Ranchers fight Denver potash company

CAR LS BA D, N.M.» Ranchers in a southeastern New Mexico community and a potash company are locked in a fight over water rights connected to the Pecos River.

Denver-based Intrepid Potash recently claimed ownership of about 35,000 acre-feet of water rights along the Pecos River, with 19,000 identified for consumption, the Carlsbad Current-argus reported.

Ranchers in a rural area south of Carlsbad said that move could completely drain the Pecos River.

In response to Intrepid Potash’s claims, the Carlsbad Irrigation District filed litigation intended to block Intrepid’s ownership of the water and seven “preliminary authorizations” granted by the office of the state engineer to change the point of diversion and manner ofuseofthewater.

The Carlsbad Irrigation District’s attorney, Ken Dugan, said Intrepid hadn’t used that much water in decades, essentially leaving its water rights unused for up to 50 years.

He said if water rights aren’t used for an extended amount of time, they are forfeited.

At a Carlsbad Irrigation District board meeting this month, Dugan alleged that Intrepid intended to sell the water to the oil and gas industry, because the potash mining industry has suffered in recent years.

If Intrepid took that much water out of the Pecos, Dugan said, he also worried whether New Mexico would fail to deliverwatertotexasasrequired under the Pecos River Compact, a 1948 agreement between the states that saw New Mexico providing water from the Pecos River, which crosses into Texas, to the Lone Star State.

Last month, 5th Judicial District Judge Ray Romero ruled that Intrepid must stop pumping water under the authorizations as he rules on Intrepid’s rights to the water.

The authorizations, not official permits, in question were granted “unilaterally” by former State Engineer Thomas Blaine, according to the CID’S lawsuit, to move and place into effect water rights on the river without any public input or hearings.

Intrepid’s attorney, Chuck Dumars, refused to comment, saying it was his office’s policy that he “cannot discuss ongoing litigation.”