Input sought on SF water planning

The City of Santa FeWater Conservation Office is hosting five public community conversation sessions to obtain input prior to developing a five-year water conservation plan. The kick-off meeting on March 2 was an informational session titled Climate Change, Water and Resiliency: A Vision for the Future. It provided important background on what the City is already doing with water conservation including partnership work with other entities in the City, outreach in the public schools, information on our water supply, and howwater is used by different sectors as well as our residential, commercial, and outdoor rebate programs.

The public input sessions that follow will be conducted using consensus-building techniques that will allow for open discussion on focused topics regarding both residential and commercial sectors, issues related to climate change, and our increased desire to build more partnership projects in the community. Instead of drafting a plan and then asking for input, we want to better understand the community’s priorities on how they value water and what they’d like to see us do.

All the input collected at each session will be posted on www.savewatersantafe. com, and input can also be given directly on our website. We will have a FAQ section where we compile questions and answers that come up throughout the process. We are hoping for an integrative community process and hope to be as transparent as possible for the duration of this public input period. The result is hopefully a plan that reflects the values of our wonderful community.

Here is the schedule for the public sessions: “ResidentialWater” 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, March 30, at Santa Fe University of Art & Design (Community Room), 1600 St. Michaels Drive

“Commercial & IndustryWater Efficiency Solutions”

5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, April 11, at Santa Fe Public Library, 145Washington Avenue “Facing Climate Change & Drought” 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, April 13, at Southside Library, 6599 Jaguar Drive

“Community Collaborations & Partnerships”

10 a.m. to noon Saturday, May 11, at Genoveva Chavez Community Center, 3221 Rodeo Road

These meetings are free to the public and co-hosted by the City of Santa FeWater Conservation Office, the City’sWater Conservation Committee, and the Santa FeWatershed Association.

Christine Y. Chavez has a background in water rights administration and energy and water conservation program management in the state of New Mexico. She is a graduate of New Mexico State University with a B.S. in environmental science and an M.S. in biology. Christine is theWater Conservation Manager for the City of Santa Fe. She may be reached at 505.955.4219 or cychavez@santafenm.gov