Ledes from the Land of Enchantment

Irrigation district seeks Corrales siphon solution

Diesel pumps and pipelines near Siphon Beach have delivered Rio Grande water to Corrales irrigators this spring and summer after a siphon broke. The Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District is considering several options to repair or replace the siphon. (Chancey Bush/)

The Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District is exploring how to repair or replace a broken siphon that has strained the Corrales irrigation water supply.

Low river levels and high-maintenance equipment have hampered this summer’s temporary solution to the aging infrastructure.

Earlier this year after finding a hole in the siphon, the district installed two diesel-powered pumps and buried pipelines to deliver river water directly into the main Corrales canal.

Longtime Corrales farmer Anthony Wagner said the village growers want the district to build a new siphon and return consistent water to apple orchards and chile fields.

“We’d hate to lose all that,” Wagner said.

Recent rains have kept river levels high enough that the pumps are still operable.

But sediment and debris often clog the intakes. Burning diesel near the bosque is also a fire hazard.

Wilson & Company engineers proposed at least seven project options to the district.

The 1,200-foot-long Corrales siphon, built in 1933, runs underneath the river and uses gravity to move water to lands west of the Rio Grande.

Engineer Tyler Ashton said the team still needs to clean the siphon before recommending a final solution.

“There’s just too much sediment so we can’t seem to figure out what the actual condition inside that siphon is right now,” Ashton said.

The repair options include:

■ Siphon liner: $4 to $6 million

■ Building a new siphon: $4 to $9 million

■ Permanent pumping station: $6 to $8 million

■ New river diversion: $4 to $6 million

Projects that involve working in the Rio Grande will promptly costly and time-intensive environmental assessments.

MRGCD is funding the design work.

But state money will likely be necessary to build a permanent fix, said Rep. Jane Powdrell-Culbert, a Corrales Republican.

“If you’re in Corrales on a daily basis when everything’s running well, there’s always people looking for fresh fruit and vegetables,” Powdrell-Culbert said. “This is very important to us and it’s important to our community.”

Corrales Democrat Rep. Daymon Ely said he would help the district work with PNM on an easement agreement to electrify the temporary water pumps for next year.

Amid crippling drought and the siphon issues, the district had strongly encouraged Corrales farmers to participate in a program that pays for every acre they don’t water this season.

“We need a long-term great solution and a short-term good solution to ensure that agriculture is not postponed for the next couple of years,” said Corrales Village Councilor Zach Burkett. “We just simply can’t afford to have that happen.”

The district will pick a project design at the board’s August meeting.

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