Tanya Trujillo has a big title: Department of the Interior Assistant Secretary for Water and Science. Her goals are just as big: to restore urban waterways and surrounding lands to boost recreational opportunities, help local economics and protect the health of Americans.
Trujillo recently visited Albuquerque, New Mexico, to promote the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s $8.3 billion investments in water management and drought resilience. She met with Albuquerque and Bernalillo County officials, members of the healthcare community, and Urban Waters federal partners, including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Reclamation and the U.S. Geological Survey.
According to a DOI release, she also visited the Albuquerque Middle Rio Grande Urban Waters location to stress the importance of the Urban Waters Federal Partnership.
“The Urban Waters Federal Partnership has community engagement and water equity hard-wired into its mission, while embracing the importance of restoring and conserving our natural resources for the benefit of communities that rely on them,” Trujillo said in the release. “Our country faces growing challenges to its infrastructure, water supply, and ecosystems due to climate change and aging water delivery systems. Through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to invest in our nation’s western water and power infrastructure, rebuild our existing projects to withstand a changing hydrology, and support activities that restore watershed health and critical aquatic ecosystems.”
The Middle Rio Grande in Albuquerque is one of 20 designated urban water's locations that can be found in 18 states and Puerto Rico.
The Urban Waters Learning Network is comprised of several agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency Water Office, Groundwork USA, and River Network. The UWLN spans the nation and is a peer-to-peer program to advance water equity and build healthier communities, according to the Network's website.
