'Softer version' of Lujan Grisham water supply plan limps through New Mexico Legislature

Funding was blocked for New Mexico’s proposed program to buy treated salt water from private companies and sell it to other industries they were trying to attract.

Lawmakers pushed back on the idea in the final days of the legislative session, which ended Feb. 15. The Senate Conservation Committee held hearings on the two days before the deadline for Senate Bill 294.

The Conservation Committee tabled to bill almost unanimously on Tuesday on an 8-1 vote with Sen. Liz Stefanics (D-39) the only vote against blocking it from further action.

The next morning, an amended version was brought forth and was advanced by the committee, albeit without a recommendation, on a vote of 5-3. It was sent to the Senate Finance Committee, where the bill remained on the last day of the session.

SB 294, sponsored in a rare bipartisan move by the committee’s chair Stefanics and Sen. William Sharer (R-1), would allow New Mexico to issue $100 million in bonds to buy the treated brackish water for use in the proposed “Strategic Water Supply.”

More: Gov. Lujan Grisham seeks $500M to buy oil and gas wastewater to support energy projects

The supply would have provided water to other industries like renewable energy development as New Mexico looks to transition away from fossil fuels.

The program was originally pursued by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, came with a $500 million price tag and included oilfield wastewater that is known as “produced water” by the industry.

The funds were included in the broader budget bill being considered by lawmakers but were pulled out last week by the House as it passed the budget on to the Senate.

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In response SB 294 was brought before lawmakers, a version of the program that was $400 million lighter, and precluded produced water for now, in response to concerns from environmental advocacy groups.

Environmentalists in New Mexico for years expressed reservations for the idea of treating oil and gas wastewater for uses outside of the industry, worrying the fluid was toxic and high in heavy metals and brine.

They argued treatment technology capable of making the water safe was not yet proven, as the New Mexico Environment Department was underway with a research consortium to development such capabilities with New Mexico State University.

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The second version of the bill added language to require the next legislature approve any of the bonds issued by the program, and removed the definition of “brackish water” for “treated brackish water,” clarifying minimum levels of total dissolved solids (TDS) for water to be included in the program.

More: Gov. Lujan Grisham wants New Mexico to spend big. Should oil and gas foot the bill?

NMED Cabinet Secretary James Kenney, a supporter of the proposal, said before lawmakers that a request for proposals would be issued should the bill pass as the State gathers information on how exactly it would work.

“Admittedly, we don’t have all the information which is why we’re going to a request for proposals. This is going to be the best that we can do to continue to engage with industry and continue to engage with advocates,” Kenney said during the Wednesday meeting. “We need to protect our freshwater.”

Lawmakers expressed broad concerns about the technology used to treat the water being sold by New Mexico, how freshwater supplies would be protected and for standards that would be set for the water’s content.

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Committee member Sen. William Soules (D-37) remarked that the latest version of the initiative still lacked information needed for it to move forward.

“I think this is a much softer version than what we say yesterday,” he said. “We had a lot of concerns that we needed a lot more information, a lot more answers before moving forward.”

Sen. Carrie Hamblen (D-38) said lawmakers should engage with stakeholders between this year and the next session to flush out the project and provide better explanation to New Mexicans on what shape it will take.

More: Oil and gas companies seek solutions to wastewater, drought in New Mexico, Permian Basin

“I would suggest after this legislative session to have some deliberate and focused meetings. I do believe that there are legitimate concerns,” she said. “We know that when we have more information rather than less information is easier to explain what we need to do.”

Sharer argued during the meeting where the bill was tabled that it would mark an important the first step in increasing water availability in New Mexico.

“A lot of the concerns I’ve heard is for unproven technology. If we’re not willing to try something, we’ll never get anywhere,” he said. “Automobiles were unproven technology, but now we can’t live without them. A journey of 1,000 miles begins with the first step.”

Adrian Hedden can be reached at 575-628-5516, achedden@currentargus.com or @AdrianHedden on the social media platform X.

This article originally appeared on Carlsbad Current-Argus: Lujan Grisham water supply plan limps through New Mexico Legislature