Drops in the Buckets

For the second year in a row, the Santa Fe County Sustainability Division’s annual Earth Day celebration—9 am to noon on Saturday, April 20—will primarily focus on stormwater infrastructure as the county unveils a brand-new, small-scale rain garden—an environmentally-friendly form of stormwater infrastructure that retains rainwater to mitigate the impacts of droughts and flooding in the desert.

“[The new rain garden] is also to serve as a demonstration garden for those who would be interested in putting something like that in their backyard,” County Sustainability Manager Jacqueline Beam explains.

Athena Beshur, an urban forestry designer from local urban forestry organization Seeds of Wisdom, will also give a presentation on how rain gardens work and offer tips to prospective rain gardeners at the event. At last year’s event, Beam says the county installed two larger rain gardens at the Santa Fe County Fairgrounds.

“These are really important right now, especially because of the soil. The drier it gets here, the more compacted [the soil] gets, then less water can infiltrate, so it almost bakes the soil and nothing can grow,” Beam says. “The more we have infiltration in our soil, the more apt it is to be resilient and able to absorb water when monsoons do come and not create flooding. It allows for life to grow as well. It’s very important, especially with climate change as it gets hotter and hotter, the monsoons get more extreme.”

The Earth Day event also features a lineup of informative speakers giving presentations on different environmental topics. The county’s Open Spaces and Trails Ranger Rosemary Masters will speak about her county division’s conservation efforts, and Wildland Urban Interface Specialist Remington Gillum will give a talk about wildfire prevention for homeowners. Magdalena-based rock band Mountain Top Rock will also be performing, and attendees can also participate in hands-on gardening activities. The county will also provide an interactive play garden for children.

“It’s a really lovely, kind of intimate setting where you can see the effects of action, but you’ll also have an opportunity to learn from quite a few organizations in the county about the projects we’re doing, ways you can help or volunteer,” Beam says of the event. “It’ll allow you to really have time to talk to people and get the resources you need…It’ll be a great way to learn some things for your own backyard.”

Residents interested in participating as exhibitors at the event can contact Nav Khalsa, Santa Fe County Volunteer Coordinator at nkhalsa@santafecountynm.gov.

2024 Earth Day Event: 9 am-noon Saturday, April 20. Free. Arroyo Hondo Fire Station #1, 21 Seton Village Rd, (505) 986-6200.