New Mexico Administrative Code › Title 19 - NATURAL RESOURCES AND WILDLIFE › Chapter 27 - UNDERGROUND WATER › Part 5 - THE USE OF PUBLIC UNDERGROUND WATERS FOR HOUSEHOLD OR OTHER DOMESTIC USE IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 72-12-1.1 NMSA › Section 19.27.5.14 - DOMESTIC WELL MANAGEMENT AREA

Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 13, July 16, 2024
As hydrologic conditions require, the state engineer may
				  declare all or part of a stream connected aquifer as a domestic well management
				  area to prevent impairment to valid, existing surface water rights. The
				  additional protection of mined aquifers is managed by the state engineer
				  through the declaration of a critical management area and the development of
				  administrative guidelines for the critical management area.
A. Administrative guidelines: The state
				engineer shall develop administrative guidelines for each declared domestic
				well management area. The administrative guidelines will be based on the
				hydrologic conditions of the domestic well management area and the valid,
				existing water rights located therein. The administrative guidelines shall set
				forth the maximum diversion amounts and other additional restrictions that will
				be conditioned on new
				72-12-1.1
				domestic well permits issued within the management area. Administrative
				guidelines for a domestic well management area and accompanying maps shall be
				available at each district office of the state engineer. The administrative
				guidelines shall also be posted on the office of the state engineer web-site
				(
www.ose.state.nm.us
).
B. Declaration of domestic well management
				area: The state engineer shall hold a public meeting within the geographic area
				of a proposed domestic well management area before he declares the area and
				adopts the administrative guidelines. Notice of the public meeting and a copy
				of the draft administrative guidelines for the domestic well management area
				shall be posted at the appropriate district office a minimum of 30 days prior
				to the date of the meeting. Notice of the public meeting and of the draft
				administrative guidelines will be published in a newspaper of general
				circulation in the area being declared once a week for three consecutive weeks,
				with final publication occurring not less than 10 days before the date of the
				public meeting. Persons who are or may be affected by the proposed declaration
				of the domestic well management area may appear and comment. Written public
				comments on the proposed domestic well management area and the administrative
				guidelines shall be filed with the office of the state engineer on or before
				the date of the public meeting. The additional restrictions and maximum
				diversion amounts established for new
				72-12-1.1
				domestic well permits in the draft administrative guidelines shall be adopted
				by the state engineer on an interim basis. The interim period shall start on
				the day the draft administrative guidelines are posted for public inspection
				and shall end on the day the state engineer adopts the administrative
				guidelines or otherwise signs an order canceling the interim period. Any
				changes made to the administrative guidelines during the interim period,
				including a change in the geographic area of a domestic well management area,
				shall be applied retroactively to each new
				72-12-1.1
				domestic well permit issued within the domestic well management area during the
				interim period.
C. Amount of water:
				Except as otherwise provided or restricted in Paragraph (2) of Subsection C,
				and Subsections D and E of this section, the maximum diversion of water from a
				new
				72-12-1.1
				domestic well within a domestic well management area shall not exceed 0.25
				acre-foot per annum. The state engineer may establish a maximum diversion
				amount for a new
				72-12-1.1
				domestic well in a domestic well management area that is less than 0.25
				acre-foot per annum.
(1) Single household:
				The maximum permitted diversion of water from a new
				72-12-1.1
				domestic well permitted to serve one household shall not exceed 0.25 acre-foot
				per annum.
(2) Multiple household:
				The maximum permitted diversion of water from a
				72-12-1.1
				domestic well permitted to serve more than one household shall not exceed 0.25
				acre-foot per annum per household served. The maximum combined diversion from
				such a
				72-12-1.1
				domestic well shall not exceed 3.0 acre-feet per annum. For a
				72-12-1.1
				domestic well serving multiple households, the permit holder shall file
				documentation with the state engineer listing the number of households being
				served by the well, the owner's contact information for each household being
				served, and a description of the legal lot of record for each household being
				served. A copy of a well share agreement may be filed to support the claim that
				the
				72-12-1.1
				domestic well is serving more than one household.
(3) Drinking and sanitary uses that are
				incidental to the operations of a governmental, commercial, or non-profit
				facility: The maximum permitted diversion of water from a
				72-12-1.1
				domestic well permitted for drinking and sanitary uses that are incidental to
				the operations of a governmental, commercial, or non-profit facility shall not
				exceed 0.25 acre-foot per annum. The state engineer shall not issue a permit
				for this use unless the applicant demonstrates that no alternative water supply
				is reasonably accessible or available. Water may not be used under this type of
				permit for any commercial use such as the manufacture of a product, car wash,
				water bottling, concrete batching, or irrigation of crops grown for commercial
				sale.