The Office of the State Engineer is cracking down on illegal water use and looking to the public for help.

State Engineer Elizabeth Anderson wants New Mexicans to be on the watch for signs of such activity — a pump without a meter on a stream, for example — and to submit anonymous tips.

“Now more than ever, protecting New Mexico’s water resources from illegal use is essential to securing a strong water future,” Anderson said in a news release.

Earlier this week, the office issued noncompliance warnings to several water well owners in the Carlsbad and Capitan basins. The owners of the 20 wells are suspected of having illegally diverted water for commercial sales.

As the state's water supply becomes increasingly pinched, reports of illegal water use and well drilling have increased, acco

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