Water Conservation

Albuquerque’s Aquifer

The availability of clean, potable water has long been one of the foremost challenges in the Southwestern United States. The control of water has literally shaped the history of the West.

It was long thought that Albuquerque sat over a vast underground aquifer. So Albuquerque’s approach to water management was simple and inexpensive. We simply extracted all the water we needed from the aquifer, assuming that the Rio Grande River and snow melt were replacing what we consumed. In 1993, new studies showed that water is in shorter supply than we thought. In response to this challenge, Albuquerque has developed an aggressive water conservation and management strategy.

In the 1960’s, the City of Albuquerque made one of it’s most farsighted decisions ever. The City agreed to participate in and help fund the San Juan-Chama diversion project, even though additional water was not needed at that time. This Project imports Colorado River water into the Rio Grande basin for use by Albuquerque and other contractors. Beginning in 2003, Albuquerque has access to a portion of this water.

The allocation of this water along with other water conservation measures should insure that Albuquerque has a sustainable water supply until 2040.

Residential homes are the highest users of water in the Albuquerque Metro area – a whopping 71%!

Water Usage Guidelines

Inside your home

• Find and fix all toilet leaks
• Toilets installed before 1986 use approximately 5 gallons per flush. Replace them with low flow toilets which use considerably less water. The City of Albuquerque has an incentive program in place for homeowners who voluntarily replace their toilets.
• Replace shower heads with low flow shower heads.
• Set your washer to wash using the lowest amount of water needed for your load of laundry.

Call 768-3655 for more information on rebate programs through the City of Albuquerque

Outside your home

• Homeowners have been asked to water only before the hours of 10:00 AM or after 7:00 PM to minimize water loss from evaporation. Once a week in early spring and late fall , twice a week in early summer and early fall, and three times a week in full summer for not longer than 15 minutes.
• Install drip irrigation for your landscaping
• Determine the amount of water needed by your plants, and don’t over water
• Mow grass only in the early morning
• Avoid runoff. Never allow water to run down the sidewalk or street
• Install Xeric (low water use) plantings

Xeriscaped yards are not barren lots filled with rock. Rather, they are lush and beautiful and incorporate a variety of water efficient plants.

For more information on Xeriscaping call the Xeric Garden Club at 505-838-7144

New Residential Construction

They city has established requirements for the landscaping for new construction residential lots in the Albuquerque Metro area. 80% of any residential lot must be planted in medium to low water use plants. The remaining 20% may be planted with higher water use plants and/or turf.

Please call the City of Albuquerque at 505-768-3655 for more information.

If you have questions or would like more information regarding water conservation in New Mexico you can call the City of Albuquerque Water Conservation Office at 505-768-3655 or visit them on line at www.cabq.gov.