New Mexico covers 121,598 square miles, with a land area of 121,365 square miles. The water area of the state is only 234 square miles, with only six moderately dependable rivers. There is a wide variation in annual rainfall totals, characteristic of the state’s arid and semiarid climates; the average rainfall over the state is 13.9 inches. Water has been, is now, and will continue to be, a major issue statewide…and beyond.