70-D0078-26-CP388_2026 Sole Source Request and Determination - Central Curry SWCD - September 1, 2026 FINAL SIGNED 9.8.26.pdf.PDF

2026 Sole Source Form

STATE OF NEW MEXICO

SOLE SOURCE REQUEST AND DETERMINATION FORM

A sole source determination is not effective until the sole source request for determination has been posted for thirty (30) calendar days without Protest and subsequently approved in writing by the State Purchasing Agent. The foregoing requirement is regardless of whether the sole source request for determination has been signed by the Agency.

I. Name of Agency: Central Curry Soil & Water Conservation District

Agency Chief Procurement Officer: Christi Windham

Telephone Number: (575) 799-1904

Agency Contact for this request: Spencer Pipkin, Chairman

Email Address: s.pipkin@centralcurry.com

II. Name of prospective Contractor: Ogallala Land & Water Conservancy

SHARE Vendor Number (must be active): 1005574550

Address of prospective Contractor: 5015 N. Prince St., Ste A., Clovis, NM 88101

Contact Name, Telephone Number and Email Address:

Ladona K. Clayton; (575) 760-3098; ladona.clayton@ogalwc.org

Amount of prospective contract before tax: $250,000

Estimated tax amount (tax is subject to change): $0.00 due to nonprofit status

III. Term of prospective contract: One year

Note: Please refer to §13-1-150 for contract term limits.

If this is an amendment request to an existing contract, include current sole source posting number issued by SPD: N/A

IV. If this is a Sole Source for new or existing IT software licensing subscription(s), Agency is required to upload the Contractor’s draft Service Level Agreement (SLA) with the Sole

Source online submission.

N/A - This procurement does not involve IT software licensing subscriptions.

V. Agency is required to provide the detailed scope of work (or amendment) for this sole source. Scope of work must match the scope included in the services determination and

Horizons declination.

PROJECT CONTEXT / PURPOSE AND NEED:

The United States Congress has passed and approved several authorizations, including but not limited to the Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration Program (REPI) and the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) which have been made mailto:s.pipkin@centralcurry.com available, and are being utilized by Cannon Air Force Base to preserve water in the underground Ogallala Aquifer to ensure that Cannon Air Force Base has sufficient water for its continuous operation. The preservation of the Ogallala Aquifer for City and County residents is also a priority of the Central Curry Soil & Water Conservation District

(CCSWCD), the Clovis City Commission, and the Curry County Board of County

Commissioners.

The CCSWCD has agreed to serve and act as the Eligible Entity (EE) for purposes of

REPI and RCPP grant applications, and operate in compliance with any and all applicable rules and regulations while participating in the Federal REPI and RCPP programs, writing/applying for REPI/RCPP Grant Program Funding, and acquiring and participating in any other Federal programs pertaining to REPI and RCPP programs, or other supplemental State, Federal, or Private Programs, or seek funding for other administrative assistance to preserve the Ogallala Aquifer for local citizens.

The CCSWCD recognizes that a key component of the REPI Program is the use of buffer partnerships among the military services with an Eligible Entity (EE), a private conservation group, state and local governments, and private landowners authorized by

Congress at 10 U.S.C. § 2684a. These win-win partnerships share the cost of acquisition of easements or other interests in land from willing sellers to preserve compatible land uses and natural habitats near installations that help sustain critical, at-risk military mission capabilities. The CCSWCD, aware of the needed actions, took the lead as EE.

REPI/RCPP knew the execution would have to be completed by the execution arm (the second EE), known as the Ogallala Land & Water Conservancy (OLWC), operating through the CCSWCD to affect the needed oversite and accomplish securing a long-term sustainable groundwater resource. The CCSWCD does not have the staff nor the available resources to employ any additional staff necessary to handle and perform all of the necessary requirements in order to prepare documents necessary to secure water rights pursuant to REPI and RCPP guidelines and requirements.

