Seeds of Knowledge: For Storrie Lake Residents & Beyond

Investing in Data While We Still Can

You've seen the headlines. You've tasted the water. You've watched the drinking water quality violations stack up, a bridge wash out, and have felt the frustration of asking for accountability and receiving inconsistent actions and lip-service from local politicians and their embedded favorites.

This newsletter is not about what should have been done. It's about what we are going to do—together—before winter sets in and the freeze-thaw cycle begins moving heavy metals, contaminants, and sediment through our landscape in ways we won't be able to track without baseline data.

A Quick Recap: What's at Stake

Almost a year ago, we wrote about the Storrie Lake neighborhood—a community living at ground zero of upstream erosion and stormwater runoff. Since that newsletter:

• A nearby gravel pit operator was allowed to operate several months out of compliance at federal, state, and local levels

• A nearby gravel pit operator has been hiding behind a 16-year old girl they put in a water truck to do their dirty work without an approved CUP

• The nearby gravel pit operator now claims they have new proof of compliance for their Revoked Conditional Use Permit.

• The San Miguel County Commission is revisiting the permit revocation September 14th, 2026.

• We have yet to receive the SWPPP, EPA NOI, terrain/veg management plans, DOT traffic studies, surface/groundwater discharge permit, or special flood elevation survey documentation that should be public record.

• In addition, the Pecos Arroyo Watershed Site 1 Dam (NID ID NM00200) is rated in "Poor" condition with a High Hazard Potential classification—and there is no plan or program in place for the post-HPCC runoff dynamics that are now the new normal.

There is a lack of action at the County level where there should already be a plan and accountability. So we are addressing it.

The Flash Sale: Investing in Baseline Data Before Winter

We are launching a flash sale campaign to fund critical soil and water testing and stormwater monitoring from upstream sources—the illegal gravel pit, the Pecos Arroyo Watershed Dam, and the channel that carries runoff into Storrie Lake and ultimately into the Las Vegas drinking water supply and Las Vegas National Wildlife Refuge.

Why now? Winter freeze-thaw cycles change the fate and transport of heavy metals and contaminated sediment. If we don't have baseline data now, we won't be able to track what moves where when spring runoff arrives. This is our window to act.

What We're Testing & Why

The Storrie Lake Shirt Collection

We are selling 7 limited-edition shirts to support this work. All proceeds go directly to baseline testing and monitoring before winter conditions and freeze-thaw cycles complicate fate and transport tracking.

Order by September 7th, 2026 so we can have your shirt and size ready by the 14th, before the commission hearing.

At the end of the day

The nearby gravel pit says they have proof of compliance. We haven't seen a SWPPP. We haven't seen an EPA NOI. We haven't seen a flood elevation survey.

We have seen the no action being taken on the Pecos Arroyo Dam despite it's "Poor" and "High Hazard" with vulnerable communities below.

The confluence of which is the Storrie Lake inlet canal, the final barrier before runoff reaches drinking water and its condition degrades daily.

This isn't about politics. It's about data.

And data costs money. The same data this gravel operator would rather not invest in because instead they are allowed to make $7,000/day at the expense of downstream residents and Storrie Lake water quality instead.

So we're raising our own funding and awareness—one shirt at a time, one test at a time, one conversation at a time—so that when the commission revisits that permit, we show up with a unified and educated front, armed with facts, not fear.

How to Support

1. Buy a shirt. 100% of proceeds go to baseline soil, water, and stormwater monitoring.

2. Share this newsletter. The more neighbors know, the stronger we are.

3. Join us at the commission meeting. Tuesday, September 14th @ 9: 00 am, San Miguel County Courthouse, 2nd Floor. See SMC Website for more info.

4. Whether you can afford $7, $77, or $777. Every dollar goes to chain-of-custody testing, monitoring, and laboratory analysis which builds a strong defense against bad actors in the watershed.

What We've Been Drinking from the Tap Recently

Residents have reported another round of "weird tasting water" after recent monsoon storms. This is not a coincidence. This is a pattern.

The city's water system has been under stress since the Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon Fire, and the Gallinas Watershed remains fragile . The real solution is upstream—and upstream starts with understanding what's coming off the gravel pit and through the dam system.

Let's Do This Together

We're not waiting for someone to hand us a fictitious plan. We're building a real one with real data instead.

Support the flash sale. Invest in baseline data. Show up informed by dirt.

Questions? Hit reply—we dig conversations.

Visit Us Online:

• Text Us: We’re here to learn more

• Shop: The Digital Dirt Store

"Erosion control is the non-negotiable first step. We implement strategies that slow water, increase infiltration, and stabilize soils with best management practices—because the only way to protect water, wildlife, and community is to start at the source.