Streambarbs along Rio Grande

Rio Grande Corridor Task Force

Sierra SWCD - Your local leaders in natural resources.

In 1998 the Rio Grande Corridor Task Force was formed to develop a restoration and revegetation plan along the fourteen mile strip of the Rio Grande from below Elephant butte Dam to the headwaters of Caballo Reservoir. The group is comprised of local government and groups such as the City of Truth or Consequences, Village of Williamsburg, County of Sierra, NM Department of Transportation, US Forest Service, Bureau of Reclamation and the Sierra Soil and Water Conservation District. The Sierra SWCD was asked by the group to chair the Task Force.

A restoration plan was developed by the group which included the removal of non-native plants along this portion of the Rio Grande and improvement of aquatic habitat. The group expressed concerns of the extreme fire hazard of the non-native plants through the communities of Truth or Consequences and Village of Williamsburg . Funding sources were identified and the Sierra SWCD applied for funding through the US Forest Service Collaborative Forest Restoration Program for a grant in the amount of $310,000 Mechanical control was utilized on 29 acres behind the Veteran’s Hospital and 95 acres were removed through utilizing a thinning crew . Salt Cedar is a very volatile plant, with embers able to travel more than 1/2 mile and through this project fuel load assessments have concluded that more than 9 cords were removed be acre.

To improve aquatic habitat, in 2003 approximately 20 stream barbs were installed along a 1000 stretch of the Rio Grande directly below the Hondo Arroyo. Stream barbs are loosely held large rocks that slows the river turbidity, drops sediment, deepens the “thalwag” and provides pooling areas for fish. This area was selected due to stream bank erosion and habitat degradation. Funding for this project was provided through the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation, along with key partners of the Bureau of Reclamation and the NM Game & Fish Department. The partners are currently evaluating the Rio Grande to determine if other areas can benefit from this collaborative effort.

A number of governmental, community and civic organizations have all expressed concerns about certain portions of the Corridor and many of them have identified projects they want to implement. The task force felt it would be beneficial to all concerned to develop a mast plan, showcasing what has been accomplished in the past but also detailing the numerous projects everyone wants to get done. The draft plan has been completed, projects and goals identified along with projected costs and also the entity or group that is the lead on that project. For more information, please read:

Sierra County Rio Grande Corridor Natural Resource Enhancement and Economic Development Plan (pdf)

The Task Force has been re-vitalized and is meeting monthly at the Sierra SWCD office on the 3^rd Tuesday of each month at 9:30 a.m.