Fact Sheet
What is the Tijeras Creek Project?
In the canyon east of Albuquerque, along
Tijeras Creek, are reaches where storm water causes problems such as
increased flooding, pollution, and
erosion. The Tijeras Creek Demonstration and Education Project is designed
to treat one of those areas to reduce the
impacts of
urbanization on the riparian (streamside) environment and on the creek
itself. The site, near the A. Montoya-Roosevelt school campus, will serve
as an example of the methods (called "Best management Practices", or BMPs)
used to solve these problems. The project could have widespread impact, as
many streams in New Mexico flow through increasingly populated urban areas.
Who is sponsoring the project?
The Ciudad Soil and Water Conservation
District is the project coordinator. The conservation district is directed
by a board of local citizens knowledgeable about natural resources in
Bernalillo and Southern Sandoval Counties. Funding and oversight are
provided by the New Mexico Environment Department, the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, and the state Soil and Water Conservation Commission.
Natural Resources Conservation Service provides technical assistance.
What will the project accomplish on the ground?
Ciudad is installing several kinds of
structures between the school parking lots and Tijeras Creek. These
structures are designed to slow down the storm water leaving the school
property enough to allow much of it to soak into the ground and keep it from
eroding the stream banks. We are creating special areas where the soil,
plants, and microorganisms in the ground can work together to filter out
pollutants carried in the runoff. At the same time, we remove some of the
invasive plants such as Siberian elm and toadflax, and replace them with
native species of trees, shrubs, grasses, and wildflowers. The site will be
able to be used for class field trips to learn about the local ecology.
What is the "education" part of the project?
District staff works with the schools to
involve children in the project. Students participate in outdoor activities
like water sampling, measuring ground slope, planting, and wildlife
inventories. Students will learn the "hows" and "whys" during class time
using lesson plans developed for this project. We also hold tours of the
site and workshops to demonstrate how the BMPs do their job of protecting
the creek. Signs near the site will describe the project to passers-by.
Who can I contact for more
information?
Call the Ciudad SWCD at 761-5446 and ask
for Sue Hansen. |
Background
Tijeras Creek is a small but important perennial (year-round) stream that
carries water from the east flank of the Sandia Mountains to the
Albuquerque Basin, where it sinks into the sandy soil to eventually
recharge the aquifer from which the city draws its water supply. The
creek flows through the Village of Tijeras, which has experienced
significant growth in recent years. That growth brought new
buildings for a library, post office, and businesses, as well as
expanded community center and school buildings, with their
associated parking lots and playgrounds.
When rain
or snow falls on forest or grasslands, most of it tends to soak into
the ground. It becomes available to plant roots and microorganisms
living in the soil, freeing up nutrients for the trees and shrubs,
grasses, and wildflowers. Excess water runs off toward the lowest
point, usually an arroyo or stream.
Urbanization
- the change from a natural environment to a man-made setting with
buildings and pavement - leads to changes in the natural areas
that remain. Runoff from roofs and roadways doesn't have as much
opportunity to soak into the ground. All this extra water collects
and flows over the landscape faster than it did before, picking up
pollutants like oil and salt from the roads. The higher, faster
flows coming off the pavement have enough force to wash away soil
particles once they reach unpaved ground, creating gullies that
funnel ever more pollutant-laden runoff towards the stream.
This
process can be seen along a reach of Tijeras Creek north of the
A. Montoya- Roosevelt campus. Runoff from the schools'
roofs, parking lots, and playground flows to several drains that
empty into the riparian (riverside) area. During summer monsoons,
the flows are strong enough to erode deep gullies, despite the
abundance of vegetation near the creek. This runoff carries sediment
and other pollutants to Tijeras Creek. Increased runoff from
urbanized areas up and down the creek multiply the effect, leading
to bigger floods, more erosion, and lower water quality overall.
The Tijeras
Creek Project will demonstrate methods that can be used to slow down
the flows leaving the school grounds and filter out pollutants from
the runoff. Structures such as stilling basins (small ponds with
protected bottoms) at the drain outlets and swales (shallow,
nearly-level trenches) will be combined with replacement plantings
and reshaping the eroded areas to allow as much water as possible to
soak into the soil within the riparian zone. The runoff that reaches
Tijeras Creek will flow slower and cleaner again, much like it did
before urbanization.
In the
mid-1990s, A. Montoya Elementary School had a problem with water
from the roof undermining the building foundation and washing the
soil across the sidewalks and driveway. The Ciudad Soil and Water
Conservation District installed a natural water harvesting system
that catches the runoff before it can cause damage, and uses it to
water some landscaping in front of the main building. We were able
to solve the problem by treating the water as an asset instead of a
liability. The Tijeras Creek Project will use the same conservation
principles on a different part of the campus, helping the community
work toward keeping our natural resources healthy in an urban
environment. |
