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We passed over acequias — a system of communal irrigation ditches originating with the Moors that New Mexico’s farmers have used for centuries.

Growing up in New Mexico, Hayes-Rich played and swam in centuries-old irrigation systems known as acequias, built by Indigenous Pueblo people and Spanish settlers, that flow beneath the U.S.

New Mexico lawmakers also are considering legislation this year that would provide a funding stream for acequias in case of another natural disaster, given that the groups have limited resources due to their grassroots nature.

Garcia, the executive director of the New Mexico Acequia Association, a nonprofit that works to protect the state’s 700 or so acequias, or irrigation ditches, said she attributed her community’s persistence to “pure grit.”

Ranchers say they are feeling the pinch, and farmers who rely on traditional irrigation systems called acequias say they’re worried about having water for crops next spring.