New Mexico Acequia Association

On Thursday, January 18^th, the over 40 acequia leaders packed a room at the State Capitol to present the New Mexico Acequia Association legislative priorities for the 2007 session. Paula Garcia, Executive Director of the NMAA said that the Year of Water has to be inclusive of acequias and she outlined the broad policies priorities of the Association, “First, we seek to protect and manage our water rights for the benefit of our communities. Second, we are rebuilding our agricultural economy and strengthening our land-based way of life. Third, we are seeking a reinvestment in acequia infrastructure.” The meeting received coverage in the Santa Fe New Mexican on Friday, January 19^th.

Several legislators attended the presentation including Senator Carlos Cisneros, Vice-Chair of the Senate Finance Committee, Phil Griego, Chairman of the Senate Conservation Committee, Representative Tomas Garcia, Representative Kathy McCoy, and Representative Debbie Rodella. In addition, Regis Pecos, staffer for Speaker of the House Ben Lujan, addressed the group of acequia leaders.

Antonio Medina, NMAA President, said, “We the acequias are here at the state legislature are here out of necessity. We are defending our way of life.” Several acequia officials were present for the purpose of getting the capital outlay requests completed. NMAA had a workstation where acequias completed forms and obtained required signatures from legislators.

NMAA is promoting four reservoirs as statewide priorities including Santa Cruz Reservoir, Cabresto Dam, Morphy Lake, and Tularosa Reservoir. Dozens of acequias are seeking capital outlay from their legislators. NMAA is also asking for support for the following appropriations:

• $500k for Acequia Governance Education, Training and Technical Assistance. Appropriation to Department of Finance and Administration, Local Government Division to provide assistance to acequias on governance and infrastructure planning.
• $250k for Acequia Agricultural Revitalization. Appropriation to Department of Agriculture for promotion of acequia grown foods and a farmer education pilot project.
• $575k for Acequia and Community Ditch Fund. Appropriation to Department of Agriculture for legal defense for acequias in adjudication.
• $600k for Acequia Rehabilitation Program to the Interstate Stream Commission to leverage federal funds for acequia repair and rehabilitation.
• $130k for New Mexico Acequia Commission. Appropriation to DFA for staffing of Commission.

With regard to legislation, NMAA is asking legislators to introduce legislation on the following:

• Domestic Well Transferability: This would clarify that water rights from domestic well permits are transferable to projects organized under the Sanitary Projects Act.
• Public Welfare and Conservation: This would require that the State Engineer make specific findings and conclusions about public welfare and conservation in water transfer applications.
• Native Seeds and Food Security: A memorial would recognize the importance of native seeds and indigenous agricultural practices to food security in New Mexico.

On other legislative issues, NMAA hopes to work with other groups to amend legislation addressing eminent domain and funding for the Land, Wildlife, and Conservation, where the Association hopes to ensure acequia representation on that board and to secure set asides for agricultural conservation easements.

On January 7, 2007, Acequia de la Canada Ancha parciantes voted to enact new bylaws authorizing the commission to have decision-making power over water transfers. The meeting was attended by hundreds of parciantes of that acequia. The high attendance was partly as a result of a controversial flyer sent by Jerry Powers, who is not a parciante. In his flyer, he stated, “Your water rights are in danger!” in response by efforts by the acequia commission to have more control over water transfers at the local level. (See article from Rio Grande Sun, “Chimayo Residents Vote in Droves to Change Acequia Bylaws.”)

After a two hour long discussion, the parciantes voted overwhelmingly by a supermajority to approve the new bylaws. “The people have spoken,” said Commissioner Delbert Trujillo. Janice Varela, an NMAA staffer who provided assistance in drafting the new bylaws said, “The parciantes sent a message that tradition and culture are more important than money.”

A law passed by the state legislature in 2003 recognizes the power of an acequia to regulate water transfers. Prior to 2003, only the state engineer could decide whether to allow a water transfer. Because of his lack of consideration of acequia concerns, NMAA promoted the 2003 legislation to give acequias more of a say in the water transfer process. “Acequia officials are locally elected and have greater knowledge about the issues facing their communities. Having this power is an expression of self-governance.”

The recently formed New Mexico Food and Seed Sovereignty Alliance is one of ten groups recognized nationally to receive funding to engage in policy development with regard to sustainable food systems. The Jesse Smith Noyes Foundation in partnership with the W.K. Kellogg Foundation is supporting the Alliance through a new initiative entitled Diversifying Leadership for Sustainable Food Policy.

