Watershed Based Plan

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The primary impetus for developing the Watershed-Based Plan for the Rio Fernando de Taos derives from an abundance of E . coli sampling that highlighted an on-going water quality and public health concern

In 2007 Amigos Bravos initiated a Monitoring Program with Sierra Club Water Sentinels to develop a baseline of information on the Rio Fernando de Taos (RFdT) water quality. In 2016 Amigos Bravos received a 319 Grant to complete a Watershed-based Plan (WBP) to collect further data and create detailed on-the-ground restoration projects for the RFdT. The primary impetus for developing the RFdT WBP derives from an abundance of E. coli sampling that highlighted an on-going water quality and public health concern.

The most current Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) report for the Upper Rio Grande basin, which includes the Rio Fernando de Taos, identified E. coli exceedances affecting the river’s “primary contact” designated use. The cause of impairment in the RFdT is identified as E. coli in the 2012 TMDL document for Upper Rio Grande (NMED 2012). However, neither the WRAS, the 2009 study nor the interpretation methods that led to development of the TMDL were designed to identify sources of impairment other than in general terms. There was also a need to create a more focused project plan for the RFdT than was done in 2006.

Amigos Bravos and other stakeholders identified the following data/information gaps critical to characterizing the sources of impairment in the watershed and creating more detailed project to address this impairment: The need to augment ongoing monitoring by Sierra Club Water Sentinels and Watershed-based Plan Amigos Bravos by conducting extensive E. coli monitoring to pin-point pollutant sources. The need to identify detailed solutions to water quality problems for the Taos community and the river.

Amigos Bravos utilized our already existing and successful monitoring program to conduct testing and monitoring of the Rio Fernando de Taos at different times of the year and developed a significant database of findings. The results of testing of levels of E. coli at approximately 50 sampling sites along the river can be found in Section 4.6 and 4.7 of the Watershed Based Plan. Microbial Source Tracking results of E. coli bacteria sources (human, dog, elk, etc.) at five sites can be found in Appendix A and Chapter 4 (Section 4.9). A robust project list has been developed and can be found in Chapter 6.

Confirmed sources of E. coli pollution in the Rio Fernando during this project (2016-2019) are: contaminated stormwater runoff, humans, cattle, birds, dogs, and beavers. There were many sample events following rain events that confirm run-off as a major source of E. coli pollution. Results indicate that source mitigation is most necessary in the upper and lower reaches of the river with a focus on human, dogs, and cattle sources. Seasonal sampling and the MST study confirmed that the cattle grazing allotments in the upper watershed are a prevalent source of the loading in the area (Cow DNA was 64% and 36% detection frequency). This sampling also indicated that dog and bird were even more frequent contributors to the area than cattle. This does not tell us which source was contributing more E. coli bacteria, just how frequently the source was contributing.

While birds were found to be a common source at the five sites in the MST study, this is a natural source that is often controlled through reducing private feeding of birds on the river. However, feeding birds is not a practice in the area at a level that would artificially inflate the bird populations on the Rio Fernando de Taos. However, we will inform the community of these findings, and create bird-focused projects if needed and feasible based on their feedback. It is important to note that on-the-ground projects identified in this document that increase flow in the river and/or create/repair wetlands will help most to decrease all natural E. coli inputs including those from birds.

A total of 24 on-the-ground projects are proposed along with 14 Outreach projects to address the sources found in this Watershed-based Plan. Categories of on-the-ground and policy projects include: Fecal Waste, Fencing, Forest/Watershed Health, Green Infrastructure, runoff control, erosion control, Septic Tanks, and Stream/Wetland Restoration.

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