SFWA is dedicated to serving as a bridge organization, connecting agencies, nonprofits, and community partners throughout the city and county of Santa Fe. As an active participant in several long-term water planning processes, SFWA contributes through both research and advocacy. Our role is to ensure that diverse voices and interests across the watershed are heard, while also serving as a trusted source of information, collaboration, and strategic insight for sustainable water management and socioecological resilience.
Select a tab below to learn more.
Building and Sustaining Resilience in the Santa Fe River Watershed
Lead by: SFWA + U.S. Bureau of Reclamation
Timeline: May 20, 2025 – September 30, 2028
Thanks to a WaterSMART Cooperative Watershed Management Program grant from the US Bureau of Reclamation, SFWA will build upon the watershed planning efforts achieved in our previous Phase I CWMP project “Stakeholder Priorities, Water Management, and Adaptation Strategies in the Santa Fe River Watershed” and complete a watershed restoration plan, including compiling existing studies and plans, conducting targeted stakeholder engagement, identifying and outlining Best Management Practices for ongoing restoration and planning efforts, identifying the highest priority restoration areas across the watershed, and preparing site-specific designs for restoration projects in the upper, middle, and lower watershed.
Contact: mori@santafewatershed.org
Upper Watershed Plan Update
Lead by: City of Santa Fe Water Division
Timeline: Spring 2025 – Fall 2029
A comprehensive update to the 2010 Municipal Plan, including vegetation management, water quality, outreach & education, financing, monitoring, access, and post-fire planning. Other key partners in the process include: City of Santa Fe Fire and River & Watershed, Santa Fe National Forest, Pueblo of Tesuque Department of Natural Resources, Audubon Southwest, The Nature Conservancy, The Forest Stewards Guild, and Trees, Water & People. Learn More
Contact: mori@santafewatershed.org
La Cienega Springs Restoration Project
Lead by: SF County Growth Management Department + Daniel B. Stevens & Associates
Timeline: 2025 – 2026
A holistic assessment of the water situation in the La Cienega & La Cieneguilla area that will produce a Preliminary Engineering Report (PER) for a Water & Wastewater Masterplan and to Replenish the Aquifer and Restore the Springs. It will recommend actions including hard & green solutions to overcome challenges in water supply, wastewater, stormwater, surface & groundwater, land use, and watershed management, while supporting local livelihoods. SFWA is a collaborator in this process. Learn More
Contact: aharnden@santafecountynm.gov
Meeting Details: Water Planning | Santa Fe County
Santa Fe Forward General Plan Update
Lead by: City of Santa Fe Planning and Land Use Department + WSP + Leland Consulting Group + Design Workshop
Timeline: Summer 2025 – Fall 2027
The General Plan is like the strategic plan of the City. It should reflect the values of the community and high-level priorities for how the City functions, and guide ongoing updates to all chapters of City code. SFWA is the only entity serving as both a community partner and a member of the technical working group, and the only environmental representative on the TWG. Learn More
Contact: info@SantaFeForward.org
City of Santa Fe Land Development Code Update
Lead by: City of Santa Fe Planning and Land Use Department + Clarion
Timeline: 2023 – at least 2026
A three-phase, comprehensive update of Chapter 14 of the City’s General Plan, the Land Development Code. SFWA has served on the Citizens’ Advisory Working Group for the Phase 1 updates to advocate for watershed health, and it standing by for Phases 2 and 3. Learn More
Contact: LDCupdate@santafenm.gov
Paseo Real Water Reclamation Facility Master Planning
Lead by: City of Santa Fe
Timeline: TBA
Ongoing/upcoming efforts to either rehabilitate the existing facility or explore design options for a new facility. SFWA is an active partner advocating for a climate-resilient, state-of-the-art facility as well as a robust and ongoing community engagement plan.
Contact: TBA
Santa Fe Water 2100: Water Resource Planning Process
Lead by: City of Santa Fe Water Division, Santa Fe County
Timeline: TBA
An updated long-range water supply planning process. Learn More
Contact: TBA
Santa Fe County Sustainable Growth Management Plan Update
Lead by: Santa Fe County Growth Management/Land Use Department
Timeline: TBA
Description: TBA. Learn More
Contact: TBA
New Mexico State Regional Water Planning
Lead by: NM Interstate Stream Commission, NM Office of the State Engineer
Timeline: Ongoing
Regional water planning under New Mexico’s Water Security Planning Act of 2023. Learn More
Contact: Contact – Main Stream New Mexico
BLM Lower Santa Fe River Restoration Plan Update
Lead by: U.S. Bureau of Land Management
Timeline: Ongoing
Updating restoration plan and beginning implementation project in the lower Santa Fe river channel. SFWA is a supporting partner for this project. Learn More
Contact: sdunn@blm.gov
Select a tab below to learn more about our involvement in key local water planning committees and coalitions.
