New Mexico Geological Society Annual Spring Meeting — Abstracts

Communities and watersheds in the eastern Navajo Nation (northwest New Mexico) have undertaken many changes to its landscapes including clear-cutting of pinon-juniper forests, overgrazing, erosion and drying of river beds, drought, extraction of resources, and importation of water resources. The jurisdictional complexity of this area has caused challenges in management of these watersheds and communities through these changes. The changes in landscape have political, social, economic, and cultural underpinnings. Strategies to address these changes require approaches informed by multiple disciplines and by the communities who have had longstanding relationships with these watersheds and landscapes. In this talk, I will highlight key lessons, current efforts, and potential pathways forward in addressing environmental changes in the eastern Navajo Nation from my perspective and experience as an earth scientist/hydrologist, planner, former Navajo Nation Water Rights Commissioner, and community member of Na’Neelzhiin (Torreon, NM).