The Otero Working Group (OWG) is an interagency collaborative organization that draws together public and private entities to address forest and watershed restoration in the Sacramento Mountains. Partners in the OWG represent the Lincoln National Forest’s Supervisors Office and Sacramento Ranger District, New Mexico State Forestry’s Capitan District, the Mescalero Apache Tribe, the New Mexico State Land Office, the Bureau of Indian Affairs’ Mescalero Agency, the City of Alamogordo, the Apache Point Observatory, the Bureau of Land Management, the National Wild Turkey Foundation, the Otero Soil and Water Conservation District, the Village of Cloudcroft, the National Resource Conservation Service, and New Mexico State University. The New Mexico Forest & Watershed Restoration Institute joins with the South Central Mountains RC&D to facilitate the operations of the OWG.
Partners meet regularly to discuss forest and watershed restoration projects which reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires, increase water flow and improve water quality, and enhance wildlife habitat in the Sacramento Mountains. The OWG has also worked to find ways to maintain a viable forest industry in the state. Partnering with industry can reduce the costs of fuel reduction treatments and can support jobs in rural communities, while restoring forest health to the region’s watersheds. In 2016, the OWG sponsored a wood industry summit that brought together forest industry representatives to discuss strategies for effectively managing the state’s forests.
The NMFWRI has worked with the OWG to build its capacity in education and outreach, and has provided support in GIS mapping and in collaboration. The NMFWRI also assisted in creating a strategy document for the OWG, outlining the collaborative’s mission and projects. On August 23, 2017, the OWG held a signing ceremony at the Lincoln National Forest Supervisor’s Office in Alamogordo, at which the directors of the partnering organizations gathered to sign the document indicating their organization’s support for the goals and activities of the group.
Resources
- Alamogordo Daily News: Forest Service and partners sign watershed restoration strategy
- Watershed Planning Map
Meeting Minutes, Reports and News
April 8th, 2020 General Meeting Notes
October 10, 2018 Meeting Minutes
October 10, 2018 Meeting Notes, Otero Working Group
Otero Working Group Strategic Plan
STRATEGIC PLANNING: A COLLABORATIVE PROCESS TO ACHIEVE WATERSHED RESTORATION IN THE SOUTHERN SACRAMENTO MOUNTAINS
August 22, 2018 Meeting Minutes
August 22, 2018 Meeting Minutes Otero Working Group
April 25, 2018 Meeting Minutes
April 25, 2018 Meeting Minutes, Otero Working Group
May 11, 2016
Meeting Minutes
February 21, 2018 Meeting Minutes
February 21, 2018 Meeting Minute, Otero Working Group
April 20, 2016
Meeting Minutes
2017 Focus Areas Appendix C
Otero Working Group 2017 Focus Areas Appendix C
March 9, 2016
Meeting Minutes
February 17, 2016
Meeting Minutes
January 13, 2016
Meeting Minutes
October 21, 2015
Meeting Minutes
September 16, 2015
Meeting Minutes
July 29, 2015
Meeting Minutes
June 17, 2015
Meeting Minutes
May 20, 2015
Meeting Minutes
March 18, 2015
Meeting Minutes
February 18, 2015
Meeting Minutes
January 21, 2015
Meeting Minutes
December 10, 2014
Meeting Minutes
November 13, 2014
Meeting Minutes