Evolution A Story of Flexibility by Jeff Goebel, NM Resolving the - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Evolution

A Story of Flexibility – by Jeff Goebel, NM

Resolving the Mesa Flooding

A New Approach

Overland Flow – Fall 2017

Tour – July 5, 2018

Highline Ditch – 25 miles of water

Fall 2017 – Mechenbier Orchards

• Lost 100 trees
• $1.2 million damage

Interstate 25 cleanup – Fall 2017

Two NM DOT employees hit by passing cars while attempting to create safe conditions Notice the plugged culverts

Interstate 25 clean up after the July 5, 2018 Storm

The Freeway is above the highline ditch, concentrating flows

Flooded home – Fall 2017

• 90-year old couple forced

to move out of their adobe home due to damage

Third Storm Event in a Year

• Belen Main Street –

July 5, 2018

Belen Business District Flood

1000 homes damaged & several businesses closed

My Weather Station July 5, 2018 Storm

My Farm Rainfall Records

Average Rainfall: 7.5”

Overland Flow Management – Planned grazing learning site

Grazing management demonstration

• Purpose: to increase litter &

vegetative cover to sharply reduce overland flows

• Form VSWCD Committee
• Talk with producer & NRCS
• Raise funding (FA < $10k)
• install 25-pasture design
• Implement Planned grazing
• Use Native hay
• Create regional

demonstration area

Managing Water

• n Roads

Outcome: County training their equipment operators

Develop NM Healthy Soil Policy

Awareness Technical Assistance Financial Assistance

NM Healthy Soil Act

 Core team: Robb Hirsch, Isabelle Jenniches, Jeff Goebel, Christina Allday- Bondy  Advisors: Debbie Hughes (NMACD) and NMDA  And many others helping in design…

Figure 3. 2004-2010 Figure 4. 2011-2015 Non-federal rangeland where all three Rangeland health attributes show at least moderate departure from reference conditions

Source: NRCS Natural Resource Inventory https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/national/technical/nra/nri

Wind Erosion

• n Cropland

Wind Erosion – NM vs National Average Impact of Management

Five Principles That Define Healthy Soil

 (1) Keep soil covered  (2) Minimize soil disturbance  (3) Maintain a living root  (4) Maximize biodiversity  (5) Integrate animals

Other core premises

 Land Managers are only ones who “touch” the earth  Support land managers’ success in creating healthy soil  A Systems Approach

Voluntary

Knowledge – limiting beliefs Social & Individual Issues System support

Limiting Belief Systems

 The current state of the land  The current level of land management  The ability to do better – the notion of “possibility”  Old dogs… “early adopters”  Fencing – 19th century technology  What is overgrazing?  Does long-term rest improve the land?  Can we make water more available?

Other Systemic Issues

 Social & Individual Issues need to be addressed:  Peer pressure  Fears (Real & Imagined)  Sense of empowerment  Whole system needs to shift  Some of these supporting areas include: Education Markets Financial – solar wealth / internal Rules & Regulations

Belief Systems: Overgrazing?

 Is it caused by too many animals?  Or too much time that animals are exposed to the plants?  Too much time! Animal numbers simply exacerbate the

• vergrazing problem.

 Grass plants need short grazing periods AND adequate recovery after grazing!

Chaco Canyon NM northeastern boundary

75+ years of no grazing on left side of fence / overgrazing and overstocking on right side

Belief Systems: The impacts of long-term rest

Early European explorers John Audubon: 100,000 bison herds and healthy lands / riparian areas California: 500,000 Tule elk, Russians describing the coastal hills being “black” with animals NM: herds of 10,000 pronghorn & large bands of big horn sheep 60 million bison, 120 million “prairie” elk, 60 million deer, 40 million pronghorn

