Combating the recent drought that has hit New Mexico, remnants of Hurricane Polo have made its impact during the last two weeks of September where residents saw several inches of rain.
A big area of impact was the Rio Grande. The healthiness of the river has been absent this year with the state’s record-low snowpack. The lower the snowpack, the less water there is for crops and ecosystems, according to Source NM. However, the remnants of Hurricane Polo gave the river a better outlook.
Anne Marken, the Chief Hydrologist for the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District, shared her observations of the recent rain’s effects on the Rio Grande.
“This is the first time that the river has been connected all the way down since the end of March,” Marken said.
This summer, Bernalillo County’s Fire and Rescue Department made it a priority to clean up trash and debris left in the Bosque to reduce the risk of wildfires. Crews in the first week of these clean-ups managed to gather over four tons of debris, according to the Albuquerque Journal.
With the Rio Grande fully connected due to Hurricane Polo, there is hope for the continued health of the river, but the full impacts of this rain won’t be fully understood until next year, according to Marken, who said that the rain has also brought back a number of invasive species to the area.
Species such as the Russian Olive out-compete the Bosque’s native cottonwood, which are essential to nutrient cycling and erosion control for the bosque’s creatures, according to the City of Albuquerque
Max Ulz is a freelance reporter for the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at culture@dailylobo.com or on X @Dailylobo
