New Mexico Administrative Code › Title 19 - NATURAL RESOURCES AND WILDLIFE › Chapter 25 - ADMINISTRATION AND USE OF WATER - GENERAL PROVISIONS › Part 13 - ACTIVE WATER RESOURCE MANAGEMENT › Section 19.25.13.17 - SPECIFIC DUTIES OF A WATER MASTER

Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 13, July 16, 2024
Taking into account the available water supply in general and
				  considering conveyance losses, the water master shall implement administration
				  in the district. The water master is authorized to do the following, as may be
				  provided by district-specific rules and regulations and as necessary to effect
				  administration:
A. determine the
				physical capacity of diversion and delivery structures for each point of
				diversion expressed as a maximum rate of flow in cubic feet per second
				(cfs);
B. determine the maximum
				rate of flow, expressed in cfs, required to meet the total demand for
				administrable water rights served by that point of diversion;
C. take into account water needed to provide
				for adequate hydraulic pressure to ensure maximum irrigation efficiency and
				charge of the system;
D. take into
				account water needed for additional uses such as, but not limited to,
				silt-flushing;
E. during times of
				high stream flow, when there are no legal constraints imposed upon the physical
				administration of the available water supply, relax limits on the amount of
				water that may be diverted in order that the delivery system might operate more
				efficiently, except that under no circumstances may the total CIR of water
				rights served from the project increase;
F. with respect to all agricultural uses,
				require the designation by the water right owner of land to be irrigated in a
				particular season and verify the irrigability of that land;
G. ensure that water diversions do not exceed
				the amount needed to serve administrable water rights, except as provided in
				Subsections C through E, above;
H.
				administer direct flow water for delivery to in-priority administrable water
				rights, curtail diversions by out-of-priority administrable water rights,
				ensure the delivery of storage water to those having rights to its use, and
				protect storage water releases from diversion by those without rights to its
				use;
I. establish protocols for
				communication and exchange of information with water right owners as required
				for administration;
J. maintain
				accurate records of all administration activities, including meter readings,
				and establish a protocol for the inspection and copying of such records, at the
				requestor's expense;
K. identify
				waste and illegal use of water, including re-diversion and reuse of return
				flows other than as specifically provided for in an administrable water
				right;
L. upon a determination that
				a use is illegal or constitutes waste, cap, lock or otherwise temporarily
				disable any mechanism for illegal diversion; no permanent disablement may occur
				without hearing before the state engineer;
M. where he has determined that a facility
				must be permanently disabled, issue an order directing that the diversion be
				permanently disabled, which order shall be heard by the state engineer as
				provided below; pending review of the water master's order, the temporary
				disablement of the disputed diversion shall remain in place;
N. perform all such duties as are required to
				accomplish administration.