Program combines new technologies to protect water supply
By Jenna Smith, November 2004
For more information regarding this subject, contact:
Mike Mecke
(915) 336-8585
mbmecke@ag.tamu.edu
For the first time, a water conservation program combining all current technologies to protect water supplies is underway in the semiarid and arid, desert region of West Texas.
Mike Mecke, extension specialist with Texas Cooperative Extension and the Texas Water Resources Institute, is introducing a new program, Water for West Texans, to counties stretching from San Angelo west to El Paso and from Andrews south to Del Rio.
Annual rainfall averages 18 inches in San Angelo and 8 inches in El Paso. And, the population of Texas is expected to double by 2050. West Texans are taking a more active role in protecting their water resources, Mecke said.
“We must manage and conserve our water resources while not harming our neighbors and the environment,” said Mecke. “In order to accomplish this, we must create water awareness and improve the knowledge and actions of our residents.”
Components of the Water for West Texans program include educational demonstrations and presentations, workshops and seminars, applied research programs, and collaborative efforts with agencies and planning groups on issues facing the region. Among these issues is the need for a watershed protection plan for the Pecos River, a greatly depleted western river winding 418 miles through the semiarid region of New Mexico and Texas to its confluence with the Rio Grande River.
The Water for West Texans program will include assessment of physical features of streams, communication with stakeholders and landowners, and monitoring of water quality. A watershed protection plan is being developed to help determine current and future management measures needed to protect both water quantity and quality.
The Rio Grande Basin Initiative provides opportunities to expand irrigation efficiencies and water conservation, said Mecke.
Sustainability is also a key issue in the region, and the program aims to assist residents in maintaining a permanent water supply at an affordable price. In order to show residents other avenues for creating a lasting water supply, Mecke is establishing rainwater harvesting demonstration sites at various locations throughout the region. These sites capture rainwater in cisterns or rain barrels, which can then be used for irrigation, livestock, or even drinking water once treated.
Saltcedar brush control measures will help to increase the amount of water salvaged by removing water-thirsty vegetation along the banks of West Texas rivers, namely the Pecos and Rio Grande, allowing an increase in water yield, restoring riparian habitats and improving water quality. Also, desalination initiatives of brackish groundwater will also help to increase availability of water in the region.
More efficient irrigation, coupled with lower water-use crops for agriculture, can help save thousands of acre-feet annually while lowering farmers’ overhead costs in the process. Seminars, workshops and demonstration sites on landscape conservation will provide the tools necessary to send the water conservation message home to both rural and urban residents, Mecke said.
Water for West Texans will involve residents, stakeholders and water personnel in Texas, New Mexico and Chihuahua, Mexico. Texas Cooperative Extension and the Texas Water Resources Institute will help develop and assist in water programs at all levels to assure that a clean water supply for agricultural, urban, industrial, wildlife and aquatic habitats is maintained.
“West Texas has no extra water to waste or pollute,” said Mecke. “Therefore, it is imperative to understand the importance of water conservation and irrigation efficiency in both agricultural enterprises and on urban landscapes, and to develop new alternatives to meeting appropriate water demands now and in the future.”
