Texico seeks water fix

Texico city officials are asking residents to voluntarily conserve water while they seek state funding to fix a well.

Texico Mayor Jerry Cunningham said he does not believe the city of Texico has had this severe of a water problem in recent years.

"We're going to continue to have a water shortage if people don't start cutting back; if we don't get some rain," said Cunningham, who is working with Rep. Dennis J. Roch to secure an emergency $50,000 grant to fix a broken pump.

Residents are being asked to limit outdoor water use to every other day to conserve water.

Darrell Stanton, maintenance supervisor for the Texico Department of Public Works, said the city's new watering schedule is working.

"Since we started it (watering schedule) two weeks ago, water usage has dropped tremendously," Stanton said. "We'll probably keep it going at least until winter."

Stanton said the city's average daily water use the past two weeks fluctuates between 200,000 to 400,000 gallons.

Before the voluntary conservation effort the city used between 400,000 to 500,000 gallons of water a day.

"They (the wells) have pumped more this summer than I've seen recently," Stanton said.

According to Stanton, Texico's two working wells each pump between 300 to 350 gallons of water per minute.

Stanton said this is normal for the summer but another working well is needed to accommodate citizens' water needs. The city's KKR Park well is down for repairs.

Stanton said a new liner is needed inside the well's casing due to numerous holes and plugged up screens. He said it has badly deteriorated over the last year.

Stanton said there are foundations of two wells on the southside of town that were never completed.

Stanton said his department hopes to get the wells online within a year.

Stanton said the city has been trying to complete its wastewater system before finishing the southside wells.

Texico has joined a number of other cities in exercising conservation methods, according to Roch. He said the depletion of groundwater in the Ogallala aquifer has been a long-time concern in the region.

"I believe the conservation of water is a long-term request because it's something that's going to affect this entire region," said Roch, who lives in Texico.

"The less groundwater we use the more it will continue to be there to sustain our communities in the future."