Study looks at water rates, residential conservation in the Southwest

Dr. Phil King of New Mexico State University's Civil, Agricultural and Geological Engineering Department, and graduate student John Reid have been working on a study to determine the impact of price and non-price conservation incentives on residential water use in the Southwest. Below is a summary of socio-economic conditions and water prices of New Mexico communities. Included are comparisons of the January 1993 combined water and sewer bills for single family residences using 9,000 and 18,000 gallons in the month, which would correspond to three-person households using 100 gallons and 200 gallons per day respectively.

Summary of New Mexico Water Rates

City         Population    Ten-Year   Median    Median     Bill for    Bill for
                            Growth  Household  Household     9,000      18,000
                                       Size     Income      Gallons     Gallons

Albuquerque     384,736     16.0%      2.46    $27,555       $22.64     $35.39
Las Cruces       62,126     37.8%      2.59    $23,548       $24.74     $40.52
Santa Fe         55,859     14.1%      2.38    $30,117       $47.22     $88.71
Roswell          44,654     12.5%      2.67    $21,872       $26.00     $41.75
Farmington       33,997      8.9%      2.83    $28,931       $40.15     $64.72
Clovis           30,954      <.8%>     2.62    $21,222       $39.07     $57.52
Carlsbad         24,952     <2.1%>     2.63    $22,605          --         --
Gallup           19,154      5.5%      3.00    $26,647       $27.62     $52.02
Las Vegas        14,753      3.0%      2.73    $18,023       $35.45     $46.15

Billing Structure for New Mexico Cities

Albuquerque   Service charge plus flat rate
Las Cruces    Service charge plus inclining block rate
Santa Fe      One-step inclining block rate
Roswell       Minimum plus flat rate
Farmington    Service charge plus flat rate
Clovis        Service charge plus flat rate
Carlsbad      Information on structure not obtained
Gallup        Service charge plus inclining block rate
Las Vegas     Service charge plus a declining rate