483:
502:
419:). For example, the Doctrine of Prior Appropriation is based on the principle of "first in use, first in right", while acequia norms incorporate not just priority but principles of equity and fairness. This is evident in the fact that Prior Appropriation considers water to be a commodity owned by private individuals while acequia systems treat water as a community resource that irrigators have a shared right to use, manage, and protect. The concept of a shared responsibility natural resources reflects the beliefs stemming from the Spanish and Indigenous people who brought the acequia to the U.S. The plethora of cultural behaviors and values that created acequia communities still exist in the United States.
152:
522:
253:
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442:
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221:, or even before. These ways of agricultural planning and colonization strategies come from the vast amount of cultural influences contributing to Spanish technology and governance. Likely the most meaningful stemmed from the Muslims that ruled parts of Spain for as long as eight centuries. Their ways of life influenced the Spanish and changed the way agriculture was done in Spain.
362:, provide terrestrial wildlife habitat and movement corridors. They also protect water quality and fish habitat, promote the conservation of domesticated biodiversity of land race heirloom crops, and encourage the maintenance of a strong land and water ethic and sense of place, among other ecological and economic base values. This pioneering research on acequia
501:
482:
422:
While prior doctrines allow for water to be sold away from the basin of origin, the acequia system prohibits the transference of water from the watershed in which it is situated and thus considers water as an "asset-in-place". The Prior regime is based on a governance regime in which the members of a
410:
Acequias in New Mexico and
Colorado have successfully developed and implemented changes in state water laws to accommodate the unique norms, customs, and practices of the acequia systems. But the communal owners of the acequias in New Mexico are receiving hard economic pushes from land developers and
990:
Raheem, N.; Archambault, S.; Arellano, E.; Gonzales, M.; Kopp, D.; Rivera, J.; Guldan, S.; Boykin, K.; Oldham, C.; Valdez, A.; Colt, S.; Lamadrid, E.; Wang, J.; Price, J.; Goldstein, J.; Arnold, P.; Martin, S.; Dingwell, E. (2015). "A framework for assessing ecosystem services in acequia irrigation
349:
initiated a pioneering collaborative, farmer-led, and interdisciplinary study of
Colorado and New Mexico acequias in 1995–99. Among the most significant findings of this study was that the acequia farms provide vital ecosystem and economic base services to the regions in which they are located. One
248:
long before the arrival of the
Spanish. The introduction of acequias by the Muslims allowed for more agricultural diversity, with crops such as sugar cane and citrus fruits introduced. The system of the acequia has changed over time to avoid incidents of the resource from being overused or
398:
Known among water users simply as "the
Acequia", various legal entities embody the community associations, or acequia associations, that govern members' water usage, depending on local precedents and traditions. An acequia organization often must include commissioners and a
423:
mutual ditch company will vote based on their proportional ownership of shares so that larger farmers have more votes. In contrast, the acequia system follows a "one farmer, one vote" system that has led researchers to consider this a form of "water democracy".
134:
Scholars describe acequias as "technological systems that are designed, maintained, and operated to meet a variety of productive goals, social services, and health needs, with the practice of irrigated agriculture being of paramount importance." In the
407:, by state statute, acequias as registered bodies must have three commissioners and a mayordomo. Irrigation and conservation districts typically have their own version of mayordomos, usually referred to as "ditch riders" by members of the districts.
1138:. El Paso, Texas: Western Press, 1972. Spanish version, in Los cuadernos de Cauce 2000, No.15 (Madrid, 1988); also in Instituto de la Ingeniería de España, Obras hidráulicas prehispánicas y coloniales en América, I (Madrid, 1992), pp. 225–264.
142:
Acequias are filled by snow melt and rain to water orchards, gardens, and other agricultural fields. Other than watering crops, acequias have deep cultural significance for many
Indigenous and Native communities in New Mexico and Colorado.
799:"Spring time: why an ancient water system is being brought back to life in Spain; A project to restore a 1,000-year-old network of water channels is helping farmers in the Sierra Nevada adapt to the effects of the climate crisis"
139:, the oldest acequias were established more than 400 years ago by Spanish colonizers. The traditional form of governance over acequias is the oldest form of European resource management still alive in the United States today.
273:, the oldest acequias were established more than 400 years ago by Spanish colonizers. Many acequias continue to provide a primary source of water for farming and ranching in the region of south central
677:
675:
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Acequia law also requires that all persons with irrigation rights participate in the annual maintenance of the community ditch including the annual spring time ditch cleanup known as the
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289:
continue to function. This type of governance over acequias is to date the oldest depiction of
European resource management still active in the United States today.
521:
937:
Hicks, Gregory A.; Peña, Devon G. (2003). "Community
Acequias in Colorado's Rio Culebra Watershed: A Customary Commons in the Domain of Prior Appropriation".
