Background
River
restoration currently constitutes a broad and an active area of research in
water resources (Wohl et al., 2015). A successful
restoration project involves coupling of ecological, hydrological and
environmental sciences with the aim to recreate, initiate or accelerate the
recovery of an ecosystem that has been disturbed (Vaughn et al., 2010). Over
the past decades different restoration projects and approaches have been
implemented in New Mexico. Some of these initiatives have been fostered by the
state (e.g. River Ecosystem Restoration Initiative) and others by non-profit
organizations (e.g. Save our Bosque Task Force, SOBTF).
This
semester, as part of our Stream Restoration Class (CE 598), we had the
opportunity to contribute to one of the projects conducted by the SOBTF in a privately
owned land in Socorro County referred from here on as the Rhodes property. The
property is located 75 miles south of Albuquerque, on the east side of the Rio
Grande (Figure 1).
For the current phase of the project our class is proposing a restoration
approach that involves restoration of native vegetation and assessment of the
water resources (quality and availability) of the area to help the landowner
pursue funding and partnership from different federal organizations.
Part of the assessment of water resources
consisted on studying the groundwater to ensure a sustainable restoration
design. The main objectives for this project are:
·
Evaluate past and present hydrogeologic
conditions of the site
•
Assess the groundwater quality of the area
•
Study the feasibility of the proposed vegetation
restoration goals based on the groundwater quality and availability
Figure 1. Rhodes property location map