Dr. Nelia Dunbar is interim Vice President of Research and Chief Science Officer at New Mexico Tech. She was a contributing author and editor of Climate Change In New Mexico over the Next 50 Years:  Impacts on Water Resources.  Dr. Dunbar was a member of the NM Water Policy and Infrastructure Task Force

Hannah Riseley-White is Deputy Director of the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission and a member of the Water Task Force executive committee.

Norm Gaume, P.E. (ret.), is a retired water resources manager and planner.  He served as a co-lead of the task force Water Management and Planning work group.

Dr. Dunbar summarized the climate change impacts on our water that confront all New Mexicans and the public welfare.

Ms. Riseley-White summarized the 17 strong task force recommendations and report.  The task force report theme:

New Mexico enters 2023 in a water crisis.  But with unprecedented peril comes great opportunity.

Mr. Gaume focused on actions the Water Advocates are respectfully demanding the Governor and the 2023 Legislature to take.

1. Fund New Mexico's state water agencies to increase their capacity to do the jobs the legislature has given them and to address new challenges.
2. Pass the 2023 Regional Water Resilience Planning Act.

These 2023 Legislative actions would provide for initial implementation of these two water task force recommendations:

1. Equip state agencies, especially the Office of the State Engineer (OSE), the Interstate Stream Commission (ISC), and the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED), to effectively address New Mexico’s 21st Century emerging water security challenges and realize resilient adaptation through enhanced agency capacity, organizational alignment, cross-agency coordination, modernized business processes, information systems, and accountability.
2. Empower state agencies and regional/local water resilience planning entitiesto set clearly identified goals for permanent and escalating reduction in water use over the coming decades. Provide data and decision tools, develop inclusive and well-supported plan development processes, and establish pathways and commit resources to ensure plan implementation and systematic evaluation of outcomes.