This system is located in the Rio Rancho Urban Watershed and consists of two ponds and a number of channels into, out of and between them.
In recognition of Mr. Johnnie G. Losack’s Spirit of Service, the Tree Farm Pond System was dedicated in his honor on April 17, 2001. In conjunction with the Annette Hise Jones Urban Pond System just to the north, this flood control structure protects the village of Corrales from stormwater runoff flowing east and south from the southern urban area of the city of Rio Rancho.
How It Works
Tree Farm Pond A prevents downstream flooding by safely detaining stormwater that might overflow the storm drains in case of a “hundred-year storm event,” the possible result of a storm lasting about four hours, with a peak flow rate of 450 cubic feet per second (cfs) into the system. The storm water flow is reduce from 450 cfs to five cfs. (One cfs equals 488 gallons per minute of water flow, so the rate is slowed from over 3,366 gallons per minute to less than 37.5.)
Large stormwater flows are collected from the streets and enter the pond through a 5 1/2-foot diameter storm drain. The pond has a storage capacity of about 21 acre-feet which allows for slow, controlled-release outflow with a peak of rate 5 cfs lasting about four days. (One acre-foot equals the volume to cover one acre with water one foot deep, or about 325,829 gallons.) The extended detention of runoff in Tree Farm Pond A allows settlement of sediments and reduction of other pollutants. Sediment and debris are left behind as the runoff is slowly released into Tree Farm Pond B and then into the Corrales Main Canal by permit with the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District.
The facility meets New Mexico Dam Safety Design criteria and is permitted by State Engineer File No. 4786. Dam safety is provided by select fill seepage control, concrete cutoff walls, and a reinforced concrete emergency spillway sized to safely pass the probable maximum flood. Floating debris and trash are collected at the outlet of Tree Farm Pond A. An oil/water separator collects remaining trash and oils at the outlet from Tree Farm Pond B into the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District’s Corrales Main Canal.
Bonus Benefits
Recreation & Multiple-Use
The site serves as an undeveloped, primitive open-space park.
Education
A large concrete sign structure with two 2-foot by 3-foot panels is located adjacent to Tree Farm Pond A, along Meadowlark Lane. This sign describes both the system’s function and its history.
Three permanent survey control monuments were established to monitor pond performance and for public reference.
Tree Farm Pond A Project Data
SSCAFCA Cost: $750,000
Construction Date: 2000
Engineer: ASCG Incorporated of New Mexico
Contractor: Inca Construction Co.
Southern Sandoval County Flood Control Authority
Chairman: William “Dub” Yarbrough
Directors: John Chaney, Jim Dorn, Bill Joiner and Guy McDowell
Executive Director: David Stoliker