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Sprawl
Retrofitting Albuquerque requires first of all stopping building on the fringes and, until basic water and fuel issues get solved, perhaps stopping building altogether (p. 234) [The] Brookings [Institution] found that out of the 100 largest metro areas in the country, Albuquerque ranked 36th for the most miles traveled per capita by drivers (10,620 per vehicle) and 99th in density, with 88 people per square mile. The national average for the 100 largest metro areas is 467 people per square mile (p. 237).
In December 2008, [Albuquerque] began diverting what could be as much as ninety-six thousand acre-feet a year [of the San Juan–Chama], water that had been flowing into the Rio Grande since the mid-1970s and artificially supplying rural and Pueblo farmers’ irrigation needs…. The greater Albuquerque area has grown so much and so fast that the middle valley’s aquifer is shrinking dangerously. The new residents who are using so much water, many of whom know little about New Mexico’s rural life, probably didn’t even know that a switch was made from aquifer water to river water for drinking (p. 225).
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The Sandia Mountains from Highway 550 north of Albuquerque and Rio Rancho; preparations for development are already in place. February 2007. |
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New housing developments on Albuquerque’s Westside. April 2007. |
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New housing developments on Albuquerque’s Westside. April 2007. |
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New housing developments on Albuquerque’s Westside. April 2007. |
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Cement-lined arroyo running through a housing development north of Albuquerque, with the Sandia Mountains behind. Usually dry, they carry flood water to the Rio Grande. February 2007. |
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Looking north over a walking path and a housing development above Albuquerque. February 2007. |
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New home under construction in Rio Rancho. January 2008. |
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Looking north along the Rio Grande from a housing development on Albuquerque’s Westside. April 2007. |
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Sprawl in Rio Rancho. January 2008. |
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