1997-1998 Annual Report
Interstate Stream Commission
The New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission (ISC) was created by Chapter
25 of the
Session Laws of 1935. The legislature gave the ISC broad powers to investigate,
protect, conserve and develop New Mexico's waters and stream systems, both
interstate and intrastate.
The statute authorizes the commission to negotiate compacts with other states to settle interstate controversies; to match appropriations by the U.S. Congress; to investigate and develop the water supplies of stream systems of the state; and to institute legal proceedings in the name of the state for planning, conservation, protection, and development of public waters. The Act provides that the State Engineer shall be the secretary of the commission and in that position he directs the work of the staff.
The commission is delegated by statute the responsibility for programming, budgeting and directing expenditures from five funds: its own operating budget; the Ute Dam Construction Fund, because the ISC operates and maintains Ute Dam and Reservoir; Regional Water Planning appropriations; the Improvement of the Rio Grande Income Fund; and the Irrigation Works Construction Fund.
Eight of the commission's nine members are unsalaried and appointed by the governor for a term of six years. The appointed members are to be representative of major irrigation districts or sections of the state, and no two should be appointed from the same district or section. The chairperson is elected by the commission. The ninth member and secretary of the commission is the State Engineer. The Interstate Stream Engineer manages the commission's programs and resources. Norman Gaume, P.E. was appointed to this position in June, 1997.
Interstate Stream Commission Members
| |
| Richard P. Cheney -- Chair | Farmington |
| Tracy Seidman Hephner -- Vice Chair | Wagon Mound |
| J. Phelps White, III | Roswell |
| Palemon A. Martinez | Valdez |
| Paulina Salopek | Las Cruces |
| Hal E. Engle | Edgewood |
| Hoyt Pattison | Clovis |
| John S. Bulsterbaum | Deming |
Overview of ISC Activities
Administration of Interstate Streams: ISC staff act as advisors to New Mexico compact commissioners or to the State Engineer for the eight interstate water compacts to which New Mexico is a party, performing periodic analyses of streamflow and reservoir data on Costilla Creek, La Plata River, San Juan River, Rio Grande, the San Juan-Chama Project, Pecos River and Canadian River, and other studies as needed. They are also responsible for compliance with the accounting and measurement provisions of the U.S. Supreme Court decisions governing water allocations on the Pecos, Canadian and Gila Rivers.
Protection of New Mexico's Waters: As New Mexico's representative/advocate in water-policy forums of the west, ISC staff cooperate with federal and other state agencies in recovery programs for endangered species (Appendix III), review reports for water resource development proposals that may affect New Mexico interests (Appendix II), cooperate with the U.S. Geological Survey to obtain basic hydrologic and geohydrologic data (Appendix VI), and participate in and coordinate studies by federal and state agencies in programs of mutual interest. ISC staff also participate in litigation in which the commission is involved.
Water Resource Planning: In 1987, the legislature created a regional water planning process to protect New Mexico waters and to provide for regional growth and development consistent with the available water resource. The ISC oversees funding of the regional water plans. In 1998, a significant legislative appropriation for regional water planning was made, with a companion program to develop a State Water Plan that will integrate and reconcile the regional plans. The State Engineer was charged with fiscal oversight of these funds.
The ISC also operates and maintains Ute Dam and Reservoir.
Interstate Stream Administration
A summary of this fiscal year's activities in administration of the waters of interstate streams, by basin, follows:
Colorado River Compact: The Colorado River Compact, with the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming as parties, was signed in Santa Fe on November 24, 1922. Except for Arizona, all parties had ratified the compact by 1929, and the President of the United States proclaimed it effective on June 25, 1929. Arizona did not ratify the compact until 1944.
The Colorado River Compact apportions the waters of the Colorado River system between the upper and lower basins. Parts of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming constitute the upper basin; the lower basin includes parts of Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah.
