Opinion: Pueblo water rights settlement moving too quickly

Growing up in the Pojoaque Valley, my ancestors and pueblos used the acequias for centuries, sharing the water for all our survival. The residents are now being asked to agree to the complex Aamodt Settlement, which spanned 48 years of litigation and backroom settlement negotiations.

Now, the residents are only given 60 days from the date of receiving their notices to make their decision to agree with the settlement. This is causing tremendous frustration and apprehension for the people of the valley. One problem is that the well owners were not part of the negotiations. The “settling parties” worked together to convince the court this was a good deal for everyone in the basin. The settling parties are the State Engineers Office, Santa Fe County, the City of Santa Fe, the Department of Interior, and the four pueblos of San Ildefonso, Nambe, Pojoaque and Tesuque.

State Engineer Scott Verhines’ “My View: Aamodt deal deadline on Monday” printed April 6 in the Santa Fe New Mexican, fails to mention important facts in the agreement. More than 500 objections were filed by non-pueblo well owners. Mr. Verhines states that the agreement brings 2,500 acre-feet of wet water to a chronically water short basin (NPT Basin).

What is not mentioned is that there hasn’t been a hydrology report released giving evidence to his claim that the basin is chronically short of water. Furthermore, the 2,500 acre-feet of imported water was purchased by the federal government for the four pueblos in addition to the 3,660 acre-feet that has been adjudicated for the four pueblos.