Santa Fe Forward General Plan Update
Roles: Community Partner and a member of the Technical Working Group
The General Plan is like the strategic plan of the City, and will likely be in effect for the next 20 years. It should reflect the values of the community and high-level priorities for how the City functions, and guide ongoing updates to all chapters of City code. SFWA is the only entity serving as both a community partner and a member of the technical working group, and the only environmental representative on the TWG. Learn More
City of Santa Fe Water Conservation Committee
Role: public partner
While SFWA is not an official member of the Santa Fe Water Conservation Committee, we attend every meeting as a public partner of the Committee and the Water Conservation Office. We help connect Water Conservation priorities to other interests in the watershed and report on our education contract with the Water Conservation Office. SFWA and the Water Conservation Committee have a long history of partnership, working together to empower Santa Feans to save water and care for our urban watershed.
City of Santa Fe River Commission
Role: public partner
While SFWA is not an official member of the River Commission, we attend every meeting as a public partner of the Commission and the River and Watershed Section. We help provide information and context to Commissioners, and report on our Adopt Your Watershed contract with the River and Watershed section. SFWA and the River Commission have a long history of partnership, from starting the Adopt-the-River program in 2002, to passing the 2012 Living River Ordinance, to continued collaboration on a host of topics from Two Mile Pond to Green Stormwater Infrastructure.
Santa Fe County Water Policy Advisory Committee
Role: Member through SFWA’s board president, Peter Gowen
Description: The WPAC‘s primary responsibility is to provide recommendations to the Board of County Commissioners (BCC) concerning sustainable utility services, domestic water supply and conservation, wastewater management and reclamation, irrigation, drought management, flood prevention and control, and water reuse in the County and region.
SF Community Educators’ Network
Role: collaborator
The Santa Fe Community Educators’ Network (SFCEN) is a collection of educators from forty-five different organizations throughout Santa Fe and the surrounding areas who believe in the power of collaboration to enhance experiential education in our community. Collectively we promote hands-on, project based learning in the community through engaging programming in a variety of settings.
Santa Fe River Traditional Communities Collaborative
Roles: administrative support and founding partner
The Santa Fe River Traditional Communities Collaborative (SFRTCC) began as a group responding to a Santa Fe River restoration proposal in 2012 and has evolved into a regular forum for individuals who share concerns about the Santa Fe River Watershed–especially the Lower Watershed–the health of its riparian environment, and the rich cultural traditions of its agricultural history.
Greater Santa Fe Fireshed Coalition
Roles: founding partner, 2023 co-chair, 2024 chair
The Greater Santa Fe Fireshed Coalition uses a pro-active, collaborative approach to improve the health and long-term resilience of forested watersheds and communities by addressing wildfire. The Coalition works to build support, understanding, and shared knowledge of the role of fire in an adaptive framework to realize our goals. Our primary goal is to identify and implement high priority on-the ground projects that make the Fireshed and its communities more resilient to wildfire while maintaining and restoring resilient landscapes. This goal will be realized when fire is used as a tool for management throughout our fire adapted forests, and communities in and adjacent to these forests become fire adapted – they understand the role of fire and are prepared for its occurrence.
Upper Watershed Partners Convening
Role: unofficial chair
Description: SFWA helped write the 2010 Municipal Watershed Plan alongside the US Forest Service, the City of Santa Fe Water Division, Audubon New Mexico (now Southwest), and The Nature Conservancy, and was charged with leading education and outreach efforts for the Plan. Since then, SFWA has also assumed the unofficial role of facilitating quarterly convenings for partners to share updates. Since 2022, the convening of original signatories has expanded to include other key partners including the Pueblo of Tesuque Department of Natural Resources, Forest Stewards Guild, Trees, Water & People, the City of Santa Fe Wildland Fire Department, the City River and Watershed Section, and the Webster Lab at UNM. SFWA is now working with partners to update the plan by its expiration in 2029. Learn More
Protect the Pecos/Stop Terrero Mine Coalition
Role: partner
Protect the Pecos is a grassroots campaign led by the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance and the Upper Pecos Watershed Association working on multiple fronts to reduce the threat of mining in the upper Pecos watersheds, which border the upper Santa Fe watershed along the Thompson Peak ridgeline. Because of the interconnected nature of the two watersheds, ecosystems, water supplies, and cultural heritage, SFWA is a proud partner in the effort to expand legal protections for the Pecos.
