File photo
File photo
CARLSBAD, New Mexico – A water rights fight on the Pecos River has a group of ranchers opposing a potash mining company that the ranchers claim could completely drain the river.
At the center of the issue is 35,000 acre-feet of water rights along the river. Intrepid Potash out of Denver has claimed those rights, with 19,000 ace-feet identified for consumption.
Ranchers down river are worried that claim won’t leave any water for them. Ken Dugan, an attorney for the Carlsbad Irrigation District, believes the move by Intrepid is motivated by problems in the potash industry, which it hopes to solve by selling water rights barely used in almost 50 years.
Dugan alleges Intrepid would sell the water rights to oil and gas companies. He also noted that water rights can be forfeited if unused for long enough, and that if the full water right was used, it could prevent the Pecos from even flowing into Texas. That would violate the Pecos River Compact between Texas and New Mexico.
Dugan has filed litigation to attempt to prevent Intrepid from making good on its claim.
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