NM should support EPA’s National Water Reuse Plan

In drought, we must recognize almost all water can be made safe for certain uses

The Journal’s June 27 editorial “Last Call” challenges New Mexico and the Southwest to collaborate to develop a long-range water strategy that is socially, ecologically and economically sustainable under our warming climate. The article notes our climate is approaching that of the late 1200s that forced the Anazasi to abandon their communities in the Four Corners. This climate trend has led to low water levels in lakes and rivers globally that last occurred in the 1300s. This growing water shortage is driving communities to rethink water management and allocation strategies to include development of new supplies. This need is highlighted in a 2014 U.S. Government Accounting Office report on fresh water stress that concludes:

“Within the next 10 years, 40 out of 50 state water managers expect to face freshwater shortages in their states. In certain situations, water conservation and efficiency measures may not be enough to meet anticipated increases in demand.”

So water managers are adopting a One Water approach, recognizing that water sources that were once thought to be unfit for consumption — e.g., treated municipal and industrial wastewater, urban runoff, agricultural runoff and return flows, oil and gas produced water, brackish water and sea water — can be made safe for use using modern water treatment technologies.

Following a year-long EPA study in 2019 on fresh water supply and water stress that included over 2,300 participants and a review of over 150 technical documents, the EPA concluded:

“Water managers and users are increasingly evaluating reuse options to help diversify and extend their supplies — two of the United Nations’

Sustainable Development Goals identify water reuse as key to a more sustainable future.”

Based on that review, in 2020 the U.S. EPA established the National Water Reuse Action Plan, to identify and develop innovative, cost-effective approaches for water reuse. The plan focuses on five waste water intensive sectors — thermoelectric cooling blow down, agricultural waste water and return flows, oil and gas produced water, municipal waste water and storm water, and includes efforts to:

1. Share sector-specific information and build awareness of the benefits of reuse and encourage implementation;

2. Establish a national framework for reuse water quality, dictated by the source and end use, to promote cost-effective water reuse technology development;

3. Help states educate the public on a One Water management approach, highlighting that water resources once thought unfit for consumption can be used for fit-for-purpose uses with appropriate treatment; and

4. Provide federal leadership to assure that sound, science-based, decisions prepare the U.S. for successful utilization of alternative water supplies.

To facilitate long-range water planning in New Mexico, water managers should embrace the EPA’s national water reuse program. A common challenge thought is that many non-traditional water sources require desalination treatment for reuse. The New Mexico Desalination Association, which was formed in 2017, exists to provide technical support and assistance to New Mexico communities and water officials on implementing desalination and waste water reuse technologies. We stand ready to support New Mexico in reducing water stress by providing technical assistance for the treatment and reuse of saline water resources to support a more robust, long-term and equitable water supply strategy for New Mexico.