QUAY COUNTY, N.M. (KRQE) – It’s a massive project that’s been decades in the making to bring water from Ute Lake to Clovis and Portales. But now, Quay County is asking for it to be paused while those behind the pipeline are calling the county uninformed on the project.
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On Tuesday, Quay County sent the Eastern New Mexico Water Utility Authority, which is in charge of the project, a letter asking them to stop the work. In the letter, the county said original plans for the pipeline, dating back to 2005, were based on the understanding that water from the lake could be treated into drinking water by conventional methods. But, the letter cites a 2022 study showing water in the lake had harmful chemicals including PFAS, and would require a different treatment. It said ENMWUA wants to continue its construction of a pipeline in Quay County in the spring of next year.
“So, all we’re asking them to do, is hey, if you guys get your act together, you get the amount of funding that you need, design that will work then fine, come down here and build your pipeline. But until then, we don’t want you coming down here and disrupting our community and basically tearing up our city,” said Warren Frost, attorney for Quay County.
Frost said the county just found out about the results of the 2022 water study after an IPRA request. “This new water test came in 2022 and Quay County just learned about it three weeks ago,” he said. “It was kind of a eureka moment. The proverbial smoking gun.”
But the ENMWUA said the information about the 2022 water analysis and the updated need to treat the water with reverse osmosis have been in public view all along.
“They seem to believe they found a ‘gotcha’ with the project that they’ve unsuccessfully opposed for years,” said Mayor Mike Morris of Clovis, who is also the chair of the ENMWUA.
Mayor Clovis said the initial conventional treatment plant was estimated to be $277 million. The reverse osmosis treatment plant needed based on the recent water analysis is estimated to be $396-$457 million, according to Mayor Morris.
Frost said Quay County now plans to go to municipal leadership meetings in Texico, Portales, and Clovis to plead their case.
“And ask them, don’t tear up our area until you have the funding and the design available and verified that it will work,” said Frost.
Quay County requested ENMWUA to respond to their letter by September 15.
In a statement sent to News 13, Mayor Mike Morris detailed all the entities involved in this project noting it was federally authorized in 2009. He said the agreement between the federal government and ENMWUA promises 75% funding for construction of all remaining components including the water treatment plant, 15% of funding will come from the state, and the ENMWUA will cover the remaining 10% of costs.
“This is happening. In fact, we are actively building the system with construction progressing extremely well. Our scheduled completion is in 2031,” said Mayor Morris in a statement to News 13. “This pipeline system is the single most important piece of infrastructure for eastern NM. So, we’re getting it right. It’s how we flip the script from water scarcity to water security in Clovis and our other members’ communities. We’re committed to being good neighbors and showing respect. But we are building the Ute pipeline. We have committed federal and state partners that understand how critical the Ute pipeline is and we’re building it.”
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