​By Scott Wyland
The Santa Fe New Mexican
 
A much-needed renovation of an aging dam that's crucial for storing and delivering water to the region's growers was supposed to be finished by 2026, but federal officials now say they must start over, adding years to the project.
 
Having El Vado Dam offline and the reservoir drained since repairs began two years ago has caused logistical challenges for water managers who are unable to store excess spring runoff to use late in the summer growing season when it's often most needed. 
 
Instead, they must let the Rio Grande carry all the water downstream with the hope it will chip away at the hefty water debt owed to Texas — though that hasn't proved effective because much of the southward flow is lost to evaporation and faulty infrastructure. 
 
Now the prospect of having a vital water storage hub shut down years longer than anticipated is frustrating irrigation district officials in charge of supplying Middle Rio Grande Valley growers with the water they need to cultivate crops on the area's 60,000 acres of farmland. 
 
The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation found two key problems with the dam: Water was seeping through the old steel faceplate and the spillway was at risk of failing. The agency chose what it considered the cheapest, fastest way to fix the defects, which still would cost an estimated $33 million.
 
A year into the renovation, the agency learned its methods not only weren't working to shore up the faceplate but were worsening the problem. 
 
"We are going back to the drawing board on alternatives for seepage reduction," Jennifer Faler, the Bureau's Albuquerque area manager, told Middle River Valley Conservancy District board members at a meeting in May. "We were not able to find technical solutions to the challenges we were seeing." 
 
The agency must come up with new plans to fix the 90-year-old dam, a task that will take three to six years before construction can begin, Faler said. She will do everything she can to streamline it so work would start in closer to three years, she added. 
 
Faler said the Bureau's team picked the most economical option to save farmers money. The next time around, they will pursue the option most likely to work, she said. 
 
"We're more inclined to choose more of an ironclad, tried-and true solution," she said. 
 
News of the dam's renovation possibly dragging out to the end of the decade irked a couple of board directors. 
 
"You're playing with people's livelihoods down here — all these farmers," said board director Brian Giron. "You guys went the inexpensive way. Look at what it's doing. It's costing the most now. I'm extremely disappointed in how long this is taking." 
 
Faler said she shared his disappointment. 
 
In 2022, the reservoir was emptied so crews could grout behind the faceplate, weld weaknesses in the structure and then place a synthetic lining over the entire face to better seal it.
 
After the water was drained, engineers observed the dam was in worse shape than expected and the grouting was doing more harm than good, Faler told the district's directors. 
 
The grouting was deforming the faceplate, Faler said. And some of the angle irons that support the faceplate had become exposed.
 
"We made the decision in 2023 to stop the grouting because we only foresaw worse and worse conditions for the faceplate if we continued grouting," Faler said. "We'll be looking at other alternatives." 
 
Much thought and research went into the project, she said.
 
The Bureau's technical staff studied the dam and what needed to be corrected from 2007 to 2019, she said, focusing on the risks to the public. The biggest risks were determined to be "excessive seepage" and the aging spillway. 
 
Board director John P. Kelly said this sudden revelation from an agency that specializes in engineering and long-term planning puzzled him. 
 
"I find this highly unusual that the Bureau would switch horses in midstream, and we don't know which horse we're getting on," Kelly said. "We had multiple assurances that we're going to have water [in] 2027, 2028, 2029, and this just keeps moving out." 
 
Kelly asked if the agency would consider hiring a private consultant with dam expertise this time around. Faler said a panel of six outside experts reviewed the previous dam renovation while it was in the planning stage. 
 
"How in the world was this missed?" she said. "Or was it just impossible to have caught it?"
 
Having El Vado Dam shut down has been troublesome for water managers because it's the only reservoir in the middle valley authorized to store the Rio Grande's "native" or natural water for the irrigation district. 
 
But that's about to change. 
 
The neighboring Abiquiú Reservoir soon will be permitted to hold native river water because the U.S. Army Corps of Engineer's water-control guidelines were recently revised to allow it to be stored there, said Army Corps spokesman Michael Graff. 
 
Before, Abiquiu could only store San Juan-Chama water, which is diverted from the Rio Chama Basin through a federal system of tunnels and dams until it flows into the Rio Grande. The Bureau allocates this water every year to farmers, pueblos and the cities of Santa Fe and Albuquerque.
 
The final step to enabling Abiquiú to store native water is for the Corps to update its agreement with the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority, Graff said.  
Jason Casuga, the irrigation district's CEO, said it will be crucial to have an alternative storage site while El Vado is out of commission. 
 
El Vado is expected to hold only a relatively small amount of native water while the Bureau pursues the new renovation plans, Casuga said, adding it won't be nearly enough to meet the district's storage needs. 
 
Which is why the district and the Bureau are negotiating with the water authority in the hope it will let the district use some of that storage space, at least temporarily, he said. 
 
