Attorney General Gary King (Photo by Heath Haussamen)
‘It may come down to the fact that there are more votes north of Elephant Butte Lake, which could come in very handy in a statewide political race,’ EBID alleges in response to the latest move by King.
The Elephant Butte Irrigation District says Attorney General Gary King appears to have a “sinister” motive for a lawsuit that seeks to void an agreement dividing water between Southern New Mexico and El Paso.
I’ve written about this before. King’s lawsuit, he claims, is aimed at making sure “New Mexico water is protected and that our water users receive their fair share.” The Elephant Butte district, which represents primarily Southern New Mexico farmers, on the other hand, has accused King of “politicized hydrology.”
There’s been a new development, and the district issued an even harsher criticism of King in a Thursday news release.
“The latest legal broadside came when a process server working for the N.M. AG’s office in Santa Fe came slipping in between the pecan trees to deliver a lawsuit to pecan farmer James Salopek, chairman of the EBID,” seeking to invalidate its agreement with the El Paso district, the release states.
From the release:
“The underlying issue here is that the State of New Mexico is soon going to be in a position where they are not making the required deliveries under the Rio Grande Compact to Compact Texas. By seeking to change the method by which certain calculations are made, upstream New Mexico is seeking to put themselves in a better position regarding their required deliveries to Compact Texas, which would have the effect of delivering less water to EBID farmers. The lawsuit was originally filed last year against the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation but it has now been expanded by the State to include the local farmers.”
That last part is what’s new: King expanding the lawsuit “to include the local farmers” in Southern New Mexico.
Then the harsh part from the EBID release:
“The EBID board is asking all involved (including the City of Las Cruces) to ask serious questions about these actions which on the surface seem to be a brazen water grab (from his own constituents) by an Attorney General who is attempting to further his political career at the expense of New Mexico agriculture. It may come down to the fact that there are more votes north of Elephant Butte Lake, which could come in very handy in a statewide political race where the issues are complex and the motives appear to be nothing less than sinister.”