The New Mexico Wind & Wildlife Collaborative (NMWWC) is an informal collaborative effort between the renewable energy industry and the conservation community to constructively and proactively address wildlife resource concerns related to renewable energy development in New Mexico.

We believe that renewable energy development is appropriate and desired in New Mexico. However, we also acknowledge that with any development there may be issues related to wildlife and the conservation of our natural resources. The NMWWC has developed reasonable Best Management Practices (BMPs) that have been agreed upon by participating members from industry, agencies, landowners, academics and the conservation community. These Best Management Practices are intended to help guide the placement of renewable energy development facilities and the transmission of that energy so wildlife resource concerns may be avoided, minimized or mitigated.

Learn more about the NMWWC and how this tool was developed...

Priority Resource Concerns in New Mexico

Review the following list and select one or more resources that may affect your potential site. Some resources (marked with an *) are found in all counties of Colorado; therefore, they are automatically selected. Click on a map to enlarge and view the counties where the resource occurs. When finished, hit the Submit button to download the Best Management Practices PDFs and any available GIS Shapefiles. For more information about developing a project in New Mexico, visit the New Mexico Renewable Energy Transmission Authority website.

Playa Lakes Joint Venture, one of the NMWWC partners, provides hosting for this online tool.

Bats*

COUNTIES AFFECTED:  All counties — Bernalillo, Catron, Chaves, Cibola, Colfax, Curry, De Baca, Dona Ana, Eddy, Grant, Guadalupe, Harding, Hidalgo, Lea, Lincoln, Los Alamos, Luna, McKinley, Mora, Otero, Quay, Rio Arriba, Roosevelt, San Juan, San Miguel, Sandoval, Santa Fe, Sierra, Socorro, Taos, Torrance, Union, Valencia

DOWNLOAD:  Best Management Practices PDF

Contact Rayo McCollough at Natural Heritage New Mexico for associated maps and GIS data.

Fragmentation*

COUNTIES AFFECTED:  All counties — Bernalillo, Catron, Chaves, Cibola, Colfax, Curry, De Baca, Dona Ana, Eddy, Grant, Guadalupe, Harding, Hidalgo, Lea, Lincoln, Los Alamos, Luna, McKinley, Mora, Otero, Quay, Rio Arriba, Roosevelt, San Juan, San Miguel, Sandoval, Santa Fe, Sierra, Socorro, Taos, Torrance, Union, Valencia

DOWNLOAD:  Best Management Practices PDF

Contact Rayo McCollough at Natural Heritage New Mexico for associated maps and GIS data.

Herptiles*

COUNTIES AFFECTED: All counties — Bernalillo, Catron, Chaves, Cibola, Colfax, Curry, De Baca, Dona Ana, Eddy, Grant, Guadalupe, Harding, Hidalgo, Lea, Lincoln, Los Alamos, Luna, McKinley, Mora, Otero, Quay, Rio Arriba, Roosevelt, San Juan, San Miguel, Sandoval, Santa Fe, Sierra, Socorro, Taos, Torrance, Union, Valencia

DOWNLOAD:  Best Management Practices PDF

Contact Rayo McCollough at Natural Heritage New Mexico for associated maps and GIS data.

Map of Lesser Prairie-Chicken Activity

Lesser Prairie-Chicken

COUNTIES AFFECTED:  Chaves, Curry, De Baca, Eddy, Lea, Quay, Roosevelt

DOWNLOAD:  Zip file with Best Management Practices PDF, map and associated GIS data (3.26 MB)

Long-billed Curlew

COUNTIES AFFECTED:  Chaves, Curry, De Baca Eddy, Guadalupe, Harding, Hidalgo, Lea, Lincoln, Luna, Mora, Otero, Quay, Roosevelt, San Miguel, Santa Fe, Sierra, Socorro, Torrance, Union

DOWNLOAD:  Best Management Practices PDF

Contact Rayo McCollough at Natural Heritage New Mexico for associated maps and GIS data.

