Records show high -- but decreasing -- water usage at governor's mansion

Jul. 20—As the sun began to set over Santa Fe, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham took in the splendor of the place she's called home since she was elected governor of New Mexico six years ago.

"It's going to be hard to leave this view," Lujan Grisham, a Democrat serving her second and final term as governor, said during a recent interview on the grounds of the governor's mansion. "I'm lucky to have it for so many years."

The governor's mansion — New Mexico's version of the White House — is located on a 31-acre hilltop parcel off Bishops Lodge Road just north of the Santa Fe Plaza.

It features stunning mountain views, quiet solitude and a wealth of greenery.

Dotted with native piñon and juniper trees, the gated property is adorned with a rainbow of flowers, shrubs, trees and a waterfall fountain near the entrance of the house. In the backyard is a lush lawn used for entertaining and a small orchard of relatively young apple, cherry and apricot trees, hollyhocks from Georgia O'Keeffe's house and a modest garden with a variety of vegetables, among other vegetation.

Keeping the property immaculately landscaped requires water — a tremendous amount of water.

Documents obtained under a public records request show the governor's mansion has consumed more than 4.3 million gallons of water for irrigation alone between 2019, when Lujan Grisham was sworn in, and 2023. Since 2017, the number climbs to more than 6.7 million gallons.

Jodi McGinnis Porter, a spokeswoman for Lujan Grisham, wrote in an email the governor's mansion is a unique property that includes extensive gardens and landscaped areas.

"This naturally results in higher water usage compared to the average residential property in Santa Fe," she wrote.

Though consumption at the governor's mansion is high, water usage for irrigation has dropped significantly during Lujan Grisham's tenure, from nearly 1.2 million gallons in 2018 to 771,000 gallons in 2023.

The city of Santa Fe's Water Division was unable to provide water usage numbers of other big properties for comparison. But in 2018, The New Mexican reported Mayor Alan Webber, a high water user at the time, had consumed 50,000 gallons of water in a single month the year before. Webber lives in a nearly 5,000-square-foot home on a roughly 4 1/2 -acre property, including an irrigated acre with at least 119 fruit, deciduous, evergreen and piñon trees. After the report, the mayor reduced his water usage, due in large part to a combination of indoor and outdoor changes, from repairing leaks on a decades-old irrigation system to replacing turf with native buffalo grass.

McGinnis Porter wrote recent landscaping changes at the governor's mansion reflect Lujan Grisham's "deep commitment" to enhancing water conservation on the mansion grounds and beyond during her tenure.

"Governor Lujan Grisham is dedicated to responsible water management and is continuously looking for ways to augment conservation efforts at the mansion and throughout the state," she wrote.

Landscaping changes include the introduction of more low-water-use plants, Xeriscaping and the installation of a new drip irrigation system, which is designed to be more efficient by delivering water directly to the roots of plants, minimizing evaporation and runoff.

McGinnis Porter noted new landscaping initially requires more water to help less water-reliant plants establish their root systems.

John Dupuis, the city of Santa Fe's public utilities director, called the drop in water usage for irrigation at the governor's mansion "commendable" and "impressive."

"They've been trying because that's not easy to do," he said. "Seeing that constant decline is what we want to see, no matter where they're starting from, because everyone starts from somewhere."

Records also showed there was an outstanding balance on the governor's irrigation bill of about $1,000 carried forward each month.

McGinnis Porter wrote the city of Santa Fe was showing a balance from a June 2022 invoice even though the payment was made on the due date of July 1, 2022.

"We have sent proof of payment to the City's billing department, and they will research the payment on their end and apply to the account," she wrote.

McGinnis Porter wrote the governor's mansion is cognizant of its water use and receives email alerts for immediate notification of water usage spikes.

"This allows us to promptly dispatch someone to investigate, adjust irrigation systems, or repair any leaks," she wrote. "Upon receiving a high-water usage alert, we typically respond within an hour during normal working hours. Outside of these hours, we prioritize sending someone out as soon as practical and safe. For instance, on July 1, we received a high-water usage alert at 5 a.m. and had someone on site by 6 a.m."

Before The New Mexican obtained records showing water usage at the governor's mansion, Lujan Grisham acknowledged she needed to do more to conserve.

The property has "too much grass," which uses "too much water," she said.

"I'm really trying to make this be a model residence," she said. "My water use is not there. [I'm] probably going to have to install a reuse system and then we'll take out at least half the grass."

Water consumption in the house is also much higher than the average Santa Fe residence, which uses about 40,000 gallons of water annually.

But as McGinnis Porter pointed out, the governor's mansion isn't your average residence.

The home, under 8,000 square feet, is also used for entertaining and various functions that draw scores of visitors on a regular basis.

Water consumption in the house ranges from a low of 2,400 gallons in January 2024 to a high of 143,000 gallons in September 2022.

In the first five months of 2024, the city recorded the consumption of 29,300 gallons of water in the house, documents show.

The one-story home, first occupied in 1955, is technically the third governor's mansion in New Mexico.

The first was the Palace of the Governors on the Santa Fe Plaza, and the second was a Greek revival mansion damaged by a disastrous flood, according to the website of the New Mexico Governor's Mansion Foundation.

The mansion of today includes a private side and a public side.

Lujan Grisham said the property — which she calls a residence and not a mansion — has "incredibly new stuff" inside but is old.

"I'll get it all patched and the outside perfect," she said. "We'll figure out the water reuse and water conservation. We're not quite there."

Lujan Grisham said she's considering various methods for conservation, including water-saving containers for rain.

"It needs to be beautiful, but I need to figure it out," she said.

McGinnis Porter wrote the Lujan Grisham administration is in the process of conducting a facility water audit to assess water usage.

"Based on the results of this audit, [the state will procure] services from a New Mexico-based engineering firm to develop a list of water-saving improvements for the facility, including low-flow toilets, irrigation system instrumentation, and water heater upgrades," she wrote.

The engineering firm would also explore the feasibility of directing rainfall runoff into cisterns for landscaping use at the facility.

"This initiative is contingent upon review and approval by the Office of the State Engineer, which oversees policies regarding the capture and utilization of rainfall runoff," McGinnis Porter wrote.

Based on audit findings and in consultation with the landscaping manager, the governor's mansion would also "explore adjustments to landscaping, flora, or fauna aimed at reducing water usage," McGinnis Porter wrote. "This includes evaluating potential irrigation efficiency improvements through additional instrumentation."

Dupuis said the city would be willing to help the governor develop a water-saving plan.

"If they want some support from us, we'll lend them a helping hand," he said.

Follow Daniel J. Chacón on Twitter @danieljchacon.