October 20, 2014
Stacy Timmons and Talon Newton have each received awards from WRRI to contribute to a statewide water assessment. Stacy is leading a project to address water level changes in several basins across the state using data from the U.S. Geological Survey, NM Office of the State Engineer, and the Aquifer Mapping Program at NMBGMR. Water level changes will be contoured over regions with sufficient data over multiple time periods, and then calculations of changes in storage can be attempted. Talon is leading a project to identify areas of potential recharge for the state. Using ArcGIS models, we will combine multiple datasets, including results of recharge estimates from previous work, estimates of precipitation, land surface elevation, potential evapotranspiration, geology, vegetation, and stream locations to identify areas of recharge. These two projects contribute as part of a multi-agency, multi-institution collaborative effort of a statewide water assessment funded by NM State legislative funds through New Mexico's WRRI.