UTEP, other institutions secure $5M grant to prepare for less water in Rio Grande basin

AUSTIN >> The University of Texas at El Paso will lead a project aimed at helping regional water users cope with less water as temperatures warm.

The university won a highly competitive $4.9 million grant from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

It will use the money to model the impacts of climate change on various groups in the Rio Grande Basin from Elephant Butte Dam to the spot where the Rio Conchos flows into the river at Presidio, said William Hargrove, director of UTEP's Center for Environmental Research, who is the co-leader of the project.

UTEP was one of six institutions to win large grants that were awarded out of a field of 150 requests, Hargrove said. Also participating in the project will be New Mexico State University, Texas A&M University-El Paso, the University of New Mexico, Michigan Tech and the Universidad Autonoma de Ciudad Juárez.

Read more: http://www.elpasotimes.com/news/ci_27890991/utep-other-institutions-secure-5m-grant-prepare-less