Area soil and water conservation districts are bringing in the green, according to Claunch-Pinto District Manager Dierdre Tarr. All together, the districts have been approved for $1.7 million in funding for the 2010 fiscal year.

They included a $600,000 grant from the New Mexico Water Trust Board for the Estancia Basin Watershed and Forest Health project, a large monitoring project. Thinning projects will also be funded.

For the Estancia Basin project, $300,000 was granted from New Mexico State Forestry to do thinning work on private land adjacent to National Forest land. Another $209,000 was granted from the State Forestry Division for wildland urban interface projects, mainly thinning projects and hazardous fuel reduction.

Those three grants are for all three of the soil and water conservation districts, Tarr said, but Claunch-Pinto also received money for fire prevention and revitalization of the areas burned last summer.

The district received $360,000 for forest restoration for the Manzano land grant and which is for work in the Red Canyon area southwest of Manzano, which wasn't burned. About 300 acres will be thinned over a three-year period, Tarr said.

Claunch-Pinto was awarded $255,000 from the State Forestry Division for a project for a private landowner in the Red Canyon area to compliment work on the federal side.

As for revitalization of burned areas, $213,000 was granted through the Collaborative Forest Restoration Program for work in the federal Ojo Peak Fire burned areas. District workers will be seeding, putting in erosion structures and contour filling of trees over about 100 acres.

Tarr wrote the grants in February. The next step is to get approval from the regional forester and the New Mexico Finance Authority on the funding.

The district also will be training young people on forestry skills. Claunch-Pinto will soon begin taking applications for thinning projects, which can be given to any of the three soil and water conservation districts. Tarr said a good part of the projects will begin this fall.

"We want to have as much private land thinned as possible," she said. "Because we only lost two thinned project areas in the Trigo area, out of 30 projects. It's one of reasons why it's so important."

About 20 projects currently are contracted with the Claunch-Pinto district, and they are in the process of planning 50 more, Tarr said.

As for fire danger, Mountainair District Fire Information Officer Arlene Perea said conditions remain at very high risk. Even though recent rains have been helpful, unless it becomes more frequent, Perea urged residents, hikers and campers to still use caution.

Forest Service staff are urging people to be aware of flooding danger as the summer progresses and monsoon season begins in July. Tajique campground, New Canyon and Capilla Peak remain closed, she said.

"The biggest concern is flood potential," Perea said. "We don't want anybody camping near the creek. As much water as there was last year, if it happens again it would be really dangerous."

She also discouraged any motorized use off of established roads.

"The ecosystem is very vulnerable right now," she said.

There is some good news, Perea expects closed areas of Forest Roads 422, 275, 522 and 245 to open within weeks. However, she did issue a warning to watch out for falling trees.