Under the 86-year-old Rio Grande Compact, New Mexico must store the volume of water it owes Texas before it can add irrigation water to the reservoir, Casuga said. Otherwise, all the water from, say, the spring runoff must go downstream to Texas, he said. 
 
Casuga said he looks forward to El Vado being rehabbed so it can store a large quantity of water again. It will enable the district to be autonomous and not have to rely on others for storage, he said. 
 
"Right now, without the facility to store water, we're asking for permission from other places," Casuga said.

With your support we will leap over this next hurdle and move forward better than ever! Your support means the world to us!

With Gratitude
For the past decade, Moving Arts has flourished in our facility thanks to a remarkable partnership with TSAY Corporation as property owners. Their support has been key to our success, allowing us to touch countless lives through the power of creative and experiential learning. Thank you, TSAY Corporation for the incredible journey we’ve shared.
 
A Time of Transition
All good things must end, so it is time to say goodbye to our current location. We face a significant transition as we prepare to move out in January 2025. In search of our new home, we are imagining vibrant and functional possibilities as multiple options are in review. This change is an exciting opportunity and a challenging venture for Moving Arts. We are reaching out to our cherished community and dedicated families to help us navigate this pivotal moment.
 
The Path Forward
Our mission to explore, express, expand, through the arts, guides us during this time of change. For us to continue to help the young people of Northern New Mexico grow into future leaders, we need your help.
 
Securing a new home is not just about finding a physical space; it’s about sustaining the heartbeat of our organization, preserving the programs that bring joy and growth to our participants, and maintaining a safe, nurturing environment for our young artists.
 
How You Can Help
We invite you to be a part of the next chapter in Moving Arts’ story by helping us raise $100,000 in 30-days to support this transition.
 
Every donation, big or small, brings us closer to securing a new space and ensuring the continuity of our programs. Your financial support is crucial for covering moving costs, renovations, and maintaining our high-quality offerings.
 
The Impact of Your Support
Your support will profoundly impact Moving Arts and the community we serve. With your help, we can:

• Provide children, youth and young adults access to creative and experiential learning in a holistic environment.
• Give kids space to safely explore their interests, expand  their knowledge, and grow into confident contributors within their community.
• Nourish our community through our Healthy Meals program, offering students  and families free nutritious vegetarian meals.
• Open new pathways toward future opportunities in higher education and careers.
• Provide scholarships to kids who might not otherwise have the opportunity to explore different interests and creative expression.

 
Join Us in Shaping the Future
It is not lost on us that we are being asked to do exactly what we ask are students to do. To reach for a higher vision. To push through our growing pains. To trust and rely on the support of a strong community. To explore, express, expand!
 
With hope and determination, we embark on this new journey. Moving Arts has always been more than a place to dance; it’s a family, a sanctuary, a beacon of creativity and resilience. With your help, we can ensure that this legacy endures far into the future.
 
Please join us in shaping the future of Moving Arts.
 
Your involvement, whether through a financial contribution, or participating in our fundraising efforts, is invaluable. Let’s move forward together, with the same spirit and passion that has defined Moving Arts for the past ten years.
 
Thank you for believing in us and for being an integral part of our journey.

New Mexico Wild

Taos, NM (May 22, 2024) – A proposal to aerially apply pesticides to kill native grasshoppers on federal public lands in the Rio Chama Watershed has sparked significant public outcry for the second year in a row. In January, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced this year’s proposal, which is aimed at increasing forage for cattle. The public response to this project was overwhelmingly negative, with over 1,640 individuals voicing opposition during the public comment period.

The affected area includes 25,000 acres in the Cebolla area of Rio Arriba County on primarily Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands, along with some state land and private property. The area is popular for outdoor recreation, including boating and hiking, and includes the Rio Chama Wilderness Study Area (WSA) and the Chama Canyons Area of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC). The spray would occur in close proximity to the Rio Chama Wild and Scenic River, the Chama River Canyon Wilderness, the Jicarilla Apache Nation, and an Important Bird Area designated by Audubon.

APHIS proposes to use four different chemicals for the project: carbaryl, chlorantraniliprole, diflubenzuron, and malathion. Commenters emphasized a particular opposition to carbaryl, citing potential harm to non-target species. Carbaryl is highly toxic to insects, including native pollinators, as well as mammals, fish, birds, and larval amphibians. Carbaryl is also a likely human carcinogen and has been known to cause nausea, headaches, dizziness, anxiety, and mental confusion, as well as convulsions, coma, and respiratory depression. 

Additional public concerns revolve around the lack of transparency and public involvement in the decision-making process. Many individuals emphasized the need for a comprehensive analysis of the project’s impacts on a variety of sensitive resources, publicly accessible survey data that demonstrates a need for grasshopper control, and a thorough economic justification before any pesticide use is considered. They stressed that APHIS should develop scientifically sound survey plans and promptly make data available to the public.