Mountain Plover

COUNTIES AFFECTED:  Chaves, Cibola, Colfax, Curry, De Baca, Eddy, Guadalupe, Harding, Lea, Lincoln, Mora, Quay, Rio Arriba, Roosevelt, San Miguel, Sandoval, Santa Fe, Taos, Torrance, Union, Valencia

DOWNLOAD:  Best Management Practices PDF

Contact Rayo McCollough at Natural Heritage New Mexico for associated maps and GIS data.

Map of Playa Clusters

Playa Clusters

COUNTIES AFFECTED:  Chaves, Colfax, Curry, De Baca, Guadalupe, Harding, Lea, Mora, San Miguel, Quay, Roosevelt, Union

DOWNLOAD:  Zip file with Best Management Practices PDF, map and associated GIS data (3 MB)

Prairie Dogs

COUNTIES AFFECTED:  All counties — Bernalillo, Catron, Chaves, Cibola, Colfax, Curry, De Baca, Dona Ana, Eddy, Grant, Guadalupe, Harding, Hidalgo, Lea, Lincoln, Luna, McKinley, Mora, Otero, Quay, Rio Arriba, Roosevelt, San Juan, San Miguel, Sandoval, Santa Fe, Sierra, Socorro, Taos, Torrance, Union, Valencia

DOWNLOAD:  Best Management Practices PDF

Contact Rayo McCollough at Natural Heritage New Mexico for associated maps and GIS data.

Raptors*

COUNTIES AFFECTED:  All counties — Bernalillo, Catron, Chaves, Cibola, Colfax, Curry, De Baca, Dona Ana, Eddy, Grant, Guadalupe, Harding, Hidalgo, Lea, Lincoln, Los Alamos, Luna, McKinley, Mora, Otero, Quay, Rio Arriba, Roosevelt, San Juan, San Miguel, Sandoval, Santa Fe, Sierra, Socorro, Taos, Torrance, Union, Valencia

DOWNLOAD:  Best Management Practices PDF

Contact Rayo McCollough at Natural Heritage New Mexico for associated maps and GIS data.

Rare Plants*

COUNTIES AFFECTED:  All counties — Bernalillo, Catron, Chaves, Cibola, Colfax, Curry, De Baca, Dona Ana, Eddy, Grant, Guadalupe, Harding, Hidalgo, Lea, Lincoln, Los Alamos, Luna, McKinley, Mora, Otero, Quay, Rio Arriba, Roosevelt, San Juan, San Miguel, Sandoval, Santa Fe, Sierra, Socorro, Taos, Torrance, Union, Valencia

DOWNLOAD:  Best Management Practices PDF

Contact Rayo McCollough at Natural Heritage New Mexico for associated maps and GIS data.

Sandhill Cranes

COUNTIES AFFECTED: Bernalillo, Chaves, Colfax, Curry, De Baca, Dona Ana, Eddy, Grant, Guadalupe, Harding, Hidalgo, Lea, Los Alamos, Luna, Mora, Quay, Rio Arriba, Roosevelt, San Miguel, Sandoval, Santa Fe, Sierra, Socorro, Taos, Torrance, Union, Valencia

DOWNLOAD:  Best Management Practices PDF

Contact Rayo McCollough at Natural Heritage New Mexico for associated maps and GIS data.

Small Mammals

COUNTIES AFFECTED: Bernalillo, Catron, Chaves, Colfax, Dona Ana, Hidalgo, Lincoln, Los Alamos, Mora, Otero, Quay, Rio Arriba, Roosevelt, San Miguel, Sandoval, Santa Fe, Socorro, Taos, Valencia

DOWNLOAD:  Best Management Practices PDF

Contact Rayo McCollough at Natural Heritage New Mexico for associated maps and GIS data.

 

Background Partners in states throughout the Southern Great Plains worked together to develop a science-based site selection and mitigation framework that describes avoidance, minimization, and/or mitigation actions appropriate to a range of environmental impacts that have a nexus with renewable energy development. The collaborative organization working in each state reached consensus on a set of species and ecosystems/habitats that may be impacted by wind development and drafted best conservation practices for them. Final determinations on species and habitats to include in the framework were made based on the scientific merits of the nexus between renewable energy and the species or ecosystems of concern.