Save Our Sacred Land & Sacred Water

 THE LEGENDARY LAND OF ENCHANTMENT IS UNDER ATTACK BY OIL and GAS!

Join with us to protect our sacred land and sacred water!
In prayer and solidarity with water protectors everywhere!

PLEASE HELP US PREVENT FRACKING IN THE RIO GRANDE VALLEY!

Wild Blue Twilight. Jemez Mountain Range, Rio Grande Valley. ©2011 Victoria Bell. All rights reserved.

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has!"   ~ Margaret Mead

PROJECT GOALS

1. To educate decision-makers and the public in the greater Albuquerque metro area about the threat that fracking poses to the area's single drinking water aquifer.  We just published the multimedia documentary SACRED LAND, SACRED WATER: Confluences in the Rio Grande Valley as a public service to accomplish this goal.

2. To use the science in SACRED LAND, SACRED WATER to counter the misinformation being broadcast by the oil and gas industry lobby.

3.  To seek your support in helping fund the production, screening and future distribution costs of the film.

The oil and gas industry has recently targeted the Rio Grande Valley for horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracking.  In July 2018 they submitted an industry-friendly drilling ordinance to the Sandoval County Commission.  It would allow and encourage fracking here with few environmental or public health safeguards.  Industry lobbyists are pressing ahead and hope to pass this legislation before the end of the year.

~ The oil and gas industry has been advertising heavily on local TV promoting the safety of fracking.
    Nothing could be further from the truth!
~ Due to the highly-fractured substructure of the Rio Grande Rift underlying the Albuquerque Basin, fracking here poses a dire threat to our drinking water aquifer.

The Oil and Gas industry has already invaded Southeast, Northeast, and Northwest New Mexico, creating the largest methane cloud in the United States in the Four Corners area.

Now they want to cover the beating heart of Central New Mexico, on the banks of the Rio Grande River, with hundreds of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracking pads.

We cannot allow hydraulic fracking anywhere in or near the Albuquerque Basin water aquifer!


OUR HOPE

We are a team of six local residents who have spent the past eight months producing a documentary film which explains the vulnerability of this region's drinking water aquifer if hydraulic fracking occurs here.  It's based on decades of research in the earth sciences and presents a well-illustrated profile of the region's unique subsurface Rift Valley geology. 

SACRED LAND, SACRED WATER also tells the story of individuals whose way of life and livelihood would be threatened if hydraulic fracking occurs here.

We hope our documentary helps persuade the Sandoval County Commission, other public officials in the greater Albuquerque area, and regional residents to reject horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracking!

To meet the oil and gas industry pressures on our County, we're in a rush to distribute it as widely and as quickly as possible to educate all concerned - and we need your help.


OUR STORIES

New Mexico's fertile and productive Rio Grande Valley has been the home of Native Americans since time immemorial.  Its natural beauty, the richness of its traditions and the purity of its air and water have drawn many others to the area.  Today it is the home of a unique, thriving, multicultural community.

ROBIN

Robin is a highly respected member of Pueblo de Cochiti, which lies on both sides of the Rio Grande. The Cochiti people have been farming the valley's fields for centuries and their crops depend upon the availability of abundant and clean water from our aquifer.

"We American Indians are stewards of our Mother Earth.  We've got ancient knowledge on how to sustain our life, how to take care of all living things.  And you know, we just need somebody to listen to us, and hopefully our voice can be heard."


SONYA

Sonya, originally from the Midwest, moved to the greater Albuquerque area to get closer to nature and to enjoy New Mexico's outdoor lifestyle.  She and her family found a piece of land with broad vistas and plenty of room to breathe the fresh mountain air - on one of the largest and purest aquifers in the nation.  They decided to put down roots and to make a healthy home for themselves and for their children.  Sonya and her husband built a straw-bale house on their land.  Completed several years ago, they've put their new home to good use.  In fact, her children receive their schooling at home - and in nature's classroom all around them.

"When I read about the (oil and gas-friendly) ordinance, I became concerned that what had become a safe and healthy environment for myself and my family would no longer be that way."


ROB

Rob, a Marine Corps veteran, owns an organic Chile farm near the banks of the Rio Grande.  His whole operation, which employs other combat veterans, is totally dependent upon the pure waters of the Albuquerque Basin aquifer.

"Coming from a town of roughnecks . . . when you see that the oil and gas industry is talking about coming to where you lay your head at night, it didn't settle easy with me.  Being on those rigs, working in those communities, I saw the mess we left behind - and I don't want that in my backyard."


SALLY

For over a decade, Sally has been rescuing wild horses.  She oversees what has been called a "senior horse retirement community" along with a wild horse sanctuary.  With over 25 horses and burros, the loss of clean drinking water would be devastating to her horses.

"I can drink bottled water, but I can't buy enough bottled water to provide for 25 horses!"


Robin, Sonya, Rob, and Sally could not have anticipated the dark cloud that has appeared on their horizon.

Alarmed, they have joined hundreds of other area residents in resisting this reckless ordinance.  And, they've lent their voices to SACRED LAND, SACRED WATER.


MORE ABOUT SACRED LAND, SACRED WATER
In response to the oil and gas industry's efforts to place drilling pads in our Valley, our team of six resolute  citizens created The Multimedia Documentary, SACRED LAND, SACRED WATER: Confluences in the Rio Grande Valley.

Inspired by the geologist and best selling author of  Lincoln on Leadership, Donald T. Phillips, the film includes:

~