LAND OF ENCHANTMENT LEGACY FUND

We are pleased to announce that ORD’s grant programs have recurring funding through the Land of Enchantment Legacy Fund. 2024 will be the first year of distribution from New Mexico’s first-ever dedicated source of recurring funding for land, water, agriculture, and outdoor recreation projects. Both the Outdoor Equity Fund and the Trails+ Grant are among the ten programs from six agencies to receive this annual funding.

The Land of Enchantment Legacy Fund is a dedicated source of recurring funding for conservation, prioritizing land and water stewardship, forest and watershed health, outdoor recreation and infrastructure, agriculture and working lands, historic preservation, and wildlife species protection. The Fund is set up to support existing programs that have either not been funded or been funded sporadically in the past. See where these state funds are being utilized with this interactive map.

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OUTSTANDING NATIONAL RESOURCE WATERS PETITION

The ORD successfully led a petition to designate 125 miles of rivers in New Mexico as Outstanding National Resource Waters based on their “outstanding” recreational significance to the state. The waters include the Upper Rio Grande, the Rio Hondo, and the headwaters of the Jemez. The petition was approved by the State Water Quality Control Commission summer 2022. It will protect the water quality of these rivers in perpetuity for hunters, anglers, acequias, birders and everyone else living and recreating along their banks.