A bill giving the state engineer control over deep brackish water appears to be dry-docked for the session, even as developers rush to firm their hold on this new, largely unregulated water source in a thirsty state.

Meanwhile, an analysis of the state's 16 regional water plans predicts there could be a 500,000 acre-feet gap between water needs and supplies in the next 32 years. One of the analyzers, economist Sigmund Silber, said the water plans need to be updated with new information critical to calculating future water needs and supplies. Funding to rewrite those plans is vital, he said.

Deep water and regional water plans are symbols of ongoing challenges facing the state. One is how to identify and tap into new water sources like deep aquifers without damaging the water supplies of other users. The other is how tribes, towns and irrigators, some of whom share aquifers, can devise and fund workable water plans for the future.

Here's what's happening on both fronts and the Legislature's role:

Deep aquifers

Senate Bill 262 would have required a permit to pump out brackish water from aquifers beginning 2,500 feet below ground and use the water for houses and businesses. Currently, no permit is required to use those waters. While the state engineer controls pumping in shallower aquifers and surface waters, the deep aquifer exemption is a loophole in New Mexico water law.

Anyone can file a notice with the state engineer of their intent to drill for brackish water, and there's no opportunity for people to protest the pumping.

The bill's sponsor Sen. Carlos Cisneros, D-Questa, says he wants a chance for the bill to get a hearing so some of the concerns can be aired publicly. He figures ultimately problems with the bill will have to get ironed out before the 2009 session. "I want to find out why there was such a concerted effort to stop this bill. Some had a rational, some didn't," Cisneros said Tuesday evening.

Meanwhile, water developers aren't waiting around for new regulations to slow them down.

In the last year and a half, the State Engineer's Office has received at least five notices of intent to appropriate deep brackish water. Two of those were jointly filed by Sandoval County and an Arizona development company for a new residential and industrial subdivision planned west of Rio Rancho. All total, the notices request pumping up to 56,000 acre-feet of water a year. One acre-foot equals 325,851 gallons.

Two notices were filed in Ruidoso, where some residents are fighting the claims by the developer that the water he's tapping into starts at 2,500 feet. Residents say the pumping could harm shallower water supplies.

Silber believes the brackish water could answer some of New Mexico's needs for water, but good hydrology studies are needed before pumping begins. "We need to avoid compromising our existing water resources while responsibly developing new water resources," he said.

Meanwhile, legislators seem ready to fund brackish water development before passing any measure to help the state engineer manage the resource. At least eight senators and representatives included in their capitol outlay requests $5.1 million to design and build a desalination plant in Sandoval County.

Regional water plans

New Mexico lacks a comprehensive water budget.

To address the problem, the state engineer divided the state into 16 regions a decade ago and asked everyone to come up with a water plan. The plans outlined water resources, current use and predicted future use. But new water studies, conservation and population changes have likely changed the picture for some regions, especially Albuquerque, Santa Fe and Southern New Mexico, Silber said. The plans need to be updated and that takes money, he said.

Susan Kelly, Albuquerque water planner and attorney, wrote in a recent Albuquerque Journal opinion page article that the state's budget for water planning, is $55,000, compared to $20 million in states like Texas.

Joint planning is crucial in the most populated areas of the state — from Santa Fe to Belen — which all share an aquifer along the Middle Rio Grande, Kelly noted. A water deficit among any of those towns could impact the others because of requirements under the interstate Rio Grande Compact.

A $1.5 million request for regional water planning updates by Sen. John Arthur Smith, D-Deming, in a special appropriations bill, disappeared in committee changes. Rep. Andy Nuñez, D-Hatch, has requested $345,000 in House Bill 85 for regional water planning and the bill has passed through two committees.

"Funding for ongoing plan updates is very critical and should be supported by the Legislature," said Silber. "It is unrealistic to expect that everyone got it right the first time around. I believe that the plans represent a lot of conscientious effort by qualified people."

Contact Staci Matlock at 470-9843 or smatlock@sfnewmexican.com.