ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) – Installation will begin this spring on the first four miles of pipe that will bring water to communities in the eastern Navajo Nation that have long gone without running water.

The Albuquerque Journal reports (http://bit.ly/zTDkGi ) that the first four miles is part of a plan for 260 miles of pipeline across western New Mexico, from the San Juan River in the north to Gallup in the south.

U.S. Bureau of Reclamation project manager Pat Page says once the pipeline is completed, it will bring water from the San Juan Basin to the sparsely populated area of western New Mexico.

But long before the full system is completed, the first phase will be able to deliver locally developed groundwater to the Navajo communities along its path.

–––

Information from: Albuquerque Journal, http://www.abqjournal.com