Santa Fe County, NM Water Table Trend
Santa Fe County's groundwater trend, from USGS's own readings
Santa Fe County's representative monitoring well shows depth to water declining faster than most declining counties, a fitted trend of 19.7 ft per decade over 74 years of readings.
One well stands in for Santa Fe County's whole aquifer here, the honest simplification every page on this site carries.
What the well actually measured
The most recent reading put water 209.3 ft below land surface. Readings span 1951-12-27 to 2026-02-12, 167 measurements from USGS well USGS-354013105580601 (17n.09e.27.441 351), part of the National Water Information System. The qualifying bar and the OLS fit behind this trend are documented in the methodology guide.
Where Santa Fe County ranks
Of the 1,449 US counties with a usable trend, Santa Fe County ranks 1432nd from fastest-rising to fastest-declining, 1 is the fastest-rising water table measured, 1449 the fastest-declining. About 157,765 people live in Santa Fe County, New Mexico. See the fastest-moving counties guide for how Santa Fe County stacks up against the most extreme cases nationally.
What a declining table means for a well pump
Because Santa Fe County's water table is actually declining, not just a general worry, a well owner here should consider comparing home-warranty plans that cover well-pump failure before one happens.
A dropping table says nothing about water quality
Whether Santa Fe County's water table is rising or falling is independent of what's actually in the water. Depletion can concentrate naturally-occurring minerals, so it's worth checking directly with a water test rather than assuming a depth trend says anything about quality.