News Release Archive

Reclamation Signs Cooperative Agreement for Advanced Water Treatment with New Mexico State University

Media Contact: Peter Soeth, 303-445-3615, psoeth@usbr.gov

For Release: February 16, 2010

Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Michael L. Connor announced today at the Brackish Groundwater National Desalination Research Facility in Alamogordo, N.M., that Reclamation and New Mexico State University signed a cooperative agreement to conduct advanced water treatment research at or associated with the facility. This agreement is valued at $5 million.

"This partnership with NMSU and Reclamation will bring tremendous benefits to the local community, students, the region, and the nation as we look for environmentally sensitive, energy efficient, and cost effective ways to develop new water supplies," said Connor. "New Mexicans should be proud that research conducted here in Alamogordo will benefit communities throughout the United States and throughout the world."

The cooperative agreement is structured around three major pillars of research, education, and outreach.

  • The research pillar will create new knowledge leading to new technologies and possible new water sources.
  • The education pillar will provide hands-on training at the facility for undergraduate and graduate students who are pursuing water related degrees.
  • The outreach will develop science based information for the general public and health community on the use of treated impaired water and will develop educational tools for Kindergarten through high school educators.

The agreement also supports Reclamation's goals of expanding water supplies, promoting water reuse and conservation, addressing the environmental impacts of desalination, integrating energy and water policies, and promoting the training and employment of America's youth in these exciting endeavors.

The Brackish Groundwater National Desalination Research Facility was opened on August 16, 2007. Since then, research on advanced water treatment has been on-going including the Emergency Unit for Water Purification, a mobile facility that was deployed to the Gulf Coast in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Under this agreement, a number of research activities are planned including using renewable energy in the desalination process.

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The Bureau of Reclamation is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of the Interior and is the nation's largest wholesale water supplier and second largest producer of hydroelectric power. Our facilities also provide substantial flood control, recreation opportunities, and environmental benefits. Visit our website at https://www.usbr.gov and follow us on Twitter @USBR; Facebook @bureau.of.reclamation; LinkedIn @Bureau of Reclamation; Instagram @bureau_of_reclamation; and YouTube @reclamation.

Relevant Link:

Brackish Groundwater National Desalination Research Facility