Albuquerque, NM (KKOB) — The Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District and the New Mexico Office of the State Engineer have announced enrollment for the 2024 Irrigation Demand Management/Environmental Water Leasing Program. In its fifth year, the program offers landowners within the middle Rio Grande valley the opportunity to lease water back to MRGCD.
The program will reduce overall water demand, increase the flexibility of MRGCD’s water resources, and help balance multiple water management objectives in the Middle Valley. “Endangered Species obligations on the river, growing Rio Grande Compact debt, and the inability to store water due to the ongoing rehabilitation project at El Vado Dam are just some of the reasons our team at MRGCD has decided to partner with the State and provide enhanced land management options to our constituents in 2024,” said Casey Ish, MRGCD conservation program supervisor.
Irrigators within the district with a minimum of one-acre of irrigable land, can temporarily lease their water right to MRGCD for a partial season or full season. Once the lease has expired, participants can once again irrigate those lands. The program is voluntary and allows for a maximum of 8,000 acres of MRGCD irrigable land to be enrolled in the 2024 season.
In partnership with the New Mexico Office of the State Engineer, the Bureau of Reclamation, and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, MRGCD will pay participants $400 per acre for a partial-season lease and $700 per acre for a full-season lease. Enrollment for this program is now open and will run through February 16. Interested participants can visit https://www.mrgcd.com/fallowing-program/. This year the leasing payment will double from last year’s; in 2023 there were101 irrigators who chose to participate.
“The Office of the State Engineer is pleased to be able to support this program in the Middle Rio Grande,” said State Engineer Mike Hamman. “To help alleviate the effects of persistent drought that have contributed to New Mexico’s Rio Grande Compact debit at Elephant Butte Reservoir, the state is providing up to $10M through MRGCD for voluntary water leasing options to keep participating farmers whole while temporarily reducing agricultural water use for Compact and environmental benefits. Additional state funds have been appropriated to improve river channel conditions to increase delivery efficiencies and environmental conditions within the Socorro reach on the Rio Grande.”
“While keeping the valley green and promoting a sustainable environment for farmers to grow is always a priority for us, it’s also important that we work with our constituents in the district to offer options as their priorities, and our water supplies shift from year to year,” said Ish.
