As a mostly rural state, natural resources management is a critical issue in New Mexico.  We face threats from mining operations, oil and natural gas drilling, and contamination of our waterways.[1]

New Mexico ranks 5^th in Power Plant Mercury Emissions nationwide, with power plant facilities in San Juan County classified among the worst polluters in the country.  The plant alone contributes to the mercury contamination of many waterways in the state, causing such high toxicity that fish in those waterways are no longer safe to eat.[2]  The human impact of high mercury exposure in San Juan and neighboring counties has yet to be documented.

Water

Smart water management is vital for our state, to ensure that we have enough water to support our rapidly growing population, and that water quality is sufficient to protect public health and the health of our ecosystems – including both plant and animal life.

The challenges abound due to agricultural runoff, industrial pollution, and poorly planned development in some communities. Rainwater and snowmelt runoff in New Mexico towns and cities are carrying toxic trash, debris, pesticides, fertilizers, oil, soap, dirt, and animal and human waste, known as stormwater runoff, into the state's rivers and streams such as the Rio Grande, according to the Mid Rio Grande Stormwater Quality Team, a coalition of Albuquerque and Bernalillo County water managers.[3]

Worse yet, more than 200,000 New Mexicans get their drinking water from sources fed by streams that soon may no longer be protected by the Clean Water Act.[4]

To learn more about the environmental issues facing our state, view the articles below.