Jeff Bingaman United States Senator from New Mexico

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jeff Bingaman today announced that the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) has been awarded two grants to improve the areas around several New Mexico rivers.

"This funding will help New Mexico protect the sensitive areas around several of our rivers," Bingaman said.

The Environmental Protection Agency awarded NMED $386,847 to map and classify wetlands in northeastern New Mexico surrounding the Canadian River drainage.

A second grant to NMED, in the amount of $101,000, will provide assistance with water quality management planning activities in the Middle Rio Grande and Cimarron River watersheds, including the completion of water quality standards for these watersheds.  The funding will also be used to develop strategies to reduce E.coli contamination in the Albuquerque Middle Rio Grande and for the water quality management planning project on Burn Lake.