Legal Notices-Non-government

NOTICE is hereby given that on March 28, 2022, Lonnie Wade Orr, PO Box 707, Douglas, WY 82633, and Vertical, LLC, c/o Lonnie Wade Orr, 73 Bowman Ln, Lemitar, NM 87823, filed with the STATE ENGINEER Application No. RG-4-B-T for Permit to Temporarily Change Place and Purpose of Use of Groundwater within the Rio Grande Underground Basin of the State of New Mexico.

Socorro County is the County affected by the diversion and in which the water has been or will be put to beneficial use. This notice is ordered to be published in the El Defensor Chieftain.

The applicants propose to change the place and purpose of use of groundwater diverted from well RG-4-B, located at a point where Latitude is 34° 12′ 59″ N and Longitude is 106° 54′ 27.57″ W. The move-from land consists of 3.85 acres of land described as the west parts of Tracts 149A1 and 149B1 on MRGCD Map 150, within Section 23, Township 1 South, Range 1 West, NMPM, irrigated with a Farm Delivery Requirement (FDR) of 11.55 acre-feet per annum (afa) of groundwater, inclusive of a Consumptive Irrigation Requirement (CIR) of 8.085 afa from well described above. The move-to land consists of 3.85 acres of land described as the north part of Tract 2A1 on MRGCD Map 151, within Sections 25 and 26, Township 1 South, Range 1 West, NMPM, where the applicant proposes to divert 8.085 afa from the well described above for commercial and irrigation purposes, specifically described as drip irrigation, greenhouse and related uses.

The well and places of use are located on land owned by Lonnie Wade Orr and are approximately located near the intersection of State Highway 408 and Bowman Ln in Socorro County, New Mexico.

No new appropriations are requested under this application.

This Application is filed under the Water-Use Leasing Act, NMSA 1978, Sections 72-6-1 through 72-6-7. Application is made for a permit that, if granted, would expire on December 31, 2024. Upon termination or expiration of the desired permit, the subject water right will automatically revert to the move-from place of use pursuant to the applicable provisions in that permit.

To view the application and supporting documentation contact the State Engineer District Office to arrange a date and time for an appointment located at 5550 San Antonio Dr. NE, Albuquerque, NM 87109.

Any person, firm or corporation or other entity asserting standing to file objections or protests shall do so in writing (objection must be legible, signed, and include the writer’s complete name, phone number, email address, and mailing address). If the protest does not include the complete name, phone number, email address, and mailing address, it may be deemed invalid and not accepted for filing unless Protestant provides with the protest an affidavit stating that it does not have one of the above-listed elements/requirements (phone number, mailing address, email address, etc.). The objection to the approval of the application must be based on: (1) Impairment; if impairment, you must specifically identify your water rights; and/or (2) Public Welfare/Conservation of Water; if public welfare or conservation of water within the state of New Mexico, you shall be required to provide evidence showing how you will be substantially and specifically affected. The written protest must be filed, in triplicate, with the State Engineer, 5550 San Antonio Dr. NE, Albuquerque, NM 87109, on or before June 24, 2022. Facsimiles (faxes) will be accepted as a valid protest if the hard copy is hand-delivered or mailed and postmarked within 24-hours of the facsimile. Mailing postmark will be used to validate the 24-hour period. Protests can be faxed to the Office of the State Engineer, 505-383-4030. If no valid protest or objection is filed, the State Engineer will evaluate the application in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 72 NMSA 1978.