The CCSWCD has represented to the City of Clovis, Curry County, and the OSE that it is a governmental entity. The City of Clovis and Curry County have agreed to provide up to one hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars ($125,000.00) each for FY27 to be paid on a time and materials basis to the CCSWCD for purposes of obtaining contract administrative and professional services necessary to allow the CCSWCD to meet the needs of the REPI and RCPP programs.

To date, the initiative has secured approximately $28.6 million in federal, state, local, and private funding to implement groundwater conservation and related land management activities in two paleochannels that run northwest and west of Cannon AFB, including compensating participating landowners to discontinue irrigation and transition to sustainable land and water management practices in Curry County. In addition to serving as the Eligible Entity for applicable grant awards, the CCSWCD has entered into an

Encroachment Management Agreement (EMA) with the United States Department of

Defense (USDoD) to acquire groundwater and conservation easements in the paleochannels. The USDoD has determined that the Cannon AFB REPI project is 3rd in the country in terms of importance.

SERVICES (SCOPE OF WORK):

The CCSWCD seeks the following services:

1. Administrative and professional services of a land trust to assume all contractual obligations of the CCSWCD under its related Administrative Services Contracts with the City and the County.

2. Administrative and professional services of a land trust necessary to ensure the

CCSWCD meets the needs of the REPI, RCPP, and ACEP-ALE programs.

3. Execute and administer REPI, RCPP, ACEP-ALE, and other applicable federal, state, local, and private funding and programs, adhering to all applicable requirements, to preserve vital agricultural land and groundwater resources in two paleochannels located in Curry County, New Mexico, which currently provide an essential water supply to Cannon Air Force Base (CAFB) and will provide a supplemental water supply for surrounding communities in Curry County, New

Mexico.

4. Support the long-term installation resiliency of CAFB through water rights purchase agreements with identified landowners and through acquisition of conservation easements.

5. Collaborate with each landowner with irrigated cropland in the paleochannels to place meters on all center pivots to measure water output.

6. Execute water right lease agreements with paleochannel landowners of irrigated farmland in the interim to halt water production, which began in November 2022 and continues thereafter, encumbering highest producing wells at 20% capacity (holding

80% of the water available).

7. Cease pumping groundwater on irrigated farmland in the paleochannels once leases are finalized to maintain and secure essential resources of the Ogallala Aquifer.

8. Continue monitoring well performance and static water levels, beginning January

2024 through January 2030.

9. Coordinate the third Eastern New Mexico Water Conservation Summit, August

2027.

10. Determine the saturated thickness of the Ogallala Aquifer, pump depths, and the depth of the red bed.

11. Work with landowners to originate, implement, and service Water Right Lease

Agreements and water and land conservation easements using the OLWC's established groundwater conservation methodology, with a priority on permanently conserving groundwater in the semi-contiguous wellfield of two paleochannels running northwest and west of CAFB and maintaining the lands and habitats of the paleochannels in perpetuity.

12. Partner with landowners to make the transition from irrigated cropland to pastureland and dry cropland in compliance with the Highly Erodible Land (HEL) policy.

13. Continue to acquire grant funding to secure and service conservation easements, including dryland and native pastureland, in over 34,000 acres of land located in the paleochannels.

14. Support playa and grassland restorations and management practices that provide water resources and habitat to wildlife and contribute to the recharge of the Ogallala

Aquifer.

15. Implement regenerative agriculture strategies for healthy soil and restoring biodiversity and watershed function.

16. Coordinate and oversee contract service providers.

17. Conduct an annual federal audit of all financial records held by the prospective contractor.

18. Engage in fundraising and outreach activities.

19. Enroll and monitor the water rights of all partnering landowners in the CCSWCD

Groundwater Conservation Program under the OSE to protect their rights from forfeiture and abandonment.

