Acequia de La Puebla
El Agua es Vida
Acequia de La Puebla Newsletter - March 2021
AdLP Mayordomo: Mark Herrera |
AdLP Treasurer: Karen Martinez |
AdLP Chairman: Tim Martinez |
AdLP Secretary: Deborah Bennett |
The Acequia de La Puebla Commission hopes that each of its ~250 parciantes, families and friends have been well and safe throughout 2020, despite COVID, masks and social distancing! For that very reason, the 2020 Annual mtg, usually scheduled for the 1st week of December, was cancelled. However, look forward to the 2021 Annual meeting this coming December.
2021 Irrigation Season
The
2021 AdLP irrigation season has arrived! Our Mayordomo, Mark Herrera,
started the annual Spring Acequia Cleanup activities on March 1st.
Cleaning and preparing the acequia normally takes 2-3 weeks, so
irrigation water should be available by April 1st! As we move closer to
planting, we must work together to effectively use our limited
irrigation water.
Irrigation Rules: Please do your part towards
promoting a good irrigation season for everyone by following these
simple rules. Thanks.
-
Each parciante is responsible for maintaining his/her own headgate such that irrigation water flow can be controlled.
- Each parciante must call the Mayordomo to schdule irrigation
water each and every time the parciante wants to irrigate. Note: The
Mayordomo keeps a log of scheduling requests.
- Each parciante is responsible for controlling his/her headgate
to:
- START the flow of irrigation water when the scheduled irrigation time period starts, and
- STOP the flow of irrigtion water when the scheduled time period ends or irrigation is complete.
- If a parciante does not comply with these regulations, actions will be taken in the form of citations and/or fines. Those involved will be prosecuted according to the AdLP Bylaws.
2021 Fees are Due
Each
parciante must pay an annual assessment to pay for the operation,
maintenance, repair and improvement of our Acequia, including
compensation for the Mayordomo, and must be paid regardless of
whether you choose to irrigate or not. The assessment is based on
acreage, and must be paid to have access to irrigation water. Please
note that the Mayordomo works with the AdLP Treasurer to maintain a
list of parciantes who have/have not paid their annual assessment.
Better Communications
Communicating with our AdLP parciantes is important, especially if we need to contact you rapidly! We have “snail mail” addresses for most folks because that’s where your annual assessment bill is sent. Please send your email address and phone number to secretary@acequiadelapuebla.org to provide a quicker, more reliable, form of communication. Your contact information will be handled discreetly, but communication should be increased! Also, mark the the AdLP website (http://acequiadelapuebla.org/) as a favorite to keep track of the latest AdLP news!
SCID15
Update
At their monthly meeting in February 2021, Santa Cruz Irrigation District 15 informed its 28 acequias that the water level at Santa Cruz Dam is within a foot of the top, and that the snow pack in the mountains implies a viable irrigation season. However, even if there is an adequate supply of AdLP irrigation water through the 2021 season, all parciantes should remember that New Mexico is experiencing various drought intensities. According to www.drought.gov and the National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) almost 49% of Rio Arriba County and and 100% of Santa Fe County are at the highest intensity of drought, D4 Exceptional Drought.
We should not forget that irrigation water from the Santa Cruz dam stopped in mid-August 2020, leaving many parciantes unable to water crops that weren’t ready for harvest.
AdLP Litigation
The agreement made last year, such that the Vigils would provide the engineering and construction necessary to return the arroyo on their property to its original flow path, has been breached. Motions for Summary Judgement have been submitted to rectify the situation. In the mea time, the AdLP has assumed responsibility for the actions necessary on the arroyo.