By Mary Alice Murphy

Joanne Hilton, hydrologist for the plan, and Rosemary Romero, facilitator, came to Silver City to hold the latest meeting on the Regional Water Plan, funded by the Interstate Stream Commission.

"We are giving updates and please notice that everything we've handed out is in draft form," Romero said.

Hilton gave some background on the process. "We are updating the 16 regional water plans in a common timeframe using a common technical approach."

"It is a better process for informing funding agencies of water project needs," Hilton said. "The information will be used in the update of the state water plan. This process provides an opportunity for local collaboration."

Part of the plan addresses water supply and demand, as well as needs, which have been released in draft form.

The Handbook is a guide for the planning process, and several sections have been completed.

"The Southwest Region has difficulties in balancing supplies and demands, because it is a large and complex region with different supplies and demands," Hilton said. "The key issues in the region that have been discussed are forest health and restoration/fire prevention, drought, extreme precipitation that may create severe flooding impacts, water rights/legal limits in the Gila and Mimbres basins, groundwater declines in some areas, drinking water system and acequia infrastructure maintenance and upgrade financing, potential Gila diversion, and water quality protection."

She said the accepted strategies in the prior regional plan of 2005 had included municipal and agricultural conservation, watershed management, enhancement of surface recharge, providing water for natural and riparian habitat on the Gila and San Francisco rivers, water banking, groundwater development, water quality protection, groundwater management planning, border groundwater management, rain harvesting, industrial conservation and restrictions on domestic wells.

Hilton explained the components of the updated regional water plan include the public involvement draft plan completed in June 2015, the implementation of strategies of which some components were completed in June 2015, and the final plans to be published in 2016, with the timeline varying by region.

"We will have two more public meetings here," she said. "We want the finalized plan here by the end of June 30, 2016."

The Regional Steering Committee will review draft plan sections, preliminary lists of projects, programs and policies will be reviewed and updated, the region will identify projects of interest for regional collaboration and the strategy implementation of the Regional Water Plan Update will be completed.

The steering committee composition has members from various sectors and agencies. "We have gaps with no representation in rural water provider and in agricultural groundwater user," Hilton noted.

She asked for comments from the RWP draft update on projects, programs, and policies. The written comments should be emailed to her, Romero and Priscilla Lucero, Southwest New Mexico Council of Governments executive director, who is serving as the coordinator for meetings of the steering committee and the public meetings of the stakeholders.

"There are a couple of levels of comments," Hilton said. "The ISC had comments on how to document the supply and demand and the calculations. The edits you do will reflect what is unique in your region. We will consolidate the edits."

Allyson Siwik, representing the Gila Conservation Coalition, asked who was making the final decisions on what the final plan says.

"The steering committee," Hilton replied. "If it's a suggestion on methodology, the ISC likely will say it doesn't have the resources. Wording or differences of opinion will be dealt with by the steering committee. We will do the first cut and then it goes to the steering committee. The next meeting is also the deadline for written comments."

After discussing possible dates, it was decided the next meeting would be held at 1 p.m. Thursday, March 10, at the Silver City Town Hall Annex upstairs training room.

"At the next meeting, we will refine the regional projects," Hilton said.

Romero said the public involvement is "in your hands. I have the master statekholders list. Who should be added? Who should be notified about the next meeting?"

Suggestions included notifying the print and online newspapers, the community calendars, the town clerks and commission offices, the Grant County Community Health Council, and the chambers of commerce.

Romero said the subcommittees should meet as needed to inform the project list.

"I want to flesh out the sub-committees," Hilton said. "Last time a watershed subcommittee was of interest."

Martha Cooper said the Grant County Eco-Watershed Committee is working on the issue. "The four counties in the region could integrate the work."

Grant County Commissioner Gabriel Ramos, chair of the committee, said at the most recent meeting, the members had talked about treated effluent re-use. "We're still trying to concentrate on watersheds in the Pinos Altos and Mimbres areas to determine where the most residents would benefit with protection from fire, which also protects the watersheds. We meet once a month. We are trying to create a database where thinning is done in Grant County. We want to apply for grants to protect the watershed."

Lucero said another area of interest might be the acequias, ditch associations and mutual domestic water associations.

Romero said the Natural Resources Conservation Service and the soil and water conservation districts might be able to help them.

Ty Bays, representing the extractive industry and who also serves on the Grant Soil and Water Conservation District, said: "We help watersheds more than rural water associations. We've done a bunch of projects on the forest and the Gila River."

Lucero noted that her office disseminates information on grant opportunities.

Hilton asked if other subcommittees wanted to form.

Lucero said she was working more now with acequias because they don't understand state processes. "It's the same with the mutual domestics. I don't see it happening that they will have monthly meetings." She said perhaps she could work with Ken Stockton, who represents the acequias, because there are a lot of similarities.

Bucky "Van" Allred said: "Priscilla is a godsend for us in Catron County."

