Water board approves easement agreements

The Eastern New Mexico Water Utility Authority Board approved six more easement agreements for the Finished Water 3B (FW3B) pipeline on Thursday.

“The purpose of the ENMWUA project is to provide potable water to four city and county member agencies and Cannon Air Force Base for municipal, commercial, and industrial use,” as stated on the ENMWUA website.

“The project will replace current groundwater supplies from the Ogallala (or High Plains) Aquifer with a renewable surface water supply (Ute Reservoir).”

To that end the ENMWUA is constructing the Ute Pipeline to carry potable water from the Ute Reservoir to member communities, which include the communities of the City of Clovis, Town of Elida, City of Portales, and the City of Texico.

The News asked ENMWUA Administrator Orlando Ortega to explain the process for making Finished Water.

“Every pipeline phase south of the Water Treatment Plant (WTP) is Finished Water, meaning it has been treated (and) is now potable water (drinkable water),” Ortega said. “Finished Water connects to each member community’s connection point.

“Every pipeline phase from the Ute Reservoir Intake Facility to the WTP is called Raw Water (RW). Raw water is pumped from the reservoir and when it reaches the WTP, is treated and made potable, leaves the WTP as Finished Water.”

The FW3B pipeline easements approved at the meeting, comprise “the remaining 5.5 miles of pipeline that will connect to the Portales water system,” Ortega said. “Some easements include a Permanent Easement (PE) and a Temporary Construction Easement (TCE).

“The PE is 50-feet wide. The pipeline will lay within the PE. The TCE is normally 50-feet if there is sufficient property area. If there is not sufficient area, we do not request a TCE.”

The News asked where these easements are in the context of the greater picture.

Ortega said: “FW3B has a total of 26 Permanent Easements and 22 Temporary Construction Easements. The ENMWUA has completed 8 easements, signed by property owner and ENMWUA. We have 6 signed by property owners going before the Board for approval today. Twelve will remain after the Board approves those on the agenda today.”

In other business, the board approved two professional services contracts: An annual contract with Thompson Consulting, LLC, for state-level legislative consulting support in the amount of $60,000 and an annual contract with Capitol Consultants, LLC, for federal and congressional-level consulting support in the amount of $60,000.

Later in the meeting, Joe Thompson of Thompson Consulting, said in the state legislative report: “As far as I can tell, we are pointed in the right direction on that $10 million appropriation from the Legislature.”

John Ryan said in the federal report that Eastern New Mexico’s share of the Omnibus Appropriations Bill funding is expected to be about “$4 million and some change” for Rural Water Projects.

The next regular board meeting will be held at 10 am on Tuesday January 31 at the New Mexico Municipal League Board Room, 1229 Paseo De Peralta, Santa Fe, New Mexico.