The Alliance core members are the Traditional Native American Farmers’ Association and the New Mexico Association which are comprised of traditional farmers and ranchers from tribal, Pueblo, and acequia communities. “New Mexico has a beautiful heritage of agricultural and native food traditions. Our food policy in the state should reflect that heritage,” says Paula Garcia, Director of the New Mexico Acequia Association. Historically, native and land-based people have been underrepresented in food and agriculture policy development. “We believe that our collective voice as land-based people can help shape more sustainable food and agriculture policies in New Mexico.”

“We are very honored to receive support for our work to strengthen native food traditions and defend our seeds from genetic engineering,” says Clayton Brascoupe, Director of the Traditional Native American Farmers’ Association. “This will build upon resolutions by New Mexico’s Pueblos to oppose genetic engineering of seeds.” Since making a Declaration of Seed Sovereignty in March of 2005, members of the Alliance have effectively lobbied Pueblo governments to adopt resolutions defending native seeds.

Some of the policy goals of the New Mexico Food and Seed Sovereignty Alliance include advocating for programs to provide educational and financial resources to small-scale farmers, to promote the exchange and purchase of locally grown food, and to defend seeds from genetic contamination. In the next three years, the Alliance will hold community forums and meetings to build a policy framework for the state based on the concept of food sovereignty, which encompasses the ability to grow and process locally grown food that is also eaten in the same community.

On Saturday, December 2^nd, over 200 acequia leaders gathered in Taos for the 7^th Annual Congreso de las Acequias which is the annual meeting of the New Mexico Acequia Association. The meeting was the launching point for a campaign entitled “El Agua es la Vida – Water is Life” to protect water for agriculture and local community needs.

Leaders from throughout the state told their stories. Gilbert Sandoval of the Jemez Valley Acequia Coalition said, “Rio Rancho’s growth threatens to suck our valley dry.” Sandoval along with other leaders spoke of need to defend water rights from the threats of rural-to-urban water transfers.

Local legislators joined in the call for unity among the acequias. “The pressures are mounting to move water out of agriculture and rural communities. Get organized to defend your water rights,” proclaimed Senator Carlos Cisneros who has been a long-time acequia supporter as chair of the Senate Conservation Committee.

Juanita Garcia, a youth leader with the New Mexico Acequia Association, read a statement of principles from� El Agua es la Vida Declaration. “We recognize, honor, and respect that water is sacred and sustains all life.” The declaration is a statement of principles and a plan of action which calls on acequias and their allies “to challenge the economic and political forces that drive water rights out of our traditional communities and out of agriculture.”

Explaining the need for the campaign, Paula Garcia said, “Acequia water is the lifeblood that feeds New Mexico’s farms and ranches, replenishes our aquifers, and supports biodiversity. We need acequia water and farmland for locally grown food. Therefore, we must defend our water and protect it for future generations.”

The Congreso culminated in the declaration followed by several resolutions on issues including eminent domain, acequia easements, climate change, genetically engineered seeds, and food sovereignty. In addition to some legislative initiatives, the NMAA took action to request that Governor Richardson make an Executive Order recognizing the significance of acequias to New Mexico.

The Congreso was co-sponsored by the New Mexico Acequia Association, the Taos Valley Acequia Association, and the Taos Soil and Water Conservation District.

EL AGUA ES LA VIDA
Congreso de las Acequias
December 2, 2006

Statement of Principles

1. We recognize, honor, and respect that water is sacred and sustains all life.

2. We reaffirm the connection between land, water, and our communities as the material and spiritual basis for our existence.

3. We practice the principle that water is life in our customs and traditions of water sharing also known as the repartimiento.

4. We recognize that we live in a desert and water scarcity is part of our existence. Because it is scarce and precious, the utmost care must be taken in using our water.

5. We honor the indigenous knowledge of our elders which guides the day-to-day operation of acequias, the cultivation of ancestral crops, and the care of our animals.

6. We recognize that our ancestors viewed water as a communal resource attached to the land and our water rights exist as a result of generations of their labor and self-governance.

7. We honor water as part of our heritage and believe that treating water as a commodity for generating profit is a fundamental disrespect of our way of life.

8. We seek to sustain our ancestral connections to water which has historically been used for providing our families with household uses, growing food, and providing for our animals.

