ADDRESSING A NEW MEXICO DATA DROUGHT; AQUIFER DATA BUILDING, DISTRIBUTED TEMPERATURE SENSING, WATER QUALITY

Gaps in hydrologic data prevent researchers from being able to characterize the water in New Mexico. To fill some of these gaps, we mapped depth to water along the Rio Grande, measured temperature changes in the San Antonio Creek, and measured the chemistry of well water from the Artesia area. First, we mapped along the Rio Grande running from North of Albuquerque to near Socorro using New Mexico State of Engineers well logs, the United States geological surveys, Excel, and ArcGIS by gathering existing tabular data on depth to water and converting it into spatial data. This mapping supports various projects such as Middle Rio Grande Aquifer Storage and Recovery, the Aquifer Mapping Study, the Hydrogeology of NM atlas, and the NM Water Data Act. Then, we used distributed temperature sensing to measure temperature changes along the San Antonio Creek to bolster our understanding of the hydrogeology of the Valles Caldera and to explain why elk in the area were perishing near the creek. Finally, we measured chemistry of well water samples from the Interstate Stream Commission, including conductivity, alkalinity, major cations and anions, and trace metals. The chemistry data helps the state monitor changes to groundwater near Artesia, New Mexico. These initiatives all contribute to recharging New Mexico’s water data for accessibility that will help with future efforts in sustainable water management.