Ute water project receives $700,000

The Eastern New Mexico Water Utility Authority’s interim pipeline has been awarded $700,000 from the federal Bureau of Reclamation, according to a news release Thursday from U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich.

The money is part of $2.2 million Udall secured in last December’s omnibus funding bill for drought relief projects in New Mexico, the news release said.

This project will include 151 miles of pipeline to transport water purchased from landowners to communities in Curry and Roosevelt counties, including Cannon Air Force Base, said Gayla Brumfield, chair of the ENMWU authority.

Brumfield said the interim pipeline is the second phase of the $550 million Ute Lake Pipeline project that will channel water from Ute Lake to Curry and Roosevelt county users in about 20 years.

“Water is the lifeblood of the West, but persistent drought has hurt farmers and ranchers, and kept many New Mexico communities from reaching their full potential,” Udall said. “That’s why I’ve advocated smart investments in our water infrastructure and immediate relief for communities hit hardest by drought...the Eastern New Mexico project will ensure Clovis and Cannon Air Force Base have reliable access to water well into the future."

Brumfield said the authority was able to use $300,000 in federal funding received at the end of the 2014 for CH2M Hill to complete the scope and design of the interim pipeline, and expects construction to begin in 18 months.

The authority used a state allocation of $100,000 capital outlay cash they received in February from HB 55 towards design and construction of a lift station near Elida for the interim groundwater pipeline, Brumfield said.

Brumfield said the first phase, of the Ute Lake Pipeline Project, a $19 million 51-foot by 93-foot main intake shaft that will house pumping equipment at Ute Lake near Logan, is scheduled for final completion at end of March.