20. Collaborate effectively with state and federal agencies/departments [e.g., U.S.

Department of Defense (DOD), U.S. Air Force (USAF), U.S. Department of

Agriculture (USDA), NRCS, NMOSE, ISC, New Mexico Department of Energy, Minerals, and Natural Resources (EMNRD), New Mexico Environment Department

(NMED), New Mexico Finance Authority Water Trust Board (NMFA-WTB), New

Mexico State Land Office (NMSLO), New Mexico Association of Conservation

Districts (NMACD), Playa Lakes Joint Venture (PLJV), New Mexico Department of

Wildlife (NMDOW), New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources

(NMBGMR), Ducks Unlimited, Regen Resilient, the Drylands Alliance for

Addressing Water Needs (DAAWN), and Texas Agricultural Land Trust (TALT)].

21. Maintain and implement the established groundwater conservation methodology, agreements, valuation approaches, monitoring protocols, and program tools developed specifically for the CCSWCD/OLWC groundwater conservation initiative and accepted by participating landowners.

VI. Provide a detailed explanation of the criteria developed and specified by the agency as necessary to perform and/or fulfill the contract and upon which the state agency reviewed available sources. (Do not use “technical jargon;” use plain English. Do not tailor the criteria simply to exclude other contractors if it is not rationally related to the purpose of the contract.)

CRITERIA:

Recognizing that this contract is essential to the survival of the long-term installation resiliency of Cannon AFB and the citizens of Clovis and Curry County, the CCSWCD developed and specified the following criteria to fulfill its contractual obligation to serve and act as the Eligible Entity (EE) for purposes of awarded REPI and RCPP grants specific to the Cannon AFB mission and the preservation of the Ogallala Aquifer, the land, and landowners entering into easements for the benefit of City and County residents as a vital water supply. These criteria were used to review available sources.

• Possess expertise or experience in using conservation easements to secure groundwater resources (PRIORITY).

• Possess experience or knowledge in groundwater legal requirements and the resources needed to apply these requirements.

• Have in place or be willing to contract with an attorney who possesses expertise in water rights and conservation easements involving groundwater rights.

• Have the ability and skills to implement the REPI, RCPP, and OSE projects as outlined in the grant awards.

• Operate in compliance with any and all applicable rules, regulations, and requirements while participating in the Federal REPI and RCPP and State OSE programs to secure groundwater rights.

• Write and apply for additional REPI/RCPP grant program funding.

• Acquire and participate in other federal programs pertaining to REPI and RCPP programs, or other supplemental state, federal or private programs, or seek funding for other administrative assistance to preserve the Ogallala Aquifer for local citizens.

• Possess or commit to earning the accreditation seal from the Land Trust Alliance.

• Have experience and success in fundraising and grant writing

• Have experience implementing federal and state grants

• Be an effective communicator orally and in writing

• Understand and employ the art of negotiation

• Possess fundamental knowledge of accounting practices and procurement code

• Earn and maintain Chief Procurement Officer certification.

• Possess demonstrated experience originating, implementing, administering, and monitoring Water Right Lease Agreements and groundwater conservation easements with participating agricultural landowners in the CCSWCD project area.

• Possess working knowledge of and demonstrated experience implementing the groundwater conservation methodology, valuation approaches, agreements, monitoring protocols, and program tools developed specifically for the

CCSWCD/OLWC initiative.

• Maintain established working relationships with participating landowners and the federal, state, and local partners necessary to continue implementation without interruption.

VII. Provide a detailed, sufficient explanation of the reasons, qualifications, proprietary rights or unique capabilities of the prospective contractor that makes their company the only source capable of providing the required professional service, general service, construction or item(s) of tangible personal property. (Please do not state the source is the “best” source or the “least costly” source. Those factors do not justify a

“sole source.”)

The Ogallala Land & Water Conservancy (OLWC) was created specifically as a nonprofit organization in the State of New Mexico for the primary purpose of conserving the groundwater resources of the Ogallala Aquifer, which experiences only limited recharge, through the use of conservation easements, while transitioning irrigated farmland and ranchland to dryland cropping or grazing land. This is a looming issue for every farmer, rancher, and community dependent on the Ogallala aquifer from Texas to North Dakota, and the effort around Clovis/Curry County will be the first endeavor to use conservation easements to conserve the groundwater in the

Aquifer. This purpose reflects new territory for land trusts, making the OLWC currently one of only a few land trusts known to focus specifically on conserving groundwater through conservation easements and related groundwater conservation mechanisms.

