The Department of the Interior (DOI) announced a $60 million investment in the Rio Grande Basin for the Biden administration’s water conservation agenda during a May 10 visit to the area.
U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland announced the funding, which will be a portion of the $500 million available through the Inflation Reduction Act to drought-stressed areas outside the Colorado River Basin.
“The Biden-Harris administration is committed to making communities more resilient to the impacts of climate change, including the Rio Grande basin and the people, wildlife, and economies that rely on it,” said Ms. Haaland.
“We continue to make smart investments through President Biden’s Investing in America agenda to safeguard water resources, invest in innovative water conservation strategies, and increase overall water efficiency throughout the West.”
The interior secretary official emphasized the importance that the administration put on addressing the impacts of climate change on water resources.
Funding for the initiative comes from the Inflation Reduction Act, which allocates $500 million for water management and conservation efforts in drought-affected areas.
The DOI has already invested nearly $59 million in the Rio Grande Basin, including funding for infrastructure repairs and water supply improvements.
Projects funded by the investment will focus on increasing storage capacity, capturing stormwater for aquifer recharge, and enhancing wildlife habitat.
Additionally, efforts will be made to improve irrigation efficiency and offer benefits for farmers and residents in New Mexico, Texas, and Mexico.
According to the DOI press release, reclamation Commissioner Camille Calimlim Touton weighed in on the project saying: “The Rio Grande, like many rivers in the West, has struggled with the impacts of severe drought for decades.
“This funding from President Biden’s Investing in America agenda gives Reclamation and our partners the ability to explore options for stormwater capture and other activities to ease the impacts of climate change.”
This move comes on the heels of concerns by some House lawmakers that there has been influence on the Biden administration’s DOI by “extreme environmental activist groups.”
They are concerned with the potential conflicts of interest and undue influence on DOI decision-making processes.
The document, sent to members of the subcommittee, claims that during President Joe Biden’s administration, “extreme” environmental activist groups have become more influential in shaping American politics and policy.
“Those aligned with leftist social and environmental justice agendas” and activist charities are “beholden” to the White House, Republicans claimed in the document.
“Despite rigorous compliance and ethics requirements, NGOs’ growing influence in the federal rulemaking process is significant and often occurs outside of the public eye,” the memo states.
Republicans will examine DOI’s alleged “questionable communications with extreme activist groups” under Ms. Haaland.
The department has cultivated “intimate and potentially improper relationships with radical NGOs” that are “driving the Biden administration’s extreme environmental agenda,” the memo states.
The lawmakers also pointed to possible international ties within the agency: “Moreover, there is significant concern that some of these extreme activist groups have ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and other foreign entities.”
