SANTA FE — New Mexico launched a public dashboard on Tuesday that enables New Mexicans to track progress on a 50-year Water Action Plan aimed at preparing the state for a climate crisis expected to leave the state 25% drier within 50 years.  

The 50-Year Water Action Plan Implementation Dashboard provides the public with a real-time window to monitor the state’s progress in addressing projected water shortages driven by drought and climate change. The plan is based on three pillars: conserving existing freshwater supplies, developing new water sources and protecting water quality. 

“This dashboard is a promise to every New Mexican that we will manage this challenge with the best science available now and well into the future,” said Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham. 

Scientists convened by the New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources predict that New Mexico will face a shortage of 750,000 acre-feet of water within 50 years as climate change causes temperatures to rise — reducing snowpack, drying out aquifers and intensifying drought. New Mexico uses approximately three million acre-feet of surface and groundwater per year to supply nearly 25,000 farms and ranches and support municipal, industrial and domestic needs. These demands will increasingly outpace supply without sustained bold, strategic action. 

The dashboard tracks the state’s progress across all three pillars of the plan. On conservation, the plan targets a 10% reduction in rural and municipal water consumption by 2040 and a 25% reduction in water loss from public drinking water infrastructure — a serious problem in some communities, where aging pipes currently lose as much as 40 to 70% of all treated drinking water before it reaches a tap. On new water supplies, the state has committed $75 million for the Strategic Water Supply to spur development of brackish water desalination projects with a goal of delivering 100,000 acre-feet of new water by 2028. The plan also calls for protecting the quality and safety of surface water and groundwater sources, in addition to restoring critical watersheds and reducing wildfire risk across 300,000 acres annually by 2035. 

The 50-Year Water Action Plan, announced in January 2024, builds on more than five years of groundwork by the Lujan Grisham administration, including the Produced Water Act, the Water Data Act, the Water Security Planning Act of 2023 and the Land of Enchantment Legacy Fund. The plan also draws on the findings of the 2022 New Mexico Water Policy and Infrastructure Task Force, expertise from New Mexico universities and national laboratories and the traditional water knowledge of the state’s Pueblo, tribal and acequia communities. Since 2021, New Mexico has secured more than $1 billion in federal infrastructure funding for water projects statewide. 

The dashboard is available at https://water-dashboard.nm.gov/