More than $9.7 million is being invested in basic infrastructure projects in communities in Doña Ana County, New Mexico.

• Groundbreaking for a wastewater treatment plant in Sunland Park and completion of a drinking water system improvement project in Mesilla celebrated
• Both projects receive EPA grant funding

Doña Ana County, New Mexico – This morning, a groundbreaking ceremony was held for the city of Sunland Park by the regional utility, Camino Real Rural Utility Authority (CRRUA), followed by a ribbon-cutting ceremony to inaugurate a drinking water system improvement project in the community of Mesilla. Both communities are located in Doña Ana County, New Mexico.

C.P. Alex Hinojosa, Acting Managing Director of the North American Development Bank (NADB), Maria Elena Giner, General Administrator of the Border Environment Cooperation Commission (BECC), Brent Westmoreland, Executive Director of CRRUA, Claudia Hosch, from Region 6 of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and representatives from the local offices of U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, led the groundbreaking ceremony for this WWTP, which will replace the aging North plant built in the 1970s. The new plant, which cost a total of $11.7 million, will have a capacity of 44 liters per second and will benefit more than 6,000 residents.

CRRUA is receiving $9.0 million in grant funding from the EPA through the Border Environmental Infrastructure Fund (BEIF) administered by NADB for the WWTP, as well as $85,000 through the Project Development Assistance Program (PDAP) administered by BECC, for an asset management study intended to assist the agency in optimizing its assets.

“This funding will allow the utility to use its resources more efficiently and effectively to benefit the communities it serves,” said Senator Udall. “As CRRUA works to replace the aging treatment plant and reduce risks to the environment and public health, these grants will support the agency’s efforts to modernize and plan for the future.”

“The construction of this new facility in Sunland Park was a necessary investment to help the region with ongoing sanitation issues. With these resources, the CRRUA can develop a management plan to optimize its current assets and be better prepared for future demands,” Senator Heinrich commented. He added, “These smart investments in our border communities improve public health, strengthen the community, and contribute to long-term economic development.”

“By providing these resources to CRRUA, we are supporting them in effectively utilizing their current assets to better meet community needs,” said Engineer Giner. “With this study, the agency can also establish capital plans and strategies to meet future demands,” she concluded.

Later, at the second event, Mesilla Mayor Nora L. Barraza led the ribbon-cutting ceremony marking the completion of the project to improve the drinking water distribution system, benefiting more than 1,450 residents of the community, located 3 kilometers southwest of Las Cruces.

The project, with a total cost of $761,646, received $698,115 in EPA grant funding and consisted of the construction of three separate water supply lines that were connected to existing lines to improve the distribution network and serve the new intakes. The New Mexico Department of the Environment also provided grants to support the project, which was certified by the NADB Board of Directors and the BECC in November 2015.

“These projects, which were certified by the NADB Board of Directors and the BECC in 2015, will allow these communities to meet the current and future demands generated by urban development in this region,” said C.P. Hinojosa, adding, “These projects would not have been possible without the support of the EPA, the State of New Mexico, and Senators Udall and Heinrich, who have allocated funds for priority wastewater treatment projects in communities along the U.S.-Mexico border.”