The compact does not provide for an administrative commission; instead it provides that each state, through the state official charged with water rights administration, together with certain agencies of the federal government, shall cooperate to:
Compliance with Arizona v. California: The 1964 Supreme Court decree in Arizona v. California set forth New Mexico's rights to the waters of San Simon Creek, San Francisco River and Gila River, together designated as the Gila River basin in New Mexico. Article VII of the decree requires that New Mexico prepare and maintain complete, detailed and accurate records of New Mexico's annual diversions, irrigated acreage and consumptive water use for all purposes from the Gila River, its tributaries and related groundwater sources. To meet this requirement, the ISC has entered into annual cooperative agreements with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) for the installation, operation, and maintenance of devices that measure surface-water diversions; OSE personnel operate and maintain previously installed well meters to document groundwater diversions for irrigation. As of June 30, 1997, there were 61 well meters and 33 surface water measuring devices in operation. USGS has, in recent years, sought to transfer responsibility for the surface-water measurement program to the State Engineer as well.
In addition, OSE staff conducted the 1997 annual survey of New Mexico irrigated acreage in the Gila River basin to provide data needed to compute the annual consumptive use of water from each stream system. A report for 1997 containing the pertinent data and results is being prepared by ISC staff.
Upper Colorado River Basin Compact: The Upper Colorado River Basin Compact was signed in Santa Fe on October 11, 1948 with Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming as parties. The compact was subsequently ratified by the respective legislatures, consented to by Congress and approved by the president on April 6, 1949.
The compact created a commission, which does not include Arizona, to administer its provisions. During fiscal year 1997-98, Upper Colorado River Compact commissioners were: Frank E. (Sam) Maynes, chair and commissioner for the United States; James Lockhead for Colorado; Philip Mutz for New Mexico; Larry Anderson for Utah; and Gordon Fassett for Wyoming. The New Mexico commissioner was assisted by members of the ISC staff. The commission's office is in Salt Lake City.
During fiscal year 1997-98, the commissioners and staff of the Upper Colorado River Commission directed their efforts toward:
La Plata River Compact: The La Plata River Compact, which governs the terms by which the waters of the La Plata River are to be distributed between Colorado and New Mexico, was signed in Santa Fe on November 27, 1922. The states subsequently ratified the compact in 1923; Congress consented on January 29, 1925.
The compact provides that the state engineers of the two states shall administer the waters of the La Plata River. This requires daily administration of the flows of the La Plata River except from December 1 through February 15. The compact also provides for cooperative collection, exchange, and publication of streamflow data. ISC staff monitor and evaluate the daily operation of the river and assist the State Engineer in administering the compact. The La Plata Conservancy District employs a watermaster to supervise water diversion within the district in New Mexico. The watermaster and the district's board of directors cooperate with ISC staff to collect data necessary for the daily operation analysis.
The total flow of the La Plata River at the Colorado-New Mexico state line was 42,180 acre-feet during water year 1997, about 161% of normal. For the 1998 April-July snowmelt runoff period, state-line flow was 13,000 acre-feet, about 70% of normal.
Rio Grande Compact: The Rio Grande Compact was signed in Santa Fe on March 19, 1938, with the states of Colorado, New Mexico and Texas as parties. The states subsequently ratified the compact, and it was approved by Congress on May 31, 1939. The Rio Grande Compact Commission consists of the state engineers of Colorado and New Mexico, a commissioner from Texas appointed by the governor, and a representative of the United States. Members of the commission during fiscal year 1997-98 were Ken Salazar, federal representative and chair; Harold Simpson for Colorado, Thomas C. Turney for New Mexico and Jack Hammond for Texas. The New Mexico commissioner was assisted by ISC staff engineers and OSE attorneys.
Figure 7
The engineer advisors to the commissioners meet prior to the annual meeting
to prepare data on scheduled and actual delivery of water and other topics.
Under annual cooperative agreements, the U.S. Geological Survey acts as
secretary to the compact commission, preparing monthly and annual reports
and maintaining the official commission files.
In 1997, compact deliveries from both Colorado and New Mexico exceeded the scheduled deliveries: Colorado's by 700 acre-feet, and New Mexico's by 43,300 acre-feet. New Mexico has not been in deficit in Compact deliveries on the Rio Grande since 1990.
The Rio Grande Compact provides for delivery debits and credits to be carried over from year-to-year; accrued credits or debits are an important element of compact accounting. At the annual commission meeting in Alamosa Colorado, commissioners did not reach an agreement on accrued credits. A disagreement continued to exist among the three states as to accounting procedures for defining a "spill" under the terms of the Compact; when a spill occurs, credits are reduced to the extent of the spill. Under Colorado's accounting, a spill occurred in 1996. New Mexico and Texas commissioners disagree. Engineer advisers for the three states are working on the differences and were close to an agreement at the end of the fiscal year; the accounting of debits and credits for 1997, however, reflects the two different positions. Under the accounting of New Mexico and Texas Commissioners, the accrued credit for New Mexico for 1997 was 105,500 acre-feet.
