Historic and Predicted Hydrographs for the Gila Basin: Assessing Gila Water Projects in New Mexico

摘要

The Arizona Water Settlements Act of 2004 (“AWSA”) provides New Mexico an additional annual averagernof 14,000 acre-feet of water in the Gila Basin, and authorizes the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commissionrn(ISC) in consultation with the Southwest New Mexico Water Study Group or its successor, to determine howrnthe water will be used. The AWSA also requires that any such decision be subject to the requirements of thernNational Environmental Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act – in other words, the ecological systemsrnof the Gila Basin must be evaluated and considered before any project may go forward. The ISC has adoptedrna policy that requires full consideration of both the environment and water demands, now and into thernfuture.rnA crucial component of this evaluation is an understanding how the Gila and its tributaries behave underrnbase flow conditions, seasonal variations, and runoff events. This is particularly important for predictivernmodeling, as climate change, potential stream diversions, and fire effects will have a significant imprint onrnany conclusions that may be drawn. With a robust stakeholder involvement process, the ISC has launchedrnthese hydrologic studies, and – combined with other studies on Gila Basin hydrology, geomorphology, waterrnneeds, and ecosystems – will use the results to inform its decisions on which, if any, AWSA projects should gornforward.