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<br />CC11::;S <br /> <br />41 <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />A local diversion structure serving the Hernandez community. <br />PHaro BY PAUL LOGSDON. <br /> <br />tional interests, when state law <br />does not prioritize the different <br />kinds of "beneficial use", The <br />appeals court reversed Judge <br />Encinias, finding that state laws in <br />effect at the time did not permit <br />application of public welfare criteria <br />to the transfer, <br /> <br />How successful efforts to protect <br />acequia water from the market <br />forces will be remains to be seen. <br />For acequia members and their <br />communities, the acequia system, <br />and the water it brings, cannot be <br />measured in monetary terms alone, <br />because it provides a social and cul- <br />tural cohesion for the community. <br />The question remains how this <br />non-economic value of the water <br />can be computed and figured into <br />the current water market picture. <br />Aceguia members believe that state <br />water policy and management enti- <br />ties should be responsive to this <br />issue. <br /> <br />DAM RELEASES <br /> <br />The ditches, canals and headgates <br />making up the acequia system are <br />fragile in the face of sudden, high <br />volume releases from upstream <br />dams, The acequias on the Rio <br />Chama below Abiquiu Dam have <br />often suffered in the spring from <br />the high volumes of flood waters <br />rushing through the system, In 1987 <br />the Rio Chama Association <br />negotiated with the Army Corps of <br />Engineers and the State Engineer's <br />Office for releases under 1,500 cis. <br />A compromise of 1,600 cis was <br />made, and under the agreement <br />documentation was to be gathered <br />to determine the amount of damage <br />caused by release of this volume. <br /> <br />REBUILDING IRRIGATION <br />SYSTEMS <br /> <br />Several acequia associations have <br />received Bureau of Reclamation <br /> <br />help to replace old irrigation works. <br />The Corps of Engineers administers <br />a large fund to improve acequia <br />facilities. The state has created a <br />commission with acequia represen- <br />tatives to advise the Corps on this <br />project. <br /> <br />,~. : <br /> <br />WATER RIGHTS <br /> <br />Many acequias are involved in the <br />water rights adjudication process. <br />The lawsuits have increased ten- <br />sions between Indian and His- <br />panic water users, and some ace- <br />quias have been exploring ways to <br />protect water rights through <br />negotiated solutions. <br /> <br />RECREATION TRAFFIC <br /> <br />On the Chama and the upper <br />stretches of the Rio Grande, traffic <br />from rafters and other boaters can <br />be a problem for the small irrigator. <br />Especially on weekends, hundreds <br />and sometimes thousands of peo- <br />ple make their way to and from the <br />rivers, across private property, often <br />damaging acequia structures. <br /> <br />WATER QUALITY <br /> <br />Many acequias are facing contami- <br />nation problems in their ditches <br />because of encroaching urban <br />neighbors-parking lots, gas sta- <br />tions, and industry. In Espanola, <br />this is a particular problem where <br />keeping the ditches clean has new <br />meaning. Petroleum by-products <br />and spills are sometimes washed <br />into the ditches, creating the threat <br />of contamination. <br /> <br />There is also concern in the area <br />below Los Alamos, where tradi. <br />tional irrigators fear acequia water <br />may have been contaminated by <br />hazardous wastes from the scien- <br />tificlabs. <br /> <br />~ <br />