Building upon the work of the NM-Chihuahua Rural Task Force and the Air Policy Forum (APF) to address air quality monitoring needs in rural border areas, project partners will develop an air quality monitoring training and maintenance program for the Columbus-Palomas area. Moreover, given the need for greater education and information on groundwater quality due to the number of septic failures and overflows, project partner NMSU will provide education on methods for proper de-commissioning of aging or unused septic systems. Additionally they will address water conservation issues through instruction on how to reduce household water consumption aimed at reducing consumer’s water bills that have resulted from the higher operating costs from the recently installed RO potable water treatment system require to remove high concentrations of naturally occurring fluoride and arsenic in the village’s drinking water source. Also in an effort to aid the sister community of Palomas to improve the quality of the household drinking water, NMSU proposes to provide a presentation to Palomas officials and residents to determine the willingness of the community to use standard, low-cost clay filters that can be screwed on to the end of household faucets. And finally recent monitoring at municipal well sites in Luna County has identified the presence of contaminants in groundwater near the location of a community septic lagoon and not far from the border cattle crossing, a federal livestock port-of-entry; NMED will bring enforcement agencies into dialogue about best management practices for mitigating blowing dust and manure from the binational cattle facility.