The OLWC found its origins in the City of Clovis Master Water Assurance Plan

(MWAP), which was approved by the Clovis City Commission on December 21, 2017. Action Plan #4 of the MWAP called for the city to establish a conservation land and water trust for the initial purpose of banking groundwater in two paleochannels to create at least a 40-year supplemental water supply to meet the needs of surrounding communities in Curry County. Less than four years after the Water Policy Strategic

Planning Team envisioned this goal, the OLWC, which was incorporated on August

16, 2021, was specifically created to make this goal a reality with the CCSWCD taking the lead as the Eligible Entity. The OLWC recognizing that water is real property determined to create water-banking strategies that utilize best financial practices. The

OLWC’s intent is to purchase water conservation easements coupled with long-term perpetual water leasing options and/or contracts with groundwater monitoring agreements.

The Ogallala Land & Water Conservancy (OLWC) reflects many of the original planning team members and individuals who were directly involved in completing the

MWAP, which included long-term research coupled with data collection in the paleochannels and ongoing conversations with local landowners, thereby cultivating relationships that will be indispensable moving forward. The CCSWCD recognizes the essentiality of local control for our future water source, which played a key role in supporting the creation of the OLWC. Cannon AFB and local governments are going to be the ultimate recipients of the water supply being secured by conservation easements, so it is vital that they are involved in negotiations with landowners to meet two crucial criteria: 1) satisfy the needs of the landowners, and 2) secure a water source that can be delivered only by adhering to all necessary state laws to meet the needs of our water consumers and maximize the benefit to the general public.

The OLWC also engaged in multiple conversations and meetings with the NM State

Engineer’s Office, and continues engaging in ongoing conversations, regarding its desire to break new ground by acquiring water rights as a supplemental water supply for Cannon AFB and Clovis/Curry County. The OLWC is assertively pursuing conservation easements related to the appropriation of groundwater rights. The OLWC is one of the first land trusts in the nation to attempt this task.

The lead for the REPI project for Cannon AFB reached out to subject matter specialists at the Air Force Civil Engineer Center (AFCEC) and legal experts from the Secretary of the Air Force General Counsel (SAF-GCN) in San Antonio, Texas, in reference to the spending of REPI dollars, indirect cost charges, matching funds from the City of

Clovis and Curry County, matching RCPP funds, 50/50 matches on expenditures, and what can be spent separately to initiate this endeavor and determined that all aspects of this project are unique and underline the necessity for the OLWC as the sole entity.

The SAF-GCN has deferred to the OLWC’s expertise since they have no working knowledge of NM water rights.

Every obstacle that we have faced thus far to organize this effort and those obstacles that await us as we move forward highlight that we are the writers of the template.

Nothing like this type of project has ever been undertaken before; yet we are confident that the water conservation strategies developed by the OLWC, in partnership with the

CCSWCD, the DoD REPI Program, the NRCS-RCPP, the NMOSE, and the city and county will become a model of vital benefit for other communities that rely upon the

Ogallala Aquifer for a water supply and find themselves in a similar situation in the future.

Since its creation in 2021, the OLWC has moved beyond development of the original concept and has created and implemented a proprietary groundwater conservation methodology specifically tailored to the CCSWCD project and the hydrogeologic, legal, agricultural, and economic conditions of the Curry County project area. This methodology integrates Water Right Lease Agreements, groundwater valuation approaches, conservation easements, groundwater monitoring, landowner transition strategies, and federal, state, and local funding requirements into a coordinated program. Participating landowners have accepted and entered into agreements developed under this methodology, and the OLWC possesses the institutional knowledge, records, relationships, technical understanding, and implementation experience necessary to administer those existing agreements and advance participating properties from temporary groundwater conservation measures to permanent conservation easements. Substitution of another service provider would require that provider to assume and reconstruct an established program involving existing landowner agreements, property-specific negotiations, valuation methodologies, monitoring protocols, agency requirements, and multiple interrelated funding sources.