 One rancher bought a 7,000-acre ranch in 2004  Used planned grazing with 25 pastures  130 days rest - Average 5 days grazing  He reports that: Water infiltration rates: increased 33% Static water levels in the wells: increased 1-2 feet Headquarters well flow: increased from ¼ GPM to 1.5 GPM Stocking rate: 2004: 58 acres per AU 2017: 25 acres per AU Severe drought of 2018: 29 acres per AU

Four Ranch Study Planned Grazing, Season-long, Non-grazed

 Total soil carbon is 30% higher on planned grazing vs season-long  Soil carbon increase higher on planned grazing vs non grazing  Planned grazing has 2X water infiltration rate vs season- long or non-grazed lands

 Other studies; as cover increases, water infiltration increases 10% vegetative/litter cover equals 73% runoff rate 37% cover equals a 14% runoff rate 60-75% cover equals only a 2% runoff rate  1% soil carbon increase, soil retains 20-27,000 gallons / acre  Research indicates soil moisture goes up, so does localized rainfall  The question is, what do we need to do to transform the lands

• f New Mexico to get positive increases in soil moisture?

As for Economic Benefit?

➢NM rancher increased income seven fold over 14 years ➢His stocking rate doubled. Management grew him a “second” ranch! ➢Four ranches in TX & HI, which resulted in a net annual $2 million improvement, while significantly improving quality

• f life & ecological conditions

➢Gregg Simonds cut his winter feed costs by 80% in Utah &

• Wyoming. Since winter feed makes up 50% of the typical

northern ranch budget, dramatic increase in profitability

Where can we get more water locally?

 Most folks focus on diminishing snow pack, marginalized dams & water allocation  What is the largest freshwater reservoir in New Mexico? The Soil!  Additional opportunities: Sediment loading of dams Elephant Butte Dam & impact on Rio Grande Compact Rio Puerco is highest sediment loaded river in US “Pink Snow,” affects snow packs  Addresses carbon sequestration and climate resiliency

Where does “pink snow” come from?

Soil deterioration on Navajo Nation and other lands

Two Potential Projects

Rio Puerco “Three Rivers”

Modeling A Regenerative Ranch

1) what do we need to do to transform the lands of New Mexico to get positive increases in soil moisture and overall ranch health? 2) what do we need to do to spread this work throughout New Mexico as the work is in the best interests of land managers & citizens alike?

Mechenbier Ranch

Let’s do it! To help the traditional ranching community move to “modified” regenerative ranches with low input costs, higher returns & healthier ecological regenerative conditions

Implementation of Regenerative Ranching

 Developing a baseline & planning and implementing a grazing management program to regenerate the soil health in this area  Include social, economic & ecological needs & opportunities  Establishing photo points, rangeland transects, soil carbon & infiltration measurements  Holistic goal setting with family & core staff  Involvement of federal, state & other partners  Biological Planning  Appropriate implementation of five land altering tools: Planned Grazing Herd Effect Living Organisms Fire Technology consistent with values

Learning Site Development & Implementation

Enhance the creativity for the ranch Introduce these concepts to neighbors, professionals, decision-makers & other interested parties Disseminate the learning for the purpose of adoption

• f these concepts on a broad & accelerated basis

Learning Site Development & Implementation

Neighborhood meetings Regional trainings HMI courses Conflict Resolution through Consensus Building Other successful methodologies Direct Assistance and Coaching Summer Tour & Regenerative Summit Ongoing Speaker Program

Other Project Potentials

 Rio Puerco Basin Restoration  Three Rivers Restoration Project Navajo Nation – AZ San Juan Valley - CO  Statewide – Four Ranches Central NM SE NM NE NM Northern NM

Two Potential Projects

Rio Puerco “Three Rivers”

“You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.”

• R. Buckminster Fuller

Let’s do something bold! Hugh Hammond Bennett Let’s have “real” change! Let’s make taking care of the soil the norm!

The Evolution – so far…

Resolving the Mesa Flooding Develop NM Healthy Soil Policy Modeling A Regenerative Ranch

Questions?

Jeff Goebel www.aboutlistening.com goebel@aboutlistening.com (541) 610-7084