ALBUQUERQUE — During a widespread drought, officials across the nation are struggling to finish large-scale water infrastructure projects while populations are growing and drinking water resources and federal dollars are diminishing.
The federal government is responsible for paying about $3 billion to complete several rural water projects around the country.
The amount — expected to grow by the time the work is done — represents a fraction of the more than $600 billion needed to address the nation’s water and wastewater needs over the next 20 years.
That has left states and local water authorities scrambling to fill the financial void.
In New Mexico, a pipeline project intended to bring billions of gallons of water a year to a drought-stricken section in the eastern part of the state represents a lifeline to parched communities that are quickly running out of water.
Another pipeline proposal calls for moving water from four remote valleys in eastern Nevada to Las Vegas to reduce the region’s reliance on the Colorado River.
Others call for piping water from Lake Powell to southeastern Utah and for taking water from Wyoming across Colorado’s Front Range and on to Denver.