The resolutions adopted by the Rio Grande Compact Commission at its March 26th, 1998 meeting included:
Costilla Creek Compact: The Costilla Creek Compact was signed in Santa Fe on September 30, 1944, with Colorado and New Mexico as parties. The compact was subsequently ratified by the state legislatures and approved by Congress in June 1946. The Amended Costilla Creek Compact was signed in Santa Fe on February 7, 1963, ratified by the respective state legislatures and approved by Congress on December 12, 1963.
During the 1997-98 fiscal year, Harold Simpson for Colorado and Thomas C. Turney for New Mexico were the Costilla Creek Compact Commissioners. The commission treasurer is Ms. Dinah Sanchez of the New Mexico Office of the State Engineer. The New Mexico commissioner was assisted by ISC staff.
The compact requires daily administration of Costilla Creek during the irrigation season. Daily direct flow of the system and water stored in Costilla Reservoir are distributed under the terms of the compact by a water master appointed and supervised by the New Mexico commissioner. Bobby R. Tribble of the ISC was Costilla Creek watermaster throughout this fiscal year. The U.S. Geological Survey cooperates with the compact commission to secure the streamflow data necessary to determine allocations and water deliveries.
The N.M. Legislature appropriated $100,000 for expenditure in fiscal year 1998-99 to install real-time water meters on the Costilla Creek system. At its May 8, 1998 meeting, the Costilla Creek Compact Commission directed its engineer advisors to jointly prepare and submit to the commission a plan to improve the measurement and control of flows and diversions in the Costilla Creek system, as well as an operations manual for the daily and annual administration of the Amended Costilla Creek Compact. The engineer advisers were also asked to jointly conduct an annual post-irrigation season inspection of the entire irrigation system and to report their findings, with a plan to remedy any deficiencies, to the commission. This report is to be made available to water users by the end of October of the year of the inspection.
Pecos River Compact: The Pecos River Compact was signed in Santa Fe on December 3, 1948, with New Mexico and Texas as parties. The compact was subsequently ratified by the respective state legislatures and approved by Congress, becoming effective June 9, 1949.
During the report period the Pecos River Commission was composed of Hector Villa, III, chair and representative of the United States; Colin McMillan for New Mexico and Brad Newton for Texas.
Under the 1988 U.S. Supreme Court amended decree in Texas v. New Mexico, the federal Pecos River Master is to determine New Mexico's delivery obligations to Texas on the Pecos River each year. Neil Grigg, the current Pecos River Master, found that for calendar year 1997, New Mexico's water delivery to Texas exceeded its delivery obligation by 6,100 acre-feet. This brings New Mexico's accumulated delivery overage to 19,800 acre-feet (see "Pecos River Program Provides Compact Compliance").
Canadian River Compact: Signed in 1950 with New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas as parties and approved in 1952, the compact provides for a commission to administer its provisions with one commissioner for each state and one for the United States.
The stipulated judgement and decree, entered into on December 13, 1993, in the U.S. Supreme Court lawsuit entitled Oklahoma and Texas v. New Mexico provided an operating schedule for Ute Dam. During the report year, the reservoir was operated in compliance with the decree to maintain the water level at or below elevation 3778.23 feet in calendar year 1997 and at or below elevation 3779.08 feet in calendar year 1998.
Regional Water Planning
Figure 9
In 1987, the N.M. legislature recognized the state's need for water planning
and created and funded New Mexico's regional water planning program. The
legislature gave the ISC the responsibility of developing the criteria for
regional water planning funding and overseeing New Mexico's regional planning
process.
The legislation stipulated that planning regions be self-defined on the basis of common hydrologic, political and economic interests. While grants were initially made to some subregional groups with urgent water-planning needs, the ISC urged grantees to consolidate into true regions, and over the eleven-year period sixteen water planning regions have been recognized and funded.
The regional water planning process has struggled with lack of funding and lack of guidance. Regional water planning appropriations for the whole state over the eleven year period have totaled about $2.1 million dollarsan average of about $12,000/year for each of the sixteen regions.