415:, and the statutes promulgating acequia water law represent a rare instance of water pluralism in the context of Western water law in the United States (see
856:
Fernald, A. G.; Cevik, S. Y.; et al. (2010). "River hydrograph retransmission functions of irrigated valley surface water–groundwater interactions".
463:
411:
current inflation that are pushing them to consider selling the valued acequia. The customary law of the acequia is older than and at variance with the
819:
Fernald, A. G.; Baker, T. T.; et al. (2007). "Hydrological, Riparian, and
Agroecosystem Functions of Traditional Acequia Irrigation Systems".
719:
527:
798:
403:
who administers usage of water from a ditch, regulating which holders of water rights can release water to their fields on which days. In
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and through the connecting channels throughout parts of New Mexico. Acequias have several components that control the transport of water:
508:
1193:
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where acequias today run along both sides of the city streets. However, these acequias were originally dug by the
Indigenous
1158:
151:
185:) which has more than one meaning: "the water conduit" or "one that bears water" as well as 'bartender' (from
1188:
1065:
512:
971:
Peña, Devon G.; Boyce, James K.; Shelley, Barry G. (2003). "The
Watershed Commonwealth of the Upper Rio Grande".
305:. Some acequias are conveyed through pipes or aqueducts, of modern fabrication or decades or centuries old (see
493:
313:
257:
31:
366:, led by environmental anthropologist Devon G. Peña, has more recently been confirmed in other studies, e.g.
309:). For the system to function properly the channel must have a good gradient to maintain the flow of water.
217:; however the most likely hypothesis is that they improved on irrigation systems that already existed since
50:
38:
45:
1088:"Acequias of the Southwestern United States: Elements of Resilience in a Coupled Natural and Human System"
232:) and were utilized throughout their own colonies. Similar structures already existed in places such as
335:(vessels)- lateral ditches cut perpendicular from the main canal to irrigate individual parcels of land
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879:"Linked hydrologic and social systems that support resilience of traditional irrigation communities"
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1016:
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Garcia, Paula (February 2022). "Acequias Brace for a Future of Water Scarcity". Green Fire Times.
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120:
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Rosenberg, Adrienne; Guldan, Steven; Fernald, Alexander G.; Rivera, José, eds. (November 2020).
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1090:. College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences, New Mexico State University.
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1097:"Agent-based modeling for community resource management: Acequia-based agriculture"
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323:(headgates)- these gates open and close to allow water to flow through the channel
329:(canoes)- log flumes that transport water across intersecting creeks and streams
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720:"Nine practices from Native American culture that could help the environment"
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1049:"Southwestern Acequia Systems and Communities; Nurturing a Culture of Place"
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Traditionally, the Spanish acequias have been associated with the Muslim
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The Old World Background of the Irrigation System of San Antonio, Texas
198:
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547:
116:
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The trail beyond the compuerta is the original route of the acequia.
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585: – Historical irrigation system used in the American Southwest
341:(draining channel)- carries surplus water back to the stream source
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Office of the State Engineer Interstate Stream Commission (n.d.).
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Researchers affiliated with the Rio Grande Bioregions Project at
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Office of the State Engineer Interstate Stream Commission (n.d.)
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A section of a compuerta (holding area) and historic acequia in
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When rainfall and snowmelt start to flow it is carried into the
558: – Artificial watercourse or aqueduct dug into the ground
1153:
1066:"Drought Hits the Southwest, and New Mexico's Canals Run Dry"
1030:
Acequia Culture: Water, Land, and Community in the Southwest
606:
552: – Irrigated area, or a field within an irrigated area
224:
Acequias were later adopted by the Spanish and Portuguese (
1168:
577: – Water management system using underground channels
155:
Main acequia, Vallongas, Elche, Valencia, Spain (May 2012)
544: – Small to moderate trench created to channel water
375:
371:
973:
Natural Assets: Democratizing Environmental Ownership
49:
Potrero Ditch, an acequia, passing near the front of
975:. Washington, D.C.: Island Press. pp. 169–85.
1095:Wise, Sarah; Crooks, Andrew T. (1 November 2012).
367:
991:communities of the Upper Río Grande watershed".
758:
351:
197:, "to give water, drink"), and also refers to a
1032:. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press.
858:Journal of Irrigation and Drainage Engineering
1103:. Special Issue: Advances in Geocomputation.
877:Fernald, A.; Guldan, S.; et al. (2015).
