NM Soil Moisture At Record Low Levels; Irrigation Diversions Begin, But For How Long?

Larry Pacheco and his grandson Cole Foster walk along an irrigation ditch in Albuquerque’s North Valley. The dry ditches will begin filling with water in coming weeks, but drought leaves questions about how much water and for how long.(Roberto E. Rosales/Albuquerque Journal)

Farmers along the strip of river between Cochiti and Elephant Butte Reservoir, who use Rio Grande water to irrigate their corn and alfalfa, could see shortened irrigation seasons in 2013 as the region enters its third consecutive year of drought, said David Gensler, the irrigation district’s water manager.

Diversions started Wednesday at the agency’s Isleta diversion dam, as the district’s workers slowly begin spreading water through the network of irrigation ditches that spiderweb across the valley floor. The Angosturo Diversion Dam north of Bernalillo, which captures the water that flows through Albuquerque’s valley neighborhoods, will likely be opened up Monday, according to Gensler.

Snowpack from a dry winter ranges from 70 to 80 percent of average for March 1 in the watersheds that feed the Rio Grande. But runoff forecasts are running well below that number. The February forecast calls for just 53 percent of average flow on the Rio Grande.

The reason, Gensler said, is that watersheds, parched by three dry winters, are expected to soak up a substantial amount of spring runoff before it ever reaches the rivers. “Soil moisture is probably reaching record lows up in the watersheds,” Gensler said.

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