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“I applaud the decision by Doña Ana County Commissioners and call on the City of Sunland Park to do the same and terminate the agreement.”
Source: New Mexico Environment Department
Statement By New Mexico Environment Department Sec. James Kenney
Photo: Courtesy
SANTA FE— New Mexico Environment Department Sec. James Kenney issued the following statement regarding Doña Ana County Board of County Commissioners’ decision to terminate its joint powers agreement with the City of Sunland Park and the Camino Real Regional Utility Authority (CRRUA).
“On Tuesday, May 13, Doña Ana County Commissioners passed a motion to terminate its agreement with the City of Sunland Park creating the Camino Real Regional Utility Authority (CRRUA) through a Joint Powers Agreement executed on February 13, 2024.
I applaud the decision by Doña Ana County Commissioners and call on the City of Sunland Park to do the same and terminate the agreement.
However, terminating the agreement is not enough. The parties to the Joint Powers Agreement should immediately explore retaining an independent third party to oversee the daily operations of CRRUA while the agreement remains in effect.
Further, the parties should fund the Empowerment Congress requests related to taking preventative and protective measures, including providing arsenic test strips to residents, providing third-party clean water supplies, and ensuring public meetings are meaningfully inclusive. Empowerment Congress’ demands are reasonable — as is the installation and maintenance of point-of-use or whole-house filters for every resident. I also support the establishment of an independent, community-based health assessment for chronic arsenic exposure and treatment.
The parties to the Joint Powers Agreement should immediately begin to deploy these public health measures at no cost to ratepayers.
New Mexicans should not expect the bare minimum from their water utility, especially regarding compliance and transparency. They should expect and demand far above it — that’s the standard expected by the New Mexico Environment Department.”
