Border Energy Forum IV to meet in Las Cruces

The Texas General Land Office is joining forces with the New Mexico State Land Office to host the fourth annual United States-Mexico Border Energy Forum on October 21-22 in Las Cruces.

The event brings together leaders from both countries to discuss common solutions to future energy needs in northern Mexico and the southwestern United States. The third annual forum was held last November in the northern Mexican industrial city of Monterrey.

"As the population has increased on both sides of the border between the United States and Mexico, as trade has grown between our countries and industries have moved or expanded throughout the region, we have not always paid much attention to the energy use required," Texas Land Commissioner Garry Mauro said.

"That's why a group of people interested in energy -- the nuts and bolts issues involved in the trade and commerce of energy as well as its environmental impact -- decided to meet each year to swap information," he said. "We thought it was important to increase ties among the agencies and organizations working on these important issues."

The forum was originally called the Texas-Mexico Border Energy Forum and met for the first two years in El Paso, starting in 1994. Because of the growing interest from New Mexico, Arizona and California, the name changed to the United States-Mexico Border Energy Forum last year for the first forum session ever held in Mexico.

"We are delighted to be able to co-host this important forum in New Mexico for the first time," New Mexico Land Commissioner Ray Powell said. "Building closer relationships with our neighbors in Mexico will help us develop our energy markets and our regional economy while protecting our environment at the same time." Among the other New Mexico co-hosts are the New Mexico Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department and New Mexico State University. The event should be considered an annual think tank to tackle difficult problems and develop real-world solutions to the challenges facing the American Southwest and Mexico. Among the participants from both sides of the border are representatives of local, state and federal governments, the private sector, universities and non-governmental organizations.

For additional information, contact Soll Sussman at the Texas General Land Office at (512) 463-5039) or Ed Moreno at the New Mexico State Land Office at (505) 827-5760).