“As many New Mexicans know, the public lands within the Rio Chama watershed are treasured for their ecological, cultural, scenic, and recreational values,” said Bjorn Fredrickson, Conservation Director for New Mexico Wild. “Any proposal for pesticide use should be justified by a clear need for action, rigorous environmental analysis, and transparent public process. Despite constructive public comments on numerous deficiencies in the APHIS proposal, the agency has failed to meet any of these basic standards. Further, carbaryl’s adverse effects on both wildlife and human health make its aerial spraying over federal public lands completely unacceptable.”

The New Mexico Environment Department also weighed in with concerns. “The proposed affected area in Rio Arriba County includes the Chama River Canyon Wilderness. The stream segments and wetlands in the Chavez Canyon, Ojitos Canyon, and the Rio Chama within the Chama River Canyon Wilderness are classified as Outstanding Natural Resource Waters (ONRWs),” said the Department in their comments. “Pesticide applications should avoid and provide adequate buffer to water bodies, wetlands and riparian zones, playas and internal draining wetlands (depressions), tributaries, arroyos, acequias and other drainageways to water bodies, and wetlands.”
​
The public outcry underscores the importance of moving away from widespread use of harmful pesticides and toward sustainable solutions that protect biodiversity and public health, and a need for much improved transparency and public engagement in APHIS projects affecting federal public lands and resources. New Mexico Wild commends the BLM Taos Field Office for halting last year’s spray, citing the need for additional environmental analysis and public transparency. We are optimistic that our public land managers will make the same sound decision this year. 

Contact NM BLM State Office Director Melanie Barnes. Phone: 505-954-2000 email: blm_nm_comments@blm.gov
Contact the Taos Field Office - 575-758-8851 or email blm_nm_tafo_admin@blm.gov
​
Read Also - David Lightfoot weighs in on Grasshoppers

By Jessica Rath
​Images courtesy of Jessica Rath

The New Mexico Bureau of Geology & Mineral Resources, Aquifer Mapping Program, has been conducting a study of the aquifers in Rio Arriba County. On Tuesday, June 4, the initial results of the study relating to Abiquiu, Mendanales,  and El Rito were presented at a public meeting at the Rio Arriba Rural Events Center. The presenters were Aquifer Mapping Program Manager Laila Sturgis and hydrogeologist Dr. Talon Newton. Project Consultant Jessica Johnston introduced the speakers.
 
The study was funded by Representative Susan Herrera, and executed by the Research and Service Division of New Mexico Tech in Socorro. About 50 people came together to hear about the results of the study.
 
This study is important, Ms. Johnston explained, because probably everybody in this area depends on groundwater for all aspects of life: for drinking, bathing, cleaning, potentially watering your livestock, etc., but we don't know how much water we have. We don't know what the aquifers look like. We don't know if they're getting recharged. And most importantly, we don't know if the water quality is good for drinking or for other uses. We want to look into the future and make sure our grandchildren and great great grandchildren have water available. But we don’t know how.

Hopefully this will be the first part of an ongoing series of studies.

Laila Sturgis is the aquifer mapping program manager at the Bureau of Geology. She explained that they  measure groundwater across the state and that it’s free for homeowners through this program. Their goal is to serve rural areas  that are not getting water monitoring support. The project was divided into three chapters, the Chama study area, the Abiquiu study area, and the Dixon study area. Most of the communities in Rio Arriba County rely on groundwater for domestic and municipal supply. Deep wells can be unpredictable, both in quantity (how much the well is able to pump) and in quality: often deeper wells have poor water quality. Shallow wells can be prone to drying during drought, or they can be contaminated from septic tanks and other things like that. So, shallow wells can be more reliable, but are more susceptible to contamination. 

Surface water is the primary water for agriculture. Rivers and streams in the region are highly connected to the shallow groundwater; it’s almost like  one system. The goal of these studies is to find reliable water for more community long term development.

A sediment aquifer is water that's stored in the spaces between grains. These are loose river deposits, shallow deposits that are not consolidated into hard rocks. It's highly permeable, which means that water can easily move through the material. On the other side are fractured rock aquifers which are much less reliable. Those are the two most common wells in the state.
One of the main ways groundwater is recharged in our state is through snow. When it starts melting, it can seep into the ground at a nice rate, and actually make it deeper into the ground. Rain events are usually flashier because water comes and goes really fast. So snow is really good for recharging our aquifers.

The study measured 43 wells in the Abiquiú Valley for water depth, and sampled 42 wells for water chemistry. They tested for surface contaminants such as E Coli and for heavy metals, like uranium, and arsenic. Iron, which is frequently present, is a secondary maximum contaminant level. So it doesn't really have any health issues associated with it, but it could change the way the water tastes. It’s the same with manganese. Because of the possibility of pathogens like E Coli it is recommended to get one’s water tested.
​
The results of the study will be published shortly, once the report is done. Please visit the New Mexico Bureau of Geology & Mineral Resources website, https://geoinfo.nmt.edu/, if you want to find out about the final conclusions of the study. The Bureau, which is located in Socorro, also hosts a Mineral Museum which has over 18,000 mineral specimens and is over 100 years old.