Ecosystem Services of New Mexico Acequias

Ecosystem services provided by community irrigation systems known as acequias
include extending the area of green space between acequias and streams, a paisaje
del agua or water landscape. The traditional gravity flow irrigation methods enhance
vegetative cover and diversity within the paisaje, support wildlife habitat,
recharge shallow aquifers, sequester carbon, improve air and water quality, retain
storm-water flow, control flooding, and provide nutrient cycling and soil formation,
ecotourism and environmental education, extension of the irrigation season, and
aesthetic enrichment of the landscape. A team of NM EPSCoR researchers and students
studying two watersheds in northern New Mexico are currently developing a rating
system for evaluating the relative extent of ecosystem services through a
combination of GIS and field methods to determine riparian health. Preliminary
results indicate that the ecosystem services provided by traditional irrigation
systems can be substantial.