WHY OTHER SIMILAR SERVICES CANNOT MEET THE INTENDED

PURPOSE:

Other similar professional services and services cannot meet the intended purpose of the contract for the following reasons:

Professional services/services required for this contract are unique and must be specifically tailored to fulfill the goals of the DoD REPI project approved for Cannon

AFB. The DoD’s goals are two-fold: secure an essential water supply that ensures the long-term installation resiliency of Cannon Air Force Base (CAFB), while providing a supplemental water supply for surrounding communities in Curry County, New

Mexico, due to the Ogallala Aquifer depleting at a rate that threatens the existence of a groundwater resource in the next 10 to 20 years.

Similar professional services or services currently focus on conserving the land through surface or land conservation easements, and these are secondary in importance to the conservation of our existing groundwater supply. No land trust exists that focuses on securing the water that underlies the land of agricultural producers to provide a water supply as a vital resource to sustain human life.

In addition, other similar professional services (i.e., land trusts and conservancies) are not vested in our local agricultural producers, which we have learned is vital to negotiating these complex groundwater acquisitions through conservation easements.

The landowners in the paleochannels have explicitly stated their desire to work with local government (CCSWCD) and the local land trust (OLWC). They worked closely with the current members and staff of the OLWC before this land and water conservancy became a reality, so the OLWC has a strong grasp of the unique needs of each landowner. These agricultural producers believe that the OLWC has their best interests at heart and will demonstrate integrity in the appraisal process to calculate the highest possible groundwater value, based on highest and best use, while respecting what/or how many land and water restrictions they are comfortable undertaking. The OLWC, in partnership with the CCSWCD, the City and County, REPI, the RCPP, and the OSE understand and appreciate that all measures employed must ensure proper consideration and capital return for our agricultural producers’ willingness to transition their irrigated crops to dryland crops or pastureland, while providing a valuable water supply. These generational farmers are changing their way of life to sustain a community and its people.

Since the original sole-source determination, participating landowners have entered into and performed under Water Right Lease Agreements and other program commitments developed and administered by the OLWC. These agreements, together with ongoing conservation easement transactions, are property-specific and depend upon established relationships, negotiations, groundwater valuation methodologies, monitoring requirements, and individual landowner transition plans. The OLWC therefore does not merely possess general land-trust experience; it possesses unique institutional and transactional knowledge of each participating property and the groundwater conservation commitments already accepted by participating landowners.

No other service provider possesses the combination of these existing landowner relationships, project-specific agreements, groundwater conservation methodology and tools, historical property and water-right knowledge, monitoring framework, and direct implementation experience necessary to assume the work without substantial duplication, disruption, and risk to the continuity of the CCSWCD program and its federal, state, local, and private funding commitments.

VIII. Provide a detailed, sufficient explanation of how the professional service, general service, construction or item(s) of tangible personal property is/are unique and how this uniqueness is substantially related to the intended purpose of the contract.

The REPI Project awarded by the DoD to secure an essential water supply and ensure the long-term installation resiliency of Cannon Air Force Base (CAFB), while providing a supplemental water supply for surrounding communities in Curry County, New Mexico, required a unique land and water trust whose primary focus was conserving groundwater resources in the paleochannel through conservation easements. As stated before, this land and water trust did not exist until the OLWC was created. It was also determined that an endeavor of this nature had never before been attempted.

