FIRST: Send a protest letter.
Other forms of public pressure, such as phone
calls, petitions, emails, letters to editors,
contacting of legislators, etc. will be helpful
- but FIRST as many protest letters as possible
must be filed! The protest letters are the
first legal steps to take, so be sure to take
that first step before you do anything else.
One size won’t fit all!
Use the information below to create your own,
unique letter.
Protests won’t be effective
if people just copy a template and send the
same letter with just the details changed,
but all letters do need the following basic
information:
State that your letter is a formal
protest against the Application for Appropriation
of Ground-water for proposed Well Application
Number RG-89943
State that you are protesting
the application by Augustin Plains Ranch, LLC
number RG-89943 and that they propose to drill
thirty-seven (37) wells, all with 20-inch casing,
and all approximately 2000 feet deep throughout
an area of Catron County North and South of
US Highway 60, from the Catron County/Socorro
County line to near Datil, New Mexico, on land
owned by Augustin Plains Ranch, LLC. (Augustin
Plains Ranch generally lies within numerous
sections of Township 1 South, Range 9 West,
and Township 2 South, Range 9 West, N.M.P.M.
)
State that Augustin Plains
Ranch, LLC further proposes to divert and
consumptively use 54,000 acre-feet (more
than 17 Billion gallons) of ground water
per annum for domestic, livestock, irrigation,
municipal, industrial, and commercial purposes
to use, to include "providing
water to the State of New Mexico to augment
its capacity to meet the Rio Grande Compact
deliveries to the State of Texas…at
Elephant Butte Dam," and "[offsetting]
effects of ground water pumping on the Rio
Grande in lieu of retirement of Agriculture" via
a pipeline to the Rio Grande.
State who you are:
* Where you live (and whether you own it or
are renting),
* A description of your property (ranch, farm,
land, subdivision parcel), including the legal
description of your land (township, range,
section and other legal description).
State that you have pre-existing, senior water
rights on your property (if you own other properties
with water rights, provide the info in 4b)
* The legal description of the water rights
* The number of wells or springs and a statement
of how long the rights have been established
(date since usage began).
State that you feel that the Augustin Plains
Ranch, LLC proposed application for the taking
of water will significantly, substantially
and seriously impair or even destroy your pre-existing
water rights. Include reasons you feel this
way.
Examples:
* A statement as to the fact that your pre-existing,
senior water rights water rights are essential
to your use and enjoyment of your land, and/or
to your livelihood, and to your rights to
the fair market value of your property
* Your comments can include concerns about
other than your own water, such as concerns
about water conservation, the negative impact
on public welfare and/or the environment,
the drought, threat to the existing water
table and related risk of wildfire as trees
die, the effect on the local economy.
The State Engineer's Office is supposed to
protect the groundwater resource on behalf
of the citizens of New Mexico
If you have access to legal advice or are an
attorney, you may consider bringing up law
re: pre-existing, senior water rights of an
entire region of New Mexico.
If you have access to or are a hydrologist,
you may consider bringing points based on that
point of view.
For other ideas, you can go to
the OSE website and see what things are considered
important by the State of New Mexico as pertains
to water http://www.ose.state.nm.us/faq_index.html
You can also go to www.catroncounty.net/water
after Dec. 6 for more info
End your letter with this exact
wording: “I
am opposed to the well permit submitted
by Augustin Plains Ranch LLC, application
number RG-89943.
Sign the letter, make sure your name and
address are printed under the signature