to help a Doña Ana County water association make infrastructure improvements affecting up to 10,000 southern New Mexico residents.

The bill includes $2.2 million secured by Domenici for the Las Cruces area, specifically, $1.2 million for the Doña Ana Mutual Domestic Water Consumers Association to improve its water system infrastructure, and $1 million for the Southern New Mexico Fair and Rodeo to make utility infrastructure improvements and build a multi-purpose event center.

The Doña Ana Mutual Domestic Water Consumers Association, currently serving approximately 10,000 area residents, is in the process of becoming a Regional Water and Sanitation District.

The water association is a non-profit corporation organized by the community for the provision of water utilities where city services are not available.

Domenici said the VA-HUD Appropriations Bill also contains $1 million he secured for improvements at the Southern New Mexico Fair and Rodeo.

"A clean, safe and plentiful water supply is one of the most basic quality of life issues faced by communities across the arid West. As New Mexico's biggest border city, it is important that Las Cruces have the resources needed to beef up infrastructure and support a safe water supply," Domenici said.

The Doña Ana Mutual Domestic Water Consumers Association, currently serving approximately 10,000 area residents, is in the process of becoming a Regional Water and Sanitation District. The water association is a non-profit corporation organized by the community for the provision of water utilities where city services are not available.

The $1 million, to be awarded through HUD's Economic Development Initiative grant program, will be used to finalize engineering plans, upgrade the fairground utility infrastructure, and begin constructing the multi-purpose center.

As part of the measure which funds the EPA, the Senate accepted (97-3) an arsenic agreement brokered by Domenici, Senator Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and others that will give the Environmental Protection Agency some flexibility in setting new arsenic drinking water standards-a departure from the House of Representatives' complete prohibition against changing the regulations issued in the last days of the Clinton administration.

The compromise amendment directs the EPA Administrator to "immediately put into effect a new national primary drinking water regulation for arsenic ... at a level providing for the protection of the population in general, fully taking into account those at greater risk, such as infants, children, pregnant women, the elderly and those with a history of serious illness."

The Clinton regulations set the new arsenic standard at 10 parts per billion (ppb), a dramatic reduction from the current 50 ppb. By law, the new standard is to take effect in 2006.

Domenici outlined the following provisions in the bill of interest to New Mexico:

U.S.-Mexico Border Infrastructure -- $75 million is approved within EPA's State and Tribal Assistance Grant (STAG) program, the same as the current level.

This program funds high priority water and wastewater treatment facilities in communities along the U.S.-Mexico border, which would include colonias in New Mexico. Within this amount, $4 million is specified for the El Paso-Las Cruces sustainable water project.

Rural Water Technical Assistance and Ground Water Protection Council (GWPC) -- $8.6 million and $550,000, respectively, are approved through EPA.

Source Water Protection Program -- $10.7 million through EPA.