Workshop on Use of Alternative Water Held in Las Cruces

By Ashley Page, NMSU Graduate Student Assistant NM WRRI hosted a two-day workshop on August 15-16, 2016 for the New Mexico State University–Bureau of Reclamation collaborative partnership on Research for the Development and Use of Alternative Water Supplies. The project aims to increase knowledge and research expertise regarding alternative water supplies. Researchers and community stakeholders attended the workshop to determine a pertinent path for the partnership. The first day of the meeting engaged currently funded researchers and potential researchers. New Mexico State University researchers Drs. Pei Xu, Catherine Brewer, and Reza Foudazi presented updates on their funded projects. The collaborative partnership’s technical advisors from the Bureau of Reclamation discussed their research expertise and current work. Additional speakers included Yuliana Porras-Mendoza, Advanced Water Treatment Coordinator from Reclamation; Terry Lombard, Director of Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer from NMSU’s Arrowhead Center; and Dr. Vince Tidwell, Principle Member of the Technical Staff from Sandia National Laboratories. Community stakeholders interested in brackish groundwater desalination attended the second day of the workshop. Participants shared their needs and concerns related to these technologies. The insight they provided will help the collaborative partnership ensure that its continued work meets the needs of the Mesilla Valley. The workshop concluded with a tour of the Brackish Groundwater National Desalination Research Facility in Alamogordo, NM. Randy Shaw, the site’s Facility Manager, led the group in a presentation and walking tour.