Peter D. Nichols, of Berg, Hill, Greenleaf, and Ruscitti, an expert in the federal Clean

Water Act and water rights, conservation easements involving water rights, and the temporary use of agricultural irrigation water rights to meet municipal needs, was commissioned by Curry County, at the cost of $30,000, to establish a land trust to meet the unique needs of the REPI award. On February 10, 2021, Peter Nichols provided an engagement agreement titled Creation of Land Trust to Conserve Ogallala Aquifer

Groundwater and subsequently provided an addendum outlining the detailed scope of work. A five-member land and water development committee, including two county commissioners, the Mayor of Clovis, the Chairman of the CCSWCD, and one at-large member, was established on March 16, 2021, to identify goals, objectives, and policies unique to Curry County and the overall mission of a local land trust. In addition to these voting members, seven advisors were also appointed: David Lansford, former mayor of Clovis; Jeff Davis, the REPI Project Manager; Blake Prather, a consultant and former member of the Water Policy Strategic Planning Team; D’Llaynn Bruce, NRCS District Conservationist; and three landowners. On May 4, 2021, the Curry

County Commission decided to relinquish their oversight role and allow the land and water development committee to act independently. More than three months later, the work was completed.

The Ogallala Land & Water Conservancy (OLWC) was a direct result of that effort and was created specifically as a nonprofit organization in the State of New Mexico for the primary purpose of providing the professional and administrative services needed to execute the REPI and RCPP grants by conserving the groundwater resources of the Ogallala Aquifer through the use of conservation easements, while transitioning irrigated agriculture to dryland cropping or grazing land.

The uniqueness of these services has increased as the program has progressed from concept development to implementation. The OLWC now administers existing relationships and agreements with participating landowners; coordinates conservation easement transactions and groundwater conservation activities involving multiple federal, state, and local partners; maintains project-specific groundwater, property, valuation, and monitoring information; and applies tools and methodologies developed specifically for this initiative. Continuity of these services is substantially related to the intended purpose of the contract because successful implementation depends upon maintaining the integrity of existing landowner agreements, conservation commitments, agency requirements, and the established pathway from temporary irrigation retirement to permanent groundwater conservation.

IX. Provide a narrative description of the agency’s due diligence in determining the basis for the procurement, including procedures used by the agency to conduct a review of available sources such as researching trade publications, industry newsletters and the internet;; contacting similar service providers; and reviewing the State Purchasing

Divisions’ Statewide Price Agreements. Include a list of businesses contacted (do not state that no other businesses were contacted), date of contact, method of contact

(telephone, mail, e-mail, other), and documentation demonstrating an explanation of why those businesses could not or would not, under any circumstances, perform the contract; or an explanation of why the agency has determined that no businesses other than the prospective contractor can perform the contract.

PROCEDURES TO CONDUCT A REVIEW OF AVAILABLE RESOURCES:

The CCSWCD spent almost a full year in determining the basis for this procurement since they began taking steps with the City of Clovis and Curry County to secure REPI and NRCS (RCPP) grants as the Eligible Entity. The CCSWCD determined that they could not move forward to implement the requirements of the REPI grant specifically without a land trust that focuses on using conservation easements to conserve groundwater.

The CCSWCD reviewed the State Purchasing Divisions’ Statewide Price Agreements

(https://www.generalservices.state.nm.us/state-purchasing/statewide-price-agreements/) and found no description, vendor, or procurement that met the necessary criteria developed and specified by the CCSWCD to perform and/or fulfill our contract.

The CCSWCD contacted the following land trusts to locate an eligible trust whose mission was to conserve groundwater for the long-term resiliency of Cannon AFB and to support a supplemental water supply for the Clovis/Curry County through the use of conservation easements and would be willing to complete this goal in the paleochannels of the Ogallala Aquifer:

Taos Land Trust (TLT) - Emails were sent to Kristina Ortez, Executive Director of the

TLT initially on November 25, 2020. Additional emails were exchanged on November

27, 2020, with a phone conversation also taking place on this date to further discuss the possibility of the TLT being the initial trust to hold conservation easements while mentoring a prospective new trust. An explanation was provided regarding the acquisition of conservation easements to conserve groundwater and thereby create a supplemental water supply for Clovis and Curry County. Ms. Ortez shared that the

TLT had no knowledge of groundwater conservation easements, as their mission was to protect the land through the acquisition of traditional conservation easements specific to property surface rights in northern New Mexico. Ms. Ortez was willing to consider mentoring a beginning trust in conservation easements but preferred to wait to make any commitment until the RCPP grant we were applying for had been awarded. We reached out to Ms. Ortez again on July 27 and August 5, 2021, to notify her that both a REPI and RCPP award had been granted, and we would welcome the opportunity to speak with her about working with the CCSWCD to implement the grants. We never received a response, although several attempts were made by more than one individual by email and/or telephone.

