Rossana Sallenave, Extension Aquatic Ecology Specialist in the Extension Animal Sciences & Natural Resources Department, collaborated with our team to produce a new Extension video, “Monitoring Water Wells in New Mexico,” which explores the process of testing the quality and quantity of your well water. As a resource for agricultural producers, land managers and homeowners who rely on well water, the video is distributed on YouTube on the NMSU College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences channel and via the website of the ARID project (arid.nmsu.edu). It will be used in Extension and outreach events and training, as well as for ARID outreach with well owners.
The video demonstrates the process of measuring depth of water in wells and encourages measuring and keeping records over time to help well owners understand what is going on with their aquifer. It also describes how to send water samples for laboratory testing to make sure water is of appropriate quality for its use, including water used for livestock watering, crop irrigation, or household drinking water. It includes footage of well testing conducted by the New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources and New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology.
This video was produced by Innovative Media, Research & Extension as part of a collaborative project funded by USDA-NIFA (ARID: Agroecosystem Resilience In Times of Drought). Based at NMSU with collaborators from the University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma State University, the Oklahoma Biological Survey, and Zeigler Geologic Consulting, the project focuses on proactive management solutions in response to drought and climate variability. Research topics for the team include groundwater investigations into static water levels, groundwater recharge, general chemistry, and trace metals; aquifer mapping; precipitation, soil moisture, and temperature; land-use and land-cover change related to periods of prolonged drought; sustainable agricultural practices; and livelihood impacts and adaptations to drought, including at a community level.
For more information on the ARID project, visit arid.nmsu.edu & follow on social media.
For more information, see the News Release by NMSU Marketing & Communications. Written by Amy Smith Muise (smiamy@nmsu.edu), Program Manager, Department of Innovative Media, Research & Extension.