Opinion: Project Jupiter can deliver jobs, clean water and hope for Southern New Mexico - Guest Editorial Submission

By New Mexico state Reps. Nathan Small, Sarah Silva and Joanne Ferrary

In Southern New Mexico, we hear time and again about the need to create opportunities for our young people to stay, raise families, and live without fear that a car breakdown or health scare will push them into a financial crisis.

We hear from young men like Hugo, a skilled construction worker in Chaparral, who wants to stay close to his aging parents and keep hosting big family cookouts. But he doesn’t want to break his back for a job that doesn’t even pay his bills. Hugo knows his labor is worth more than the low wages he’s currently offered. We all know young people like Hugo – folks who want to build their lives here but worry about their financial prospects.

As Democratic state lawmakers, we’ve prioritized families like Hugo’s through policies that expand access to affordable housing, education and child care.

Our region already offers so much to young people: New Mexico State University is home to cutting-edge research and innovation; Santa Teresa is the sixth-fastest-growing port of entry in our country, bringing international trade benefits home; and we host New Mexico’s largest Bureau of Land Management national monument and wilderness area, offering boundless public land recreation.

Now, Southern New Mexico has the opportunity to get Hugo and others back into their trade of choice. Project Jupiter, a proposed new data center and technology campus near the border in the Santa Teresa industrial area, would draw on our unique geography, talent and resilience to deliver quality infrastructure, good jobs and clean water for our communities — while developing essential technology for our nation.

We are committed to robust oversight to ensure Project Jupiter delivers on those promises. As community members and county leaders continue to discuss this project, we urge thoughtful consideration of what thousands of new union construction jobs and hundreds of long-term, good-paying jobs would mean to families across Southern New Mexico.

We also urge leaders to consider the impact of a community development agreement that includes a guarantee of private investment for public drinking water and wastewater infrastructure to support Sunland Park, Santa Teresa and southern Doña Ana County. These communities have suffered without clean, reliable drinking water and adequate wastewater infrastructure. We can leverage this partnership to fix that now.

Water is always top of mind in our community, which is why we expect these companies to be transparent and share their plans to conserve every drop of our most precious natural resource with the community. Because this project would generate its own electricity onsite, it also won’t compete with homes or businesses for energy and will adopt the most environmentally protective technology and production methods available.

We can do big things in Doña Ana County – attracting investments that grow our economy, benefit our communities, and create opportunities for young people. We also want to see these companies make good on their commitments to invest in critical resources and services for our community, including career technical education, youth programs and our natural environment.

This new data center and technology campus can help us move toward a more prosperous and sustainable future for Southern New Mexico. We support moving the project forward with ongoing public engagement, significant upfront water protections and investments for the people of the area, and robust oversight to ensure real, lasting benefits for the people who live here.

Rep. Nathan Small serves as chair of the Legislative Finance Committee and the House Appropriations and Finance Committee. Rep. Sarah Silva is a member of the House Appropriations and Finance Committee and the House Taxation and Revenue Committee. Rep. Joanne Ferrary serves as chair of the Consumer and Public Affairs Committee. All are Democrats representing Doña Ana County.