New Mexico Land Conservancy (NMLC) – The NMLC was also contacted to discuss their interest in being the land trust for this project. On February 9, 2021, Scott Wilber and Ron Troy of the NMLC presented a 2.5-hour virtual training session, Land Trust 101, to an audience of 38 participants, including representatives from the City of Clovis; Curry County; ENMWUA; CCSWCD; NMACD; Cannon

AFB; and Berg, Hill, Greenleaf, and Ruscitti (BHGR).

(https://www.facebook.com/currycountynm/videos/223252522792210).

The NMLC, a statewide land trust, discussed what conservation easements were along with the NMLC’s qualifications, experience, and accomplishments to place land in conservation easements. Discussion regarding what the NMLC could bring to the table as a service provider for the pending CCSWCD contract ensued, and questions were posed specifically focusing on the NMLC’s familiarity and experience with groundwater conservation easements. The NMLC had no expertise in this area, especially as it regards securing groundwater for municipal use. The NMLC provided an overview of all their past and existing projects, and they explicitly discussed what it would merit the CCSWCD to contract with the NMLC or another existing land trust versus creating a new land trust. Yet, none of the projects they had engaged in sought to protect or preserve groundwater to provide a water supply to a community. The

NMLC’s focus to conserve the land and its natural resources in perpetuity only addressed water rights as riparian, and they were inexperienced in the unique aspects of our REPI proposal. Prior to the training meeting in February 2021, several contacts and conversations were held with the NMLC to discuss the future vision of this project, and this history was acknowledged by the NMLC. On February 24, 26, and

27, and March 2, additional email communications occurred between the DoD, the

REPI Project Manager, and Ron Troy, with a Zoom meeting being held with all parties on February 27, 2021. On April 28, 2021, the REPI Project Manager followed up again with the NMLC to engage in further discussion.

Although the CCSWCD, the project manager for the DoD REPI project, and Peter

Nichols, the attorney who was hired by Curry County to establish a new local land trust due to his expertise in water rights and water conservation easements, attended the NMLC presentation, along with researching other land trusts, they still determined that a new land trust would need to be formed to meet the specific and unique needs of this contract. On May 4, 2021, during a commission meeting, one Curry County commissioner moved to continue conversations with the NMLC as the land trust to lead the REPI and RCPP projects for Cannon AFB, but his motion died for the lack of a second. Later, a report to the Curry County Commission on May 18, 2021, noted that a land and water development committee appointed by the Commission, which the CCSWCD was a voting member of, would likewise determine if they would consider the NMLC as the conservancy needed to complete the REPI and RCPP projects. On June 12, 2021, the chairman for the land and water development committee notified the Curry County Commission that they had determined to forego the NMLC and decided to seek services elsewhere.

The Conservation Fund – The project manager for the Cannon AFB REPI project reached out to Mike Ford of The Conservation Fund via email to determine if any land trusts existed that negotiated groundwater conservation easements, and, if not, if they were aware of any entities of this nature that existed. Mike Ford shared that The

Conservation Fund had never engaged in an effort like our REPI project or the project that CCSWCD was proposing and had no knowledge of any land and water trusts that dealt directly with groundwater conservation easements focused on securing a water supply. On May 14, 2021, a series of threaded email communications were also shared with Mike Ford, dating back from February 27 through May 14, 2021, to ensure that he had a good grasp of ongoing conversations and could provide even more feedback regarding next steps to consider.

