Zuni Drought Contingency Plan

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Zuni Drought Contingency Plan

• Kirk Bemis, Hydrologist
• Water Resources Section
• Zuni Tribe

Drought Planning Workshop
Flagstaff, AZ June 30, 2004
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Plan Development

• 1996 Drought Emergency Assistance request to
• USBR includes 27,000 for Plan
• 1997 Grant under USBR Drought Relief Act
• 1998 Tribal learning, planning, meetings
• 1999 Tribal consultant technical work
• 2000 Drought delays but influences Plan
• 2001 Plan completed adopted by Resolution

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Plan Features

• Only for lands in Zuni River Basin in New Mexico
• Monitoring indicators use existing data efforts
• List of possible response actions for each water
  use sector regardless of drought stage
• Emphasis on mitigation actions to reduce risk
• Uses existing programs no new committees
• Overall responsibility with Water Resources
  Section
• Short, simple, user-friendly document

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Plan DevelopmentChallenges Lessons Learned

• Cultural taboo to plan for drought public
  involvement
• Water rights considerations for water supply and
  use data
• Risk increased by Tribal financial and political
  drought lack of water rights,
  development (esp. groundwater), maintenance, and
  management policies and resources
• Planning well for some hypothetical situations
• Selling the need for a Plan as a worthy
  investment (No Tribal contingency plans
  for other hazards!)
• Avoiding typical fate of plans doomed to the
  bookshelf

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Plan Implementation

• May 15, 2002 - First monitoring report shows
  PDSIWarning, ZPIAlert, SFIEmergency monthly
  reports ever since
• May 17, 2002 - Drought Emergency Declared by
  Council
• May 30 to August 12, 2002 - Five meetings held
  for impact assessment and response actions focus
  on ranching
• August 16, 2002 - Drought Response Report
  completed
• Priority for ranch public water hauling sites
  private donation
• August 28, 2002 - Livestock Drought Seminar
  conducted
• Public information via local radio, newspaper,
  flyers, meetings

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Plan Implementation Lessons Learned

• Drought magnifies weaknesses in physical
  infrastructure, natural resources management
  governmental organizations
• These weaknesses have increased risk but also
  endurance
• Community habit of having little and relying on
  government
• Minimize short-term relief that increases
  vulnerability dependence on government
• Emphasize long-term mitigation to improve basic
  resource management and land user self-reliance
• Plan is needed to help ourselves since minimal
  assistance is available just for drought, even
  with a Plan
• Too many important tasks to rely on single person
  for lead

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Plan Revisions

• Every 5 years or after drought (2006 or sooner)
• Establish formal coordination team(s) and process
  for regular, ongoing evaluation of drought status
• Revise monitoring indicators to reflect longer
  periods
• Formalize flexible monitoring criteria for
  declarations
• Clarify protocol and consequences for
  declarations
• Pursue more community education and involvement
• Revisions for Reclamation/Congressional
  recognition?

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Thank You! Questions?