Bearing Witness to Extractivism, Colonialism: Days 1 & 2

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Interfaith Power & Light New Mexico & El Paso and Sisters of Mercy of the Americas are co-sponsoring an immersion retreat through some areas of New Mexico to bear witness to the damage #extractivism has inflicted on the people and the land of our state.

The retreat starts on Sept. 17 in the northern part of the state, including Los Alamos and the Four Corners. Pilgrims will eventually make their way to the Permian Basin in Southeat New Mexico, concluding on Sept. 23.

Tbe accounts and pictures come courtesy of Heather Scott-Molleda, senior director of communications for Mercy Sisters of the Americas.

Day 1: We Begin a Pilgrimage

We are beginning our pilgrimage through New Mexico to bear witness to the damage #extractivism has done to the people and the land.

 

 

 

 

 

Day 2: Los Alamos and Red Water Pond

As we begin the second day of our pilgrimage through the #sacrificezone of #NewMexico we are grateful for the blessings of Pueblo women elders who joined us at Los Alamos, where the nuclear complex is expanding even as people fight to protect the land and water.

 

 

 

 

 

We closed day 2 of our pilgrimage with a visit to Red Water Pond on Navajo land, which in 1979 suffered the biggest spill of radioactive waste in US history. It was one of the biggest in the world, behind Chernobyl and Fukushima. This was land where their sheep grazed and their children played. Community leader Edith Hood told us they are still waiting for that site and contamination from the closed uranium mines to be cleaned up, while Diné people suffer the health consequences. There is a connection between colonialism and #extractivism
We were very fortunate to receive a Navajo blessing for healing of Mother Earth.

Video: Centering Equity in Water Planning

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An informative, interactive discussion regarding water resilience planning to show how we should equitably share water supplies in our hotter and drier future. IPL New Mexico & El Paso was a co-sponsor of this event organized by The Middle Rio Grande Water Advocates

The Middle Rio Grande Water Advocates and other nongovernmental and community organizations believe centering equity in water planning is crucial for New Mexico’s public health and a balanced and secure future. What does centering equity mean in the context of sharing reduced water supplies, across New Mexico and in the Middle Rio Grande? How should regional water scarcity and resilience planning advance public health, and justice, equity, accessibility, diversity, and inclusiveness. What should the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission forthcoming water planning rules and guidelines say about inclusion of public voices? About equitable access to water to meet human needs and community values?

Panelists include Paula Garcia, Interstate Stream Commissioner and Executive Director of the New Mexico Acequia Association; Jorge Garcia, Executive Director, Center for Social Sustainable Systems. and Marcia Fernandez, a retired teacher who lives on a small South Valley farm, and is a board member of the MRGWA, CESOSS, and South Valley Coalition of Neighborhood Associations.

Water in the Mid Rio Grande Area: A Tale of Two Cities

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(Excerpt from mid Rio Grande Times)

Many of us in the mid Rio Grande area take water for granted when we open the faucet or flush the toilet. We may not know anything about the processes for supplying potable water or its disposal after use. We probably notice that our water bills also contain a bill for wastewater disposal, and we may realize that our water disposal is related to our water use.  But we may know very little about the water management system.

In the larger metro area, the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority (ABCWUA) manages drinking water and wastewater disposal. The Albuquerque Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) for which census data is regularly collected includes Albuquerque as well as towns such as Estancia, Moriarty, Edgewood, Cedar Crest, and surrounding areas.  Not all of the MSA is served by ABCWUA, though.  ABCWUA draws on the Middle Rio Grande Basin for groundwater, while the Estancia Basin is used by many non-urban water users in the area.

Households in non-urban settings have more direct involvement in their own water supply and disposal.  Non-urban households – outside of towns with municipal water supplies – get their water from groundwater wells and dispose of their wastewater through onsite (septic) treatment systems.

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