The Board of Directors has been working with the New Mexico Rural Water Association (NMRWA) to develop a plan to protect our watershed from what they consider to be the most probable threat, a catastrophic wildfire.
A truly effective watershed management effort should be driven largely by citizen concerns about local problems, and guided by sound data and information provided by federal, state and local governments in order to assume substantial rights and responsibilities for watershed management.
DECEMBER SWPP GROUP MEETING
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 12, 2015
1-3 PM
LA JARA WATER USERS ASSOCIATION OFFICE BUILDING
Our next step is for the Source Water Protection Team to meet and consider in more detail the issues discussed at the September 15 meeting. We will hold this meeting on Saturday, December 12, 2015, from 1—3 PM at the La Jara Water Users' Association office in La Jara. The meeting will give the Source Water Protection Team the opportunity to discuss the information we have received so far and begin to identify issues, priorities, and time frame for the Source Water Protection Plan.
If you would like to be part of the Source Water Protection Team, please join us on December 12, 2015, from 1—3 PM. If possible, please let me know if you plan to attend this meeting by December 7, 2015. Also, if you would like to be a part of the Source Water Protection Team but cannot meet with us on December 12, please let me know.
JANUARY 2016 SWPP GROUP MEETING
There will be a meeting in January but the date and time have yet to be decided.
While the heart of the Source Water Protection Plan is La Jara's drinking water, the La Jara ditch and its irrigation waters are also essential to the community. The adjacent regions also share many of the same issues. At the September meeting, we received several suggestions to inform and work with others beyond La Jara on these matters. In response to those recommendations, we will hold another La Jara Source Water Protection Community meeting. For the January meeting we will extend an invitation to others in the region who share our interest in protecting the region from wildland fire and postfire debris flows, and who could work with us to ensure that La Jara's source water is protected. Jeff Goebel, Goebel & Associates (http://www.aboutlistening.com/), will facilitate the meeting.
Thank you again for your interest in La Jara's water. Do not hesitate to contact Martha Graham with your questions, concerns and suggestions. We look forward to working with you on this very important issue.
Martha Graham
Source Water Protection Program
New Mexico Rural Water Association
8336 Washington Place NE
Albuquerque, NM 87113
Cell: 505.977.5733
Office: 800.819.9893, 505.884.1031
Facsimile: 505.884.1032