Texas Agricultural Land Trust (TALT) – Multiple contacts were made with Chad

Ellis, CEO of TALT on August 16, 23, 24, and 26 of 2021. On August 26, 2021, Chad

Ellis also introduced the OLWC Board of Directors via email to Billy Van Pelt of

American Farmland Trust who is partnering with TALT. Chad Ellis, CEO of TALT was invited to present at a Zoom meeting with the OLWC Board members on August

25, 2021, to discuss the possibility of being a mentoring land trust to the newly organized OLWC given that all newly formed land trusts must have a partnering land trust until they have successfully completed 10 acquisitions. TALT is currently providing mentoring services to the OLWC, and these two trusts are in ongoing conversations regarding the executing of the conservation easements.

Palmer Land Conservancy (PLC) – The CCSWCD and the OLWC also reached out to Rebecca Jewett, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Palmer Land

Conservancy, on August 17, 19, and 24 via email; a Zoom meeting was held on August

25, 2021, to discuss the possibility of the PLC becoming the partnering land trust for the OLWC. Palmer Land Conservancy voiced their willingness to assist the OLWC if another partnering trust could not be located.

Internet Search & Review: Our Internet search and review of available land trusts in

New Mexico included the following:

The Land Trust Alliance provided the beginning point for our Internet research and review, as it provides links and an overview to 23 land trusts/conservancies operating locally, statewide, or nationally to serve New Mexico. In addition to the Taos Land

Trust and the NMLC, which we made direct contact with, we conducted an online review of at least four additional trusts/conservancies and conducted a basic review of the remaining 17 trusts/conservancies. The sole focus of the Santa Fe Conservation

Land Trust resides in northern New Mexico to preserve open land in and around their communities through land conservation easement transactions focused on protecting culturally and environmentally significant landscapes. This trust does not engage in groundwater conservation easements to secure water for a water supply. The Forest

Trust solely exists to protect private forests and range lands through conservation easements, land acquisitions, and the application of environmentally sound management; protecting working forests and lands adjacent to national forests are the program priorities. The Rio Grande Agricultural Land Trust (RGALT) works directly with five counties in New Mexico: Sandoval, Bernalillo, Valencia, Socorro, and

Sierra. They seek to complete easement transactions of riparian habitat and farmland in the Middle Rio Grande. Their focus is not conserving groundwater to create a water supply for a community. The Nature Conservancy employs partnerships and programs to address the planet’s biggest challenges: climate change and biodiversity lost. Their mission is not to conserve groundwater to create a community water supply or to ensure the long-term resiliency of a military installation.

After a thorough review of existing land trusts, land conservancies, and water trusts, the CCSWCD discovered that none of these entities had experience or expertise in using conservation easements to secure groundwater resources. These trusts and conservancies specialized in the acquisition of traditional conservation easements specific to property surface rights and had no experience or knowledge relating to groundwater legal requirements. The CCSWCD explicitly needs a trust that focuses on both land and water, and, more specifically, in using conservation easements to secure groundwater resources. Therefore, we determined that this entity had to be created, and we took steps, along with Curry County and the City of Clovis to meet this need since it did not exist outside of the OLWC.

The CCSWCD played a central role in the creation of the OLWC, engaging in a land and water trust development committee with the City of Clovis and Curry County, beginning in May 2021. The County held more than 10 public meetings from

February 9, 2021 through September 14, 2021 to lead the land and water development committee and eventually approve $150,000 to assist the CCSWCD. Likewise, the

City of Clovis held multiple public meetings in regards to the creation of the OLWC, including May 25 and July 15, 2021, and its possible role in supporting the CCSWCD and voted to provide $150,000 to assist in funding the cost of the administrative and professional services needed to implement the local REPI and RCPP projects. The

City and the County renewed their commitment of $150,000 each to assist the

CCSWCD to procure the administrative and professional services of the OLWC for

2023-2024 and executed a 3-year contract for $125,000 each for July 1, 2024-June 30, 2027.

The extensive due diligence described above established the basis for the original selection and creation of the OLWC. Since that determination, the OLWC has developed and implemented the specialized groundwater conservation methodology and program tools contemplated by the original procurement and has established contractual and working relationships with participating landowners and program partners. These project-specific capabilities, agreements, methodologies, and institutional knowledge did not exist in another provider at the time of the original procurement and have become further specialized through implementation of the