Rio Grande Water Fund
Role: signatory
The Rio Grande Water Fund is an initiative of The Nature Conservancy that invests in the restoration of forested lands upstream so we can secure pure fresh water. It is guided by a 2014 comprehensive plan signed by over 100 private and public organizations. The goal is to generate sustainable funding over the next 20 years to proactively increase the pace and scale of forest restoration, including the most high-risk areas in the Rio Grande watershed. This innovative project offers a solution that can bring clean water and outdoor opportunities to New Mexicans for generations to come.
Rio Grande Navigator Network
Role: member
A new initiative by the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership working with diverse entities to support landscape-scale restoration and stewardship projects throughout the Rio Grande Basin.
City of Santa Fe Land Development Code Update
Role: member
The City of Santa Fe Land Development Code Update is a three-phase, comprehensive update of Chapter 14 of the City’s General Plan, the Land Development Code. SFWA has served on the Citizens’ Advisory Working Group for the Phase 1 updates to advocate for watershed health, and it standing by for Phases 2 and 3.
ARID Institute
Role: nonprofit collaborator
The Accelerating Resilience In Drylands (ARID) Institute at the University of New Mexico enhances the resilience of communities, ecosystems, and the economy to climate change through inclusive and equitable research, education and collaborative partnerships in New Mexico and drylands worldwide.
ARID LID Coalition
Role: member
The Arid Low Impact Development (LID) Coalition is a collaborative, multi-disciplinary network of practitioners representing an array of perspectives, skills, and organizations who share the mission to increase the use of Green Stormwater Infrastructure, Low Impact Development (GSI/LID) and Rainwater Harvesting practices in New Mexico through education, policy advocacy, and demonstration projects that benefit nature and people.
New Mexico Beaver Coalition
Role: member
The purpose of the New Mexico Beaver Coalition is to bring together a diverse group of state, federal, tribal, non-profit, for-profit organizations, and individuals to share information, coordinate activities, and identify common interests and opportunities to work collaboratively to expand the distribution of beaver across New Mexico. The Coalition meets quarterly to discuss and advance the status of beaver-related activities such as planning for beaver management, beaver habitat expansion, human-beaver coexistence, beaver relocation, and beaver education and outreach. The Coalition hosts webinars with invited speakers, field trips to beaver habitat restoration sites, and workshops on human-beaver coexistence methods.
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Upper Watershed |
Middle Watershed |
Lower Watershed |
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Canada de los Alamos Canyon Neighborhood Association Acequia del Llano Acequia Cerro Gordo Acequia de la Muralla Acequia Madre Greater Santa Fe Fireshed Coalition St. John’s College UNM – Biology NM Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute |
Canada de los Alamos
Canyon Neighborhood Association Homeowners Associations Acequia del Llano Acequia Cerro Gordo Acequia de la Muralla Acequia Madre Greater Santa Fe Fireshed Coalition St. John’s College Village of Agua Fria S3 Housing Initiative Santa Fe Fat Tire Society Santa Fe Metropolitan Planning Organization Santa Fe Public Schools Santa Fe River Commission Santa Fe Water Conservation Committee Private landowners |
El Valle de La Cieneguilla Land Grant Village of La Cienega Village of La Bajada La Cienega Valley Association Acequia de la Cienega Acequia El Guicu Caja del Rio Livestock Association Caja del Rio Coalition El Rancho de las Golondrinas Ojo Santa Fe Santa Fe Girls School Santa Fe River Traditional Communities Collaborative Private landowners |
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Nonprofits (Forest Stewards Guild, National Forest Foundation, Audubon Southwest and Randall Davey Audubon Center, The Nature Conservancy, New Mexico Wilderness Alliance, WildEarth Guardians, Defenders of Wildlife, Xerces Society, Sierra Club, American Rivers, Santa Fe Conservation Trust, New Mexico Land Conservancy, New Mexico Acequia Association, Amigos Bravos, Rio Grande Return, Keep Santa Fe Beautiful, Santa Fe Watershed Association) |
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Federal (US Forest Service, US Geological Survey, US Bureau of Reclamation, US Bureau of Land Management, US Environmental Protection Agency, US National Guard) |
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| State of New Mexico (State Land Office, NM Environment Department, NM Energy, Minerals, and Natural Resources Department) | ||
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Tribal (Pueblo de Cochiti, Pueblo of Tesuque, Jemez Pueblo, Pojoaque Pueblo, Nambe Pueblo, Kewa Pueblo) |
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Local Government (City of Santa Fe, Santa Fe County, Sandoval County, Pojoaque Soil and Water Conservation District) |
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