New water treatment plant will spike water rates

QUAY COUNTY DEMANDS ENMWUA IMMEDIATELY STOP WORK ON PIPELINE

 New water treatment plant will spike water rates

TUCUMCARI, N.M. (AUGUST 27, 2024) – The Quay County Commission has voted unanimously to send a letter to Eastern New Mexico Water Utility Authority (ENMWUA) demanding that all work on the pipeline project from Ute Lake be stopped after several new revelations in a recent study calls the project’s viability into question.

“We do not think it is appropriate for you to continue your construction activities in Quay County until all issues raised by the Water Treatment Plant Analysis have been resolved,” states the letter signed by all three County Commissioners. “As a result, Quay County demands that the ENMWUA immediately cease all pipeline construction activities in Quay County until such time as you have a completed and workable treatment plant design and have secured the funding to build it.”

ENMWUA has begun construction of a pipeline from Ute Lake adjacent to Logan, N.M., to run from the lake to Clovis, Portales and other smaller towns using federal, state and local funds. However, a recent study commissioned by ENMWUA released to the county last week calls the viability of the project into question.

The pipeline project was developed using a 2005 Ute Lake water test that showed that the lake water could be treated using conventional methods cost effectively. However, the recent water quality sampling study in 2022 shows substantial increases in Alkalinity, Sulfate, Chloride, and significant amounts of PFAS chemicals.

“A water quality sampling study conducted during 2022 shows a substantial deterioration of the water quality in Ute Lake,” states the letter.

The water treatment option being proposed by ENMWUA to make the water safe to drink will cost between $400 million and $600 million, according to its own study.

Under the best-case scenario, wholesale water will cost $4.78 per 1,000 gallons. EPCOR, the Clovis water company, now charges $1.07 per 1,000 gallons, according to the recent study.

ENMWUA has notified the Village of Logan that it intends to start construction around the Village in spring of next year. The letter states, “However, it is far from inevitable at this point that ENMWUA will be able to complete a viable pipeline project in light of the information contained in the Treatment Plan Analysis.”