174:
164:
71:
8:
354:, found that acequia agroecosystems promote
192:
180:
111:. Acequias are found in parts of Spain, the
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902:
570:Mueang § Müang Fai irrigation system
416:
179:) originate from Arabic word al-sāqiyah (
1101:Computers, Environment and Urban Systems
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1164:Sangre de Cristo Acequia Association
1113:10.1016/j.compenvurbsys.2012.08.004
883:Hydrology and Earth System Sciences
509:Tumacacori National Historical Park
186:
181:
1154:The New Mexico Acequia Association
870:10.1061/(ASCE)IR.1943-4774.0000265
821:Journal of Sustainable Agriculture
368:Fernald, Baker & Guldan (2007)
25:
1159:The New Mexico Acequia Commission
939:University of Colorado Law Review
797:Burgen, Stephen (11 April 2022).
718:Gilbert, Samuel (22 April 2024).
260:, Santa Fe, New Mexico, June 2022
759:Peña, Boyce & Shelley (2003)
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500:
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440:
352:Peña, Boyce & Shelley (2003)
105:Spanish colonies in the Americas
1169:Taos Valley Acequia Association
1064:Romero, Simon (13 July 2021b).
413:Doctrine of Prior Appropriation
265:Usage in the American Southwest
27:Community-operated watercourse
1:
488:Near the intersection of the
394:La Canova Acequia, New Mexico
258:Acequia Madre (Mother Ditch)
193:
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513:Santa Cruz County, Arizona
492:Drain and Putnam Drain in
447:Concrete-lined portion of
428:limpieza y saca de acequia
95:) is a community-operated
36:
29:
1194:Spanish words and phrases
285:and some 700 in northern
72:
1053:Natural Resource Journal
1028:Rivera, Jose A. (1998).
917:Gómez, A. López (n.d.).
904:10.5194/hess-19-293-2015
668:Wise & Crooks (2012)
566: – Irrigation canal
494:South Valley, New Mexico
386:Governance in New Mexico
301:, similar in concept to
32:Acequia (disambiguation)
1199:Property law by country
607:Rosenberg et al. (2020)
528:Acequia Madre de Valero
417:Hicks & Peña (2003)
51:El Santuario de Chimayo
39:Aqueduct (water supply)
395:
350:study, as reported in
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165:
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1149:The Acequia Institute
1047:Romero, Eric (2021).
958:. State of New Mexico
952:"Acequia Information"
919:"Los canales romanos"
841:10.1300/J064v30n02_13
393:
376:Fernald et al. (2015)
372:Fernald et al. (2010)
255:
154:
119:, and the modern-day
48:
380:Raheem et al. (2015)
30:For other uses, see
1005:2015WIRWa...2..559R
895:2015HESS...19..293F
833:2007JSusA..30b.147F
469:Unlined portion of
456:Velarde, New Mexico
277:known as the Upper
199:type of water wheel
92:[ˈsikiə,-a]
83:[ˈsekiə,-a]
1071:The New York Times
471:Los Chicos acequia
396:
364:ecosystem services
262:
249:under-maintained.
157:
121:American Southwest
54:
1189:Irrigation canals
1134:Glick, Thomas F.
1013:10.1002/wat2.1091
772:, pp. 59–60.
530:historical marker
356:soil conservation
215:Iberian Peninsula
66:[aˈθekja]
16:(Redirected from
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924:(in Spanish)
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808:. Retrieved
804:The Guardian
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993:WIREs Water
810:15 February
791:Works cited
746:, p. .
684:, p. .
219:Roman times
171:the Catalan
115:, northern
103:and former
97:watercourse
1184:Irrigation
1178:Categories
945:: 387–486.
590:References
475:New Mexico
405:New Mexico
321:compuertas
287:New Mexico
283:Rio Arriba
279:Rio Grande
125:New Mexico
123:(northern
109:irrigation
1121:0198-9715
1021:129710529
928:10 August
595:Citations
449:La Canova
401:majordomo
242:Argentina
147:Etymology
849:84955013
729:24 April
536:See also
333:sangrías
275:Colorado
238:San Juan
191:
129:Colorado
99:used in
79:Catalan:
62:Spanish:
1077:14 July
1001:Bibcode
962:23 June
891:Bibcode
829:Bibcode
454:, near
452:acequia
434:Gallery
339:desagüe
269:In the
246:Huarpes
234:Mendoza
226:levadas
213:of the
205:History
182:الساقیة
166:acequia
161:Spanish
58:acequia
1119:
1036:
1019:
979:
847:
563:Levada
549:Huerta
327:canoas
303:flumes
293:Design
176:séquia
117:Mexico
88:síquia
73:séquia
1017:S2CID
922:(PDF)
845:S2CID
582:Zanja
575:Qanat
542:Ditch
188:سَقَى
173:word
169:(and
163:word
113:Andes
101:Spain
69:) or
1117:ISSN
1079:2021
1034:ISBN
977:ISBN
964:2022
930:2023
812:2023
731:2024
556:Leat
358:and
256:The
236:and
194:saqā
159:The
107:for
1109:doi
1009:doi
899:doi
866:doi
862:136
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