No Farms, No Food, No Cranes

A new crop is taking root in the irrigated fields of the middle Rio Grande Valley. Homes are sprouting like weeds in our prime agricultural land. New Mexico has very little land that can support agriculture, and today a precious bit of that farmland is experiencing severe development pressure.

The valley is weathering the ripples of Albuquerque's growth. This growth has helped push the market value of farmland far beyond its agricultural value. This single fact alone spells the end of farming as we know it in the middle Rio Grande valley within a generation, unless something is done soon.

Ironically, the green fields and laid back lifestyle which help draw many new residents are being destroyed by the resulting residential sprawl. Besides the obvious important values of farmland related to local production of food, there are many other equally important reasons to preserve farming.

Family farming has long been a linchpin of the valley's economy and culture. The cultural values and love we have for acequias, ristras, and cattle and horses is dying with agriculture. In addition, farmland provides habitat to many species.

In fact, an important contributor to Socorro county's economy is the tourism industry driven in large part by the waterfowl and other wildlife who call the middle Rio Grande valley home. Sprawling residential development in the Rio Grande bottomlands cuts wildlife off from their water supply and crowds migratory birds onto the dwindling farms, before they finally disappear.

Helping Farmers Keep Farming

Farmers and other concerned citizens who value farming in central New Mexico have formed the Rio Grande Agricultural Land Trust with the express purpose of helping farmers keep farming in the face of a multitude of pressures to stop. Helping farmers will help the community protect its irrigated land, its water supplies, and our ability to produce food and fiber locally. This support helps farmers jump over economic hurdles and pass prime farmland onto future generations who will appreciate the open green fields, fertile soil, and wildlife inherited from past generations as much as we do. The Land Trust will accomplish these goals by promoting the voluntary use of conservation easements and the transfer of development rights. Conservation easements can be employed by landowners who wish to restrict the ability to develop their land, and greatly ease crippling estate taxes. The transfer of development rights can help farmers cash in on much of the high development value of their land while protecting their ownership and right to farm.

Cranes on a Field Hayride

Later this month, we will sponsor the third annual Hayride Fiesta as part of Bosque del Apache's Festival of the Cranes. Come enjoy a leisurely ride through the farm fields in the Rio Grande valley as we wend our way along irrigation ditches in Socorro County.

Witness how the birds of the Bosque del Apache utilize the farm fields for feeding. After stopping for a wine tasting at a beautiful ranch house, the ride ends at an art gallery in the quaint village of San Acacia. At the gallery we will enjoy a fiesta with traditional New Mexico foods and music.