ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — An irrigation district that delivers water to some 70,000 acres of cropland in the Middle Rio Grande Valley is warning farmers of a possible water shortage.
The Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District says spring runoff has been less than expected this year due a weak snowpack in the northern mountains, a lack of rain and earlier than normal irrigation by upstream users.
The district also says almost one third of this year's flow in the Rio Grande has been lost to evaporation.
Board chairman Derrick Lente says the district plans to adhere to priority right water deliveries.
If the district exhausts its stored supply, it will continue diverting the natural flow of the Rio Grande. However, the flows may not be enough to meet irrigators' needs, including irrigators on tribal lands.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.