SENATE JOINT MEMORIAL 68

47th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2006

INTRODUCED BY

Richard C. Martinez

A JOINT MEMORIAL

RECOGNIZING THE IMPORTANCE OF ACEQUIA CULTURE WITHIN THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO AND RECOMMENDING THAT AN ACEQUIA HOLIDAY BE DECLARED THE THIRD FRIDAY OF EVERY APRIL.

     WHEREAS, the historic role of acequias in New Mexico has been significant and impressive, and the acequia can be accurately described as the birthplace of a community; and

     WHEREAS, after more than four centuries, the acequias have withstood the test of time, making them the oldest water management institutions in the United States, with strong historical ties to the even more ancient systems of medieval Europe and northern Africa; and

     WHEREAS, currently, over one thousand acequias imprinting the rural landscapes of New Mexico have survived virtually intact through a succession of political, legal and administrative changes during Spanish, Mexican, territorial and statehood periods, and the acequia has been the main force establishing the distinct place and boundaries of communities; and

     WHEREAS, acequias are self-governing institutions and have continuously performed essential services for the communities that they founded, enabling agricultural production, sustaining popular participation, promoting income distribution and equity and protecting watershed resources; and

     WHEREAS, technological, economic, demographic and social changes have produced pressures and uncertainties beyond the acequias' control; and

     WHEREAS, the traditional system of common property placed a value on a set of communal rights and responsibilities that has been challenged by another value system that views acequia water rights as a commodity, putting at risk the acequias both as physical watercourses and as democratic institutions for local water management; and

     WHEREAS, the annual cleaning of the acequia was and still is one of the most important events in New Mexico communities, and the cleaning of the acequia not only marks the beginning of the agricultural season, it is also an occasion for the vecinos to address other local issues, reconfirming the sense of tradition that undergirds the social and political life of the community; and

     WHEREAS, at the time of this annual ritual, parciantes renew their strong attachment to the locality, assuring the continuance of a place for yet another cycle of irrigation;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the third Friday of every April be set aside to recognize the contributions of acequia culture to New Mexico; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the governor and the acequia commission for appropriate distribution.

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