Where the Water Runs Again

Three miles of willow cleared, and six members of an acequia in New Mexico get their water back

Water for the Nacimiento acequias begins at roughly 10,000 feet in the Sierra Nacimiento before crossing into the Rio Puerco basin.

Cuba, New Mexico — During a team visit to New Mexico in May, we had the opportunity to visit some of our partners and see firsthand the impact of their work on a system of acequias that carries water to 72 landowners, or parciantes.

The water that flows through these acequias starts high in the Sierra Nacimiento – known locally as Nacimiento Mountain. 

“Water flows through natural streams at 10,000 feet before being diverted from Clear Creek into the Trans Mountain Ditch, sending the water from the Jemez Basin into the Rio Puerco Basin,” Mark explained. 

It’s one of the few systems in the state that cross from one river basin into another. Along its path, the water nourishes a little more than 700 acres, where landowners mainly cultivate crops to feed their livestock.

Members are free to choose how to use the water that runs through the acequia system, an invaluable resource in New Mexico, where water rights are fought over hard. Most members use acequia water to grow hay, oats, grass, or alfalfa for their animals, and one member uses the supply to irrigate a vegetable garden that includes crops such as peas and squash, explains Mark Martinez, chairman of the Nacimiento Community Ditch Association (NCDA).

Mark has been involved with the acequia for decades and continues to be a strong advocate for protecting acequias from development.

The NCDA's membership has grown over time as the 700 acres bordering the acequia have been subdivided through inheritance or sale. Being a parciante comes with responsibility: it requires pitching in to care for and maintain the system, including any repairs that are needed. If the mayordomo — the elected ditch manager — calls a work party, members need to participate or hire someone to fill in for them.

"Sometimes we have a really good show of force and sometimes we scramble a little bit, but for the most part, everybody shows up and does what they're asked to do," Mark said.

The Nacimiento Creek acequia after clearing. Willow had closed off the channel entirely along parts of the three-mile stretch.

Asekia Forest Private Fund: Clearing willow so water can flow

In collaboration with the Asekia Forest Private Fund, the NCDA cleared an approximately three-mile stretch of the Nacimiento Creek acequia, removing willow with an invasive growth habit that had overtaken the stream bed and was reducing the flow of water. The Asekia Forest Private Fund is a pool of private dollars Asekia raises and passes through to landowners, covering conservation work that agency programs do not fund.

"It'll completely choke a stream or ditch, and if you don't remove it, you just cannot move the water," Mark said. "We had a large segment that would go all the way to the last acequia … we just could not get water there to save our lives, and it was primarily because of the willow."

Acequias play a crucial role in providing water to agricultural communities in New Mexico. These traditional systems, which have been in operation for centuries, also deliver ecological benefits: as water flows through the earthen ditches that make up an acequia, some of it seeps into the ground, where it helps recharge groundwater levels and support healthy ecosystems.

Now that the willow has been cleared out of that section, the water flow has "improved immensely," Mark said. "You couldn't see a happier group of people, and it happened at a really good time," he added, referring to the drought currently affecting New Mexico and other western states.

With snowfall totals in New Mexico much lower this past winter than in previous years, the acequias faced even more difficult conditions. Runoff from snowmelt is a key source of water there. To offset the shortfall, the association had to start drawing early on San Gregorio Lake, a mountain reservoir that usually supplies the acequias only after runoff ends — making it all the more critical that water could move through the stretch that had been choked with willow. Among the hardest hit were the six members served by the Domingo Vigil ditch, who irrigate a total of about 46 acres. 

"This year we had no runoff, so we had to open up Gregorio Lake early. In previous times before we cleaned out the Nacimiento Creek, the Domingo members were basically denied water from Gregorio," Mark said.

Mark Martinez, chairman of the Nacimiento Community Ditch Association, has been involved with the organization for decades.

Looking to the future

The association faces challenges such as funding and generational change, but Mark has a positive outlook. He points to a new commissioner who is taking on the role of treasurer and who is mentoring Mark's son as he steps into the work of the acequia.

"I feel really good that it's going to move forward in a positive way. I think we have laid the groundwork, especially in these last few years," Mark said.

He also credits support at the state level. 

"As far as the state of New Mexico and all the acequias, we are very fortunate to have legislators who are actually owners of acequia water rights and are fully engaged in supporting by state statute and by funding acequias," he said. The New Mexico Acequia Association, for its part, provides legal help and mentors young people in agriculture.

"It's important to keep the systems alive. Not only for water conservation, but for the quality of water. Every time I turn around, there's an industry wanting to buy water from some acequia," he said.

Mark urged landowners across the U.S. to continue their efforts to care for the land and water.

"Whether it's here in New Mexico or in one of the southern states or Puerto Rico, keep your head high and keep fighting the fight," Mark said. "Don't let developments take over; don't let mines. Keep them for the people."

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The Asekia Forest Private Fund supports landowners in Puerto Rico, Florida, and New Mexico who are doing conservation work on their own land. To learn more, or to find out whether your property qualifies, contact us at info@asekia.or  or visit https://www.asekia.org.