Romero noted that all of the smaller entities now have to have an infrastructure capital improvement plan, a fiscal agent, bylaws, bookkeeping and other necessary items they haven't had to have before. Lucero said it has fallen on her to help the groups with the regulations and requirement. "If it's in the plan, we need more people. We should reinforce in the plan that we need technical support." Romero commented that it was getting very complicated for volunteer-driven groups.

Hilton brought up the strategies for the implementation process as among the next steps.

The original regional water plans were initiated because of a Supreme Court decision between New Mexico and Texas. "The regional water planning program was developed in legislation. The state could protect its water if it had uses for the water. Section 8 of the Handbook is the meat of the plan with a brief assessment of the strategies from the last plan. The areas of greatest interest at that time were for regional collaboration and implementation, with recommendations for key programs and policies to inform the State Water Plan. The commonality of rural water associations is to get funding."

She noted the draft list of projects, programs and policies, of which some are specific and others broader. "We will add all ICIP water projects since last November."

"With what you have now, you need to add a lot, because they all have ICIPs now," Lucero said. "It needs to be critical that all the pieces are in place to make sure they are there from the point-of-view of the Water Trust Board and other funding sources. Maybe we can separate out the regional projects from the individual projects."

"Bring or send to us whatever needs to be added by March 10," Hilton said. "I can send out a template. We will have for next time Section 8, which will be strategies. We are refining the major regional projects."

Lucero said it was critically important that incorporated entities be included and "we need to acknowledge the acequias and mutual domestic water associations as being in the region, along with the soil and water conservation districts."

"We can add the incorporated areas and the state subdivisions, such as government agencies, acequias and mutual domestics to Section 2," Hilton said. "We will not rank projects. We are just compiling the information. There are many potential funding sources. The Water Trust Board has points for projects that are part of a regional water plan. There is a host of criteria that different funding agencies look for. That's why we want to be as comprehensive as possible.

"You are informing us of the key areas of collaboration," Hilton continued. "Following our next meeting, we will get out the draft plan. The steering committee can decide the priorities."

Romero said the homework for attendees was to check the draft document of the projects, programs and policies. "This is the home document for project ideas. Getting them into the document is critical. What can make a project regional? Last time, we did brainstorming for the highest ranking for collaboration. We did a dot process."

She showed the list, which had watershed restoration receiving the most dots, and continuing with fewer dots was the Grant County regional water distribution system, hydrogeological investigation of the Augustin Plains, NMDOT erosion prevention demonstration project, the Gila diversion, food hub for food security, Lordsburg regional water supply including the Glen Acres project and last on the list flood control dams.

Hilton asked for other projects to benefit the larger region. A process was done to add items and take off the list ones that didn't seem pertinent anymore, such as the NMDOT project, and to consolidate others.

She asked for more specific watershed restoration projects for the next meeting.

Lucero said the village of Columbus has infrastructure concerns with the award of $85.4 million to build a new point of entry in the area. "What are the implications for infrastructure issues? It will have an immediate impact on Columbus. The councilors want to make sure they can serve the people. It will also have an environmental impact."

"As they move forward they are looking at planning efforts for flood control and drainage," Lucero continued. "I think the Water Trust Board will be a funding source. The village has to make sure it has capacity. The construction will impact housing. Specifically for Columbus, there is a drainage concern. It is a new specific project."

"Back to an earlier question from Marilyn (Alcorn) on education, education is always important in a plan like this," Lucero said.

Hilton asked if the education would be on capacity building, resources or what theme.

"I see education around energy efficiency for systems," Lucero replied.

Javier Diaz, Luna County commissioner, said his county uses a great deal of drip irrigation.

Hilton noted that was more of a project, but did not include collaboration over the region.

Alcorn suggested conservation/acquisition/protection. Hilton asked for specifics.

Alcorn mentioned buying mining water rights. "We would want to command them for food security, rather than development."

Hilton suggested referring to the accepted regional water plan strategies.

Bays said flood control dams are all over New Mexico, but they were built 50 -75 years ago. "There is no funding to maintain or, if they are breached, for new road construction where roads were impacted. We should add dam maintenance to the flood control dams strategy."

Siwik noted there was still broad support of the strategies from the 2005 accepted plan. "You might add septic system impacts to education, which also ties into water source protection."

Hilton noted that at the next meeting, participants should be prepared to break down watershed restoration into more specific projects.

Romero said she and Hilton would look at comments received.

Lucero noted the census should be revisited. "We aren't declining, but the last census shows we are, because of the lack of participation. But we know we aren't declining, because every community has more water accounts."

Romero asked for such comments on the form, which will be sent out to participants.

"The bigger programmatic issue is that we want specifics for the region," Hilton emphasized.

The next meeting is scheduled to take place at 1 p.m., Thursday, March 10, 2016, at the Silver City Town Hall Annex.

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