TRUMP ADMIN ACCUSED OF STEALING WATER FOR BORDER WALL CONSTRUCTION New Mexico sued the Trump administration Wednesday, accusing federal officials and border wall contractors of drilling water wells without permits and pumping groundwater needed for construction projects along the U.S.-Mexico border, setting up a legal fight over state authority to regulate scarce water resources in the arid Southwest. The lawsuit, filed by Elizabeth Anderson, New Mexico’s state engineer, alleges that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and several contractors bypassed the state’s permitting process while constructing nearly 180 miles of border barriers in southern New Mexico. The state is seeking a court order to halt further drilling and water use, require remediation of existing wells, and force the defendants to repay water that officials say was unlawfully withdrawn from underground aquifers. “Water is a precious resource in New Mexico, and the residents, ranchers, and farmers whose water is being stolen by the federal government deserve justice,” Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham said in a press release. Full article: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/trump-admin-accused-of-stealing-water-for-border-wall-construction/ar-AA2b6I8g?ocid=msedgntp&pc=HCTS&cvid=6a91a88dbeea4bb8958f868fd60d238b&ei=48(FXHedge)