Answers to Questions: “Middle Rio Grande Emergency: Confronting the Crisis Together”

Thank you to all who attended the workshop on June 16, 2026, “Middle Rio Grande Emergency: Confronting the Crisis Together”.  We had so many wonderful questions during the presentation but unfortunately we did not have time during the workshop to get them all answered. Below you find written answers to the questions that we did not get to ask during the presentation.

Question: Will you or are you working with the county assessor for those who participated in the fallowing program, as good water stewards, and now have lost their agricultural exemption.   As an example, this means the property owner property taxes go from ~$2k per year to ~$18k per year.   In addition, let’s say the individual is ~70 years  old with a limited income and must now sell their family property.    There is no way the individual can make the property tax payments.   Because  of the loss of the agricultural status, individuals must sell  their property and those close to the property being sold may have their property taxes increase because of comparable property taxes. Veronica Lopez –

MRGCD Response:  The MRGCD has taken steps to engage with the county assessor for each of the four counties that we operate in (Sandoval / Bernalillo / Valencia / Socorro) to express our concern over changes in ag status for tracks of land that are fallow due to drought. The results have been mixed. We have had strong support for our fallowing program and the protection of those lands enrolled in Socorro, Valencia, and Bernalillo County. However, we have not found the same support in Sandoval County. MRGCD is continuing to look for ways to support our irrigators and farmers when they decide to conserve water during drought by fallowing at both the local and state level.

Question: Regarding replanting trees after fires in the Bosque, are cottonwoods considered native? Are there better deciduous trees we might plant instead? Christine Smith

MRGCD Response: Yes, cottonwoods are considered a native species to the Middle Rio Grande and are part of the restoration portfolio. That being said, the District is also looking at other trees to help provide habitat and benefit such a black willow, new Mexico olive, narrow leaf cottonwood and others. We are estimating some native recruitment of trees in our restoration plans and thus we don’t replant on a 1-1 of what was lost or even desired for each acre of a fire. The more important site element for us to consider is depth to groundwater.

Question: Who is tracking the success or failures of wildlife diversity after the MRGCD treatments? Is there data available to the public that will back up your comments?

MRGCD Response: MRGCD performs site monitoring of our projects to understand the response and success of our efforts.  Additional surveys take place annually by federal agencies such as Reclamation / Army Corp / and US Fish and Wildlife who largely focus on endangered species. The collective survey efforts provide a strong data set .  MRGCD is working on a bosque stewardship dashboard which will show all of the treatments that have occurred.

Question: So, will lining ABQ Main Canal with cement help conserve water?

MRGCD Response:  Lining a main canal such as the ABQ Main will allow MRGCD to “charge” the system faster. Seepage that would otherwise have occurred is eliminated and you are only losing water to evaporation.

Question: Is Bosque Del Apache and other wet land areas restricted or expected to use less water so farmers and ranchers can survive? Jo Quintero

MRGCD Response: Bosque del Apache is a federal wildlife refuge with legitimate water rights. The same goes for state run wildlife management areas like Bernardo and La Joya. MRGCD works closely with these entities to try and accommodate their water needs while matching their supply and “sharing the shortage” with the rest of the valley. During drought, it is expected that these properties will reduce their water use just as farmers and ranchers are forced to do the same.

Question: How will MRGCD and ABCWUA lead the needed regional effort to reduce depletions? Elaine Hebard

MRGCD Response:  I believe the joint presentation we provided during this event lays out the strategy pretty well for both entities. We are continuing to look for savings where possible at the individual user level while planning and design of macro water efficiency and conservation projects continue to move forward. It will have to be a balanced approach that calls on all water uses to be reduced. That includes what people use and what we allow the bosque to use. If we simply conserve in Ag, Municipal and Industrial but fail to shepherd that water south through an overgrown and thirty bosque then we will find ourselves in largely the same place that we are now, in debt to Texas with no ability to supplement supply through storage.

Question: How can the State allow municipalities like Los Lunas and Las Cruces to enter into agreements with corporations to take huge amounts of water from the aquifer?

Question: How do water transfers from surface to groundwater impact consumption and alter ecology in the green belt?

MRGCD Response: When you transfer surface rights to groundwater several things happen. The consumptive use portion of that water right can now be fully developed and used in a year where natural conditions and water supply might have naturally shorted that same right in a surface diversion. If enough surface rights go to ground water and get fully utilized without proper management of those resources, the pumping will start to impact surface flows and further impact surface supplies. If a cone of depression develops or extensive drying occurs, the riparian vegetation that has evolved to tap into relatively shallow groundwater will be impacted.