Implementation of the City’s water development plan will benefit the people of Las Cruces by providing a safe and reliable water supply while limiting water waste, optimizing efficiency of water use, preventing pollution of water supply, and remediating contaminated groundwater. The City’s water development plan is consistent with the following principles defined by consensus by the National Groundwater Association (NGWA):
- “Groundwater sustainability: The development and use of groundwater resources to meet current and future beneficial uses without causing unacceptable environmental or socioeconomic consequences.”
- “Resilience: The capacity of a groundwater (or water-resources) system to withstand either short-term “shocks” (e.g., drought) or long-term change (e.g., climate change). When discussing resilience, the timeframe under consideration should be defined. Resilience applies to both water quantity and quality and may be an important concept as part of groundwater sustainability.”
- “Adaptive management: A staged decision-making approach to long-term groundwater (water-resources) management with an aim to reducing uncertainty over time via system monitoring.”