9. We believe that as needs for water in our communities change over time, decisions about reallocations or transfers of water rights should be made through a cultural and spiritual attachment to place, through a feeling of querencia, and through local self-governance.

10. We believe that our acequias are fundamental to our culture and our identity as land-based people and we must be intentional in passing on our traditions to future generations.

11. We maintain that water we use for growing food supports our self-determination as a people, enhances riparian habitat, contributes to aquifer recharge, and results in health benefits both to the farmer and to those who eat local, fresh, and culturally significant foods.

Threats to Acequia Water and Land-Based Livelihoods

1. Unprecedented growth and development in New Mexico are driving demands to move water rights out of agriculture to urban, resort, and commercial development.

2. According to studies on future supply and demand, acequia communities are projected to lose 30% to 60% of their water rights base and farmland to development in the next 40 years.

3. Acequias in areas with high water demands may be driven to extinction by water transfers because of reduced pressure head at the point of diversion and fewer families to contribute to the maintenance and governance of the acequia.

4. Acequia and rural agricultural communities are economically disadvantaged and will likely experience a net loss of water rights as wealthier individuals, entities, and regions acquire water rights from a position of greater economic power.

5. Demands to move water out of our acequias come at a time when our communities are dedicating themselves to revitalizing agriculture and rebuilding local food systems. Erosion of the acequia water rights base will foreclose future options for rural community development.

6. Water supplies in New Mexico are threatened by various sources of water contamination including mining runoff, lack of wastewater treatment facilities, improper dumping of solid, chemical, and radioactive waste, and urban drainage.

7. Traditional environmental knowledge embodied in the acequia culture is at risk because of a lack of intentional efforts in our educational systems to recognize its importance and incorporate it into curricula.

8. Poor condition of our watersheds from overstocked forests and invasive species are likely to be reducing stream flows in our rivers which impacts wildlife, streamflows, and water quality.

Acequia Plan of Action

1. We will cultivate our acequia lands with the crops of our ancestors using native seeds and we will continually improve our soils on our farms and ranches to enhance efficient use of our water.

2. We will actively participate in the governance of our acequias and encourage new leaders to serve as commissioners and mayordomos.

3. We will celebrate our culture through funciónes, cambalaches, and festivales that honor traditional feast days and the culturally and spiritually important days in our growing season.

4. We will seek solutions to meet local water rights needs by supporting collaboration between acequias and mutual domestic water consumer associations in securing safe and healthy water for our families.

5. We will work to retain local ownership and control of water rights by strengthening acequia governance and preventing the transfer of acequia water rights out of their respective communities and the basins where they have historically existed.

6. We will establish projects to strengthen our farms and ranches as part of our way of life and as part of our livelihoods. We will also seek appropriate resources to rebuild our food system infrastructure locally and regionally.

7. We will establish community-based processes and centers for the documentation of indigenous and traditional environmental knowledge about our watersheds, acequia traditions, agricultural practices, and food traditions.

8. We will work to challenge the economic and political forces in New Mexico that result in growth and development patterns that are transforming our landscape and undermining our way of life.

Acequia Allies Solidarity Statement

1. We support and value the historical and cultural contributions of acequias to New Mexico and seek to sustain them and part of our collective heritage,

2. We will support acequia and agricultural communities in challenging the economic and political forces in New Mexico that result in growth and development that are transforming our landscape and undermining New Mexico’s land-based cultures,

3. We will work to change the existing unsustainable growth patterns in New Mexico by supporting policies that appropriately manage new growth and development in such a manner that will reduce water consumption and the demands to transfer water rights out of agriculture,

4. We will promote policies and projects that more rigorously conserve, reuse, and recycle water to reduce water consumption and the demands to transfer water rights out of agriculture, make changes to our personal water use to reduce urban and residential demands for water, and reject wasteful uses of water.

5. We will support local farmers and ranchers by intentionally purchasing locally grown foods directly from farmers and by supporting businesses that serve or sell locally grown foods,

6. We will support policies to rebuild local food systems by increasing financial and educational resources to farmers and ranchers and by investing in agricultural infrastructure.

7. We will dedicate time and resources to projects aimed at strengthening acequias, engaging youth in land-based culture, and creating educational projects that seek to sustain the traditional community body of knowledge that underpins the acequia culture.

8. We will be advocates in our own towns, cities, associations, and organizations for policies that support acequia culture and serve as allies of acequia communities.