Paul Buck / Stringer
- A New Mexico city has about 20 days of fresh water left, CNN reported.
- A record wildfire and monsoons have contaminated much of Las Vegas, New Mexico's water system.
- The city has leased a filtration system to get water from a nearby lake as they search for a long-term solution.
After being hit with the state's largest wildfire on record in May and then unusual monsoons, Las Vegas, New Mexico, has only about 20 days' worth of fresh water left, CNN reported.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reported that the wildfire contaminated the Gallinas River, the area's main water source, with ashy sediment and debris.
The monsoons further complicated the issue by washing more of the debris into the region's water system, and now one of the two reservoirs for the city has contaminated water that can't be handled by the current filtration system, CNN reported.
"If the water wasn't contaminated, we'd be set for life because we've had more rain this summer," Las Vegas Mayor Louie Trujillo told the New Mexican. "Our reservoirs would be completely full. So, it's unfortunate."
The New Mexican reported that the city has been drawing drinking water from the limited supply at the Bradner Reservoir. The city has also limited each resident to 44 gallons of municipal water each day. That's about half of what the average American uses, the New Mexican reported.
CNN reported that the city is testing and filtering water from a nearby lake, which could hopefully give it a few more months of water. The New Mexican reported that the city is leasing a $2.3 million a year treatment system to filter the dirty water from Storrie Lake.
The measure if successful, would provide around 1.5 million gallons a day. That amount would meet the essential needs of the city's 13,000 residents for a few months.
"Our fingers are crossed on that," Trujillo told CNN.
This New Mexico city only has 20 days of fresh water left
Source: Kalayaan News
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