WildEarth Guardians

Sunday, November 12, 2006
Rio Puerco: Native Plants are Being Revived in Places Invasive Species Were Thriving

WildEarth Guardians is restoring a three-mile stretch of the Rio Puerco near Cuba in northern New Mexico
Contact: Eric Billingsley Albuquerque Journal

Native sunflowers, grasses and marsh reeds now thrive on a stretch of the Pecos River where invasive salt cedar and Russian olive used to prevail.

Three years ago, the Carlsbad Soil and Water Conservation District sprayed the half-mile area with herbicides to kill the invasive species, known as non-native phreatophytes. Last year, it mechanically removed dead-standing salt cedar and Russian olive and replanted native vegetation.

"The openness is allowing the land to breathe," says Aaron Curbello, district manager for the conservation district, adding that the native plants are vigorously taking hold and regrowth of invasive plants is minimal.

The Pecos River project is one of a number of riparian restoration sites statewide. Riparian restoration refers to re-introducing native plants into river areas after invasive species have been removed and re-establishing an area's natural ecology as much as possible.

Invasives such as salt cedar and Russian olive are blamed for depleting stream flows and choking out wildlife. They can also be a management problem for ranchers and environmentalists alike. However, some say restoration efforts are limiting their access to land.

Cutting, burning and treating sites with herbicides are the first steps in controlling the problem. But experts say restoration and long-term management of sites are the second half of the solution.

"If you haven't changed the underlying issues that favor non-natives, you limit long-term success," says Steve Harris, a member of the New Mexico Soil and Water Conservation Commission and head of Rio Grande Restoration, an environmental group.

Mimicking nature

Salt cedar was introduced to New Mexico in the early part of the 20th century to stabilize river banks. It quickly spread and now covers an estimated 500,000 acres on rivers and streams statewide, according to the New Mexico Non-Native Phreatophyte/Watershed Management Plan, which was created in 2005 at the request of the state Legislature.

Dams, river diversions, depletion of aquifers and overgrazing contribute to the problem by changing natural hydrological cycles that support healthy native vegetation, says John Horning, executive director of Santa Fe-based WildEarth Guardians, an environmental advocacy group.

"When the native stuff can't thrive and survive, the non-natives fill the vacuum," he says.

Restoration projects first involve studying the hydrology, plant life and environmental conditions of a given site and developing a plan.

Techniques differ depending on the natural hydrology of an area. Spot treatment of invasive species is required in the beginning. Some projects have attempted to mimic natural flood cycles. And cattle ranchers are often required to restrict grazing on river banks during restoration.

"If you have a methodology that works, it all works," says Greg Fenchel of the Natural Resources Conservation Service Plant Materials Center in Los Lunas, which supplies plants for restoration projects in New Mexico.

Healthy riparian areas strengthen riverbanks and provide habitat for wildlife. As restored areas mature, they typically use less water than salt cedar and Russian olive thickets, says Fenchel.

Survival of the fittest

WildEarth Guardians is restoring a three-mile stretch of the Rio Puerco near Cuba in northern New Mexico.

The group started the project by restricting cattle grazing in 2002. It mechanically removed salt cedar in 2003-06, and simultaneously planted 10,000 cottonwoods and willows. Sites are also fenced to prevent wildlife from harming young saplings.

Horning says native willow is taking hold. New sprouts appear each year and are spreading downstream. Cottonwoods are also re-sprouting.

"We plant as much as we can, the hope being we can step away in three to five years and it can grow on its own," says Horning.

The group also restored a site on the Santa Fe River. Since 1997, hundreds of cottonwoods have grown to an average height of 30 feet, a wetland has re-established, and most non-natives have been choked out of the restoration zone.

In 2004, salt cedar and Russian olive were mechanically removed from a 17-acre site on the Rio Grande near Belen. The project is a joint effort of the Bureau of Land Management, New Mexico State University, Valencia Soil and Water Conservation District, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service.

In 2006, 700 cottonwoods and 700 New Mexico olives were planted on the site.

"The trees are real happy," Fenchel says. "It's continual management. For about three to four years, you have to stay on it." Pests, weeds and non-native sprouts all need to be monitored.

There are control and restoration projects on the Upper Rio Grande, Lower Rio Grande, Pecos River, Rio Puerco and Canadian River.

Land use

Rancher Gary Walterscheid considers salt cedar removal and riparian restoration good business. His family has farmed alfalfa, cotton and cattle on the Pecos for generations. Salt cedar created a fire hazard, forced flood water onto his land and decreased river flow, he says. His cattle also used to get lost in thickets.

The Carlsbad Soil and Water Conservation District treated most of the salt cedar on his land and recently started mechanically removing tree roots and restoring vegetation. "When my dad started ranching, water wasn't as big an issue. But the further on we get, it's a big issue and we have to save every gallon," says Walterscheid. He has witnessed increased water flow in the river and the return of native plants.

Hughes says the extent of riparian restoration projects headed by soil and water conservation districts is wholly dependent on the use of the land and the ownership. Most private landowners support it, but some don't.

Longtime Rio Puerco rancher Louis Wiese isn't so convinced of the value of riparian restoration. "I'm not seeing much good coming from the projects," he says.

Fencing off restoration projects on the Rio Puerco has reduced his cattle grazing land. He says willows and cottonwoods suck just as much water as salt cedar and Russian olive. And he fears ranchers will eventually lose control of water in the area.

"We've had this ranch three generations," says Wiese. "We have grandkids. If this happens, we'll just have to sell, and we'll lose the ranch for the grandkids."

Gail Garber, executive director of Hawks Aloft Inc., a New Mexico-based bird conservation group, supports riparian restoration. But she says it needs to be done carefully.

For example, the endangered Southwestern willow flycatcher nests in salt cedar stands south of Albuquerque. And Russian olive fruit is an important food source for birds in winter.

"There's never a clear-cut answer," she says.

Copyright 2006 Albuquerque Journal - Reprinted with permission