CIBOLA COUNTY, N.M. – As Cibola County enters a new year, water data from the U.S. Geological Survey and federal snowpack monitors shows conditions continuing to trend downward, with limited signs of winter recharge so far.
Bluewater Lake, the Rio San Jose, and early snowpack readings together provide a clear snapshot of where the county’s water supply stands heading into midwinter.
Bluewater Lake
Bluewater Lake held 4,489 acre-feet of water as of the morning of January 5, down from 4,508 acrefeet recorded December 29.
While the decline over the past week was modest, the reservoir continues a steady downward trend that began late last spring. At its current level, Bluewater remains well below where it stood at the start of 2025, the result of drought and limited inflow. Rio San Jose
The Rio San Jose at Acoma Pueblo measured 1.89 feet on January 5, slipping slightly from 1.90 feet one week earlier. Though the change is small, the river’s slow downward movement reflects persistently low base flows across the watershed.
The Rio San Jose has hovered near this range since early fall, with no sustained increases since the end of the monsoon season.
At present, Bluewater Lake and the Rio San Jose gage at Acoma Pueblo remain the only actively maintained USGS water monitoring stations within Cibola County. Additional Rio San Jose monitors exist within the City of Grants, but those sites are not currently upkept or reporting continuous public data.
Snowpack Update: Zuni/Bluewater River Basin
Early winter snowpack remains well below normal.
According to provisional data from the NRCS SNOTEL Rice Park site (elevation 8,480 feet), the basin recorded 0.3 inches of snow water equivalent on January 5. That compares to a median of 2.3 inches for this date and a median peak of 6.0 inches, typically reached in early March.
The basin’s snowpack index currently stands at 13 percent of normal.
Snowpack is a critical factor for spring runoff and groundwater recharge in the Zuni/Bluewater Basin. While significant accumulation often occurs later in winter, early deficits can place added pressure on reservoirs and streams if conditions fail to improve.
As of January 6, the National Drought Mitigation Center reports 100 percent of Cibola County in drought, with almost 70 percent of the county in severe drought.