A federal agency has signed an agreement triggering the next step in a proposal to divert water from the Gila River in New Mexico.
The agreement does not necessarily mean the controversial project will go ahead.
The Department of the Interior had a year to enter into an agreement after being notified by New Mexico of its plan to divert about 14,000 acre feet of water annually from the river. The proposal has faced strong pushback from conservation groups.
Peter Soeth with the Bureau of Reclamation said the project will now face a detailed federal review process with any number of outcomes.
“They could develop other alternatives that meet the needs of the area, and those projects may be the preferred alternative or this could become the preferred alternative," Soeth said.
He characterized this as a "procedural step" that kicks into motion an environmental and cost benefit analysis, among other things.
The Gila River stretches more than 600 miles from eastern New Mexico, across Arizona, ending in the Colorado River.
