NEXT MEETING:

Thursday, May 11, 2017, 7:30 p.m. 
Albuquerque Friends Meeting House
1600 5th Street Northwest
(see map below right)

Topic:
Stopping a Billion-Dollar Boondoggle - Update on the Gila River Diversion Project

At this meeting, we will hear a presentation from Norm Gaume about the latest developments in the ongoing battle over the proposed diversion project on New Mexico’s last undammed river. 

In late 2014, the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission voted to approve a water diversion and storage project on the Gila River that would capture up to 14,000 acrefeet a year (though in low flow years, that number would fall to zero) and would cost upwards of $1 billion. The project was fiercely opposed by many New Mexicans, including former Interstate Stream Commission Director Norm Gaume, who successfully sued the agency for signing multimillion dollar contracts with engineering firms in secret, in violation of the state’s transparency laws. In 2016, the proposed diversion was scaled back, and last month, the project was sent back to the drawing board once again. Join us to find out what’s next for the Gila River.

Speaker: ​Norm Gaume

Norm Gaume is a mostly retired licensed water engineer. Norm grew up in southern New Mexico and received BS and MS degrees in Electrical and Civil Engineering from NMSU. His career includes 4 years with a water resource modeling engineering firm, 19 years with the City of Albuquerque, 6 years as Director of the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission, and 12 years as a self-employed consulting engineer. For the past several years, Norm has been working to hold his former agency accountable and stop the misguided proposal to dam and divert the wild Gila River.
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Directions to the Meeting:
The Albuquerque Friends Meeting House is located at the corner of 5th and Bellamah. From I-40, take the 6th street exit, then South to Bellamah.

awf meetings

Our monthly meetings feature programs with guest speakers on a variety of topics. Meetings are held at 7:30 pm on the second Thursday of most months, at the Friends Meeting House, 1600 5th St NW, Albuquerque, NM 87102. Refreshments are served, and visitors are always welcome to attend.