The initial legislation offered little guidance on what the regional planning product should look like, and work done under the program has been extremely varied. To provide more guidance, the Interstate Stream Commission convened a statewide work group of regional water planners to create a "template" or handbook for regional water planners. The ISC regional-water-planning committee, the work group, and ISC staff, wrote the Regional Water Planning Handbook, which was formally adopted by the ISC in 1994.
During the 1997-98 fiscal year, the Handbook's guidance has been reinforced with contract accountability and the 1998 Request for Proposals for regional water planning funds stipulates negotiated contracts instead of grants. Awards under these contracts will be made during fiscal year 1998-99.
On October 28, 1997, the Interstate Stream Commission awarded $200,000 in regional water planning grants from the 1997 legislative appropriation. $155,000 was awarded to five regions with plans in progress (see bolded 1998 awards in "Funding of Regional Water Plans"); $20,000 was awarded to the Eight Northern Pueblos; $20,000 to the OSE Conservation Program; and $5,000 to the New Mexico Water Dialogue.
The program's funding status took a sharp upturn when the 1998 N.M. legislature appropriated $1.75 million for regional water planning and the development of a state water plan. To enhance accountability for the grants, the legislature made the appropriation to the State Engineer, who will enter into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Interstate Stream Commission regarding its use.
Special Funds
The Commission also is responsible for programming, budgeting and directing expenditures of money from the Improvement of the Rio Grande Income Fund, and the Irrigation Works Construction Fund. Both funds were created by the Ferguson Act of 1898. This Act made two grants of land, to be used to generate income to benefit special purposes in what was then the Territory of New Mexico: 500,000 acres of land were to benefit the Water Reservoirs Income Fund (In 1955, the N.M. legislature created the Irrigation Works Construction Fund, placing in it the income of the Water Reservoirs Income Fund as well as other state appropriations for irrigation purposes); an additional 100,000 acres of land was dedicated to the "Improvement of the Rio Grande in New Mexico." The State Land Office administers these and other trust lands to generate revenues for the purposes of the trust. Revenues from nonrenewable uses, such as royalties from oil and gas extraction, are deposited in the Permanent Fund, the corpus of which is invested. The earnings from those investments make up the income funds managed by the ISC.
Irrigation Works Construction Fund (IWCF): Under the administration of the ISC, IWCF monies are used to make loans to acequias, and, through contracts with irrigation and water conservancy districts, to individual water users for construction and rehabilitation of on-farm irrigation works. The IWCF provides technical assistance and design improvements for acequias through an annual contract with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). Other contracts with NRCS provide for watershed planning, agricultural water conservation demonstration projects and snow surveys. The IWCF is also a source for the non-federal cost-share required by the Corps of Engineers Acequia Program (see Appendix IV). Loans have also been made to county flood commissions for protection of irrigation lands and works; other appropriations have been made for dam rehabilitation and phreatophyte control. The IWCF has been a major source of funding for the Pecos River Lease/Purchase Program; it also funded the $14 million Pecos River water settlement with Texas. A table of IWCF revenues and expenses is given on page 47.
Improvement of the Rio Grande Income Fund (IRGIF): Each year the ISC prepares a plan and budget for projects to be funded by the IRGIF and submits it to the governor. Ongoing projects include cooperative agreements with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation for vegetation management in Elephant Butte and Caballo Reservoirs, for water salvage in the Middle Rio Grande, and channel maintenance along the Rio Chama below Abiquiu Dam. Cooperative programs with U.S. Geological Survey collect data on surface- water discharge and suspended sediment to evaluate the Reclamation programs, as well as for other studies from time to time. The fund has been used to buy San Juan-Chama Project water to establish and maintain a sediment pool in Jemez Canyon Reservoir. Significant grants to the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District covered the nonfederal share of the Corrales Levee and San Acacia to Bosque del Apache Flood Control projects. See page 46 for a statement of IRGIF revenues and expenses.
Ute Dam and Reservoir
The Interstate Stream Commission continued to operate Ute Dam and Reservoir during fiscal year 1998. Routine operation and maintenance of the dam was performed by the resident caretaker, Kent Terry. Releases of water from Ute Reservoir of approximately 39,900 acre-feet were made in accordance with the operating schedule contained in the stipulated judgement and decree. The total content of Ute Reservoir on June 30, 1998, was 175,137 acre-feet.
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