Print
Category: Front Page News Front Page News
Published: 14 November 2014 14 November 2014

Editor's Note: This is part one of a series of articles about today's ISC meeting in Silver City. This author will endeavor to report as accurately as possible. But speakers had time limits and a hand writes only so fast. Corrections and clarifications from speakers are encouraged. Send them to editor@grantcountybeat.com.

By Mary Alice Murphy

Interstate Stream Commission Chairman Jim Dunlap welcomed more than 150 people to the ISC meeting in Silver City on Nov. 14, 2014. "We are here today to listen to proposals and options we have and to hear comments from you. I ask that you be respectful of each other. Two commissioners, Mark Sanchez and Randy Crowder could not be here today. It's been a long process, and we're still learning."

Any Haas, ISC acting director and chief counsel, said the ISC was conducting a live webinar. "If the room gets to capacity, we have live audio into the parking lot."

While approving the agenda, Dunlap said he understood there was an addition. Haas said an item was inadvertently left off the agenda. She suggested the Sunset-New Model Ditches proposal have the letter p on the agenda.

"Proponents of proposals will have five minutes each," Dunlap said.

The first speaker was Jim Massengill, city of Deming public works director, who presented the Deming water conservation project.

"The project disposes of treated wastewater and replaces the potable water for parks," Massengill said. "The original proposal was for 15 parks and facilities. We received $800,000 from the Water Trust Board for the first phase, a four booster-pump package upgrade. We are looking for other money for the components. The city has taken a hard look at the project, which was estimated to cost $1.3 million. With that, we are reducing our request by $1 million. The second component is two miles of a 10-inch trunk line and class 1A water treatment. The third is an irrigation system in the Hooten Park complex."

Dunlap asked how much water would be saved. Massengill said the original estimate was a savings of 400 acre-feet per year for all parks—water that would not need to be pumped from the aquifer, "but as we have downsized the project, probably half that. At Hooten over eight months, we pumped 1.5 million gallons, which is 78 acre-feet. The Deming schools also want to be part of the project."

Alex Brown, representing the Grant County Water Commission as the chairman, said the group's proposal is to develop a well field at and a pipeline from the Grant County Airport. "The distribution system will provide water to Hurley to Bayard, Santa Clara and Silver City. Our estimate is $16.5 million to $21.5 million. Silver City owns 193 acre-feet of water rights at the airport. We have submitted for another 750 acre-feet in recharge credits."

"We serve 18,000 residents," Brown continued. "We process 1,800 gallons daily through the water treatment plant. Some is used to water Scott Park, and the rest goes down San Vicente Creek. It recharges the Mangas Trench, which is where most of our water comes from. We would supply water to Hurley, which has no water rights, and is served by Freeport McMoRan through 2018. This water would be the primary supply for Hurley and supplemental for Bayard, Santa Clara, and Silver City, plus the eight water associations along the way. The water commission just completed the preliminary engineering report. Hurley has received funding for the well field and the transmission line."

Art Paez of the Gila National Forest said the entity has three projects. The first is for Snow Lake—watershed restoration, as well as riparian restoration. The water resources would be developed off site away from Snow Lake and would allow a water source for livestock. A sediment reduction structure is included, as is a SolarBee (water circulator) for the lake. "We also want to do grassland maintenance on the T-Bar grasslands, road improvement work, thinning around Burnt Cabin, and improvements to the campgrounds for $1 million."

The second proposal is for Burros watershed restoration, including 7,000 acres of thinning for $66,000, and also prescribed burning.

For $7.4 million, the Forest Service could do "typical restoration of grasslands, meadows and road drainage."

{The Beat did not get the third proposal, which was likely also watershed restoration.}

A New Mexico Forest Industries Association representative said the group's proposal had the purpose to increase water availability in the Gila and is a water utilization alternative. The proposed site is between Reserve and Luna on the Gila National Forest. "We would evaluate interactions, using a paired watershed design project. We would thin and burn an area and leave another unchanged. We expect it to add 173 acre-feet of water to the system post burn, and decrease over time as understory builds up. Another proposal is in partnership with the Grant Soil and Water Conservation District, which complements the first proposal. For $2.275 million, we could purchase instrumentation, a mechanical thinner and other equipment. It provides opportunities for wildfire protection. The Forest Industries Association has an agreement to be able to put money on national forest lands. The benefits include enhancement of the riparian areas, improvement to watershed vulnerability, enhancement of tourism opportunity, as well as increased timber output and jobs, and gross receipts taxes."

Doug Cram, New Mexico State University Forestry program, proposed a watershed project, with two objectives—watershed restoration and project monitoring and accountability. "It is not designed to be a study," Cram said. "It would increase water supply and availability in restoring the watershed. The primary objective is watershed restoration and the second monitoring and accountability," Cram said. "We say: 'Where's the water?' and we believe we have the unique expertise and an opportunity to answer the question. We have to have a water budget. It takes dollars and time. Ours will provide accountability and an increased water supply."

Mike Matush presented the Grant Soil and Water Conservation District project, which has been ongoing since 2007. "We started instrumenting in the Gila National Forest with small grants. This is a restoration project. We are looking at the soil profile. We want water to percolate in. It's a recharge problem. If the slope is more than 20 percent, there is too much runoff. North is the best side for water retention, but we need to turn the slopes into grasslands. We have pressure inducers in an agreement with New Mexico State University. We have weather stations on three sides of the Gila National Forest—in the Burros-Mangas area, in the Steiger Ponderosa area and in the Luna/San Francisco area. We are collaborating with the New Mexico Forest Industries Association and have seven soil moisture stations, which are permanent. We have piezometers, and we have pre-and post thinning data, except on the Ponderosa area. We have soil monitors on the dripline, outside the tree area in the open, one under the canopy and one on bedrock. We have positive proof that water moves downhill, and as it does the soil profile comes up. We need to recover the grasslands. We have proof that we can gain water from thinning."

Ralph Pope of Catron County said the county's original proposal was for watershed restoration. "Then Mother Nature did the treatment for us, with the Whitewater-Baldy Fire on the upper reaches of the watershed. We redesigned the plan to continue on the lower end with piñon-juniper treatment. On the upper side we have to do restoration in the Whitewater-Baldy burn area, especially with stream bank stabilization. We wanted to do a paired watershed plan, but didn't get the baseline data. We are working with New Mexico State's Water Resources Research Institute to see the changes and effects from data they have. The other component is the irrigation part because of the impacts of the fire."

Darryl Allred said the ditch improvements are part of the proposal. "I am a water user. We have property on the San Francisco. The ditches and most of the water-rights owners are affected. I was asked to represent the end water users. Our forefathers built ditches and ponds. They did divert the water and put it to beneficial use. We are the guardians of water rights for agriculture."

The county proposed to upgrade the existing diversions and the 10 ditches, perhaps to include using the allocated 4,000 acre-feet of new water. "Of the 10 projects we propose, three are existing and would take water to off stream storage. There are no dams on the San Francisco. One is my system. I also own Whitewater Creek rights, where we deliver water with a different system. Some of the ditches need pipes replaced. In addition, one proposal would interconnect two ditches on Mineral Creek and three in the Reserve area. We also ask for ponding systems to more efficiently use water extraction, especially small ponds potentially for the additional water. My primary purpose is to remind you how we got here—our forefathers. We need to patch ditches and fix pipelines. I implore you to let us start building them now."

The next article will complete the proposal presentations.