Residents urge action after "yellow water" reports from Camino Real utility; county hears five demands

Public commenters from southern Doña Ana County told commissioners on March 11 they are experiencing recurring delivery of discolored "yellow water" from the Camino Real Regional Utility Authority and urged county intervention because the utility is created under a joint powers agreement that involves both the county and the City of Sunland Park.

Daisy Maldonado, director of Empowerment Congress, said the group and the New Mexico Environmental Law Center presented five demands to the authority and to local governments. She summarized the demands as: taking preventive measures so yellow water is not delivered; providing arsenic test strips for at-home testing; supplying third-party clean water to affected residents during episodes; imposing a moratorium on any rate increases until water quality is guaranteed; and restoring the utility's board meetings to a prior 5:30 p.m. start time to improve public access.

"Nobody would want to drink this water. Nobody should be expected to drink this water," Maldonado told commissioners. She said the demands were sent to both the City of Sunland Park and to the county because of the joint powers agreement that created and governs the utility.

Other commenters from the community described health and billing concerns. Jose Saldana Jr. said he has spent about $50 a month on water-treatment systems that he says do not resolve discoloration and algae growth after several days. "This is an emergency. Water is life," he said, and added he had not received answers from the utility or the city.

Jose Placencia, lead campaign manager for Empowerment Congress, said many residents told canvassers they do not drink faucet water, must buy bottled water and have experienced rashes and hair loss they attribute to the water. He said the lack of transparent water-quality information is an economic burden on families.

Call for representation on utility board: Maldonado asked that Commissioner Gloria Gamedos be appointed to the Camino Real board because her district covers Sunland Park and she represents the affected constituents.

What the county can and did: Speakers noted the joint powers arrangement that governs the authority and said that is why the county should press for operational and transparency changes. No county action or vote was recorded at the March 11 meeting; public commenters asked staff and commissioners to act and said they had also provided evidence to the county and the city.

Why this matters: Residents described continuing water-quality problems that they say pose health and financial harms. The county shares oversight responsibilities under the utility's joint-powers arrangement and can request or require improved operations or transparency depending on the legal terms of that agreement.

What's next: Commenters asked the county to press the utility and the city to enact the five demands and to consider appointing an affected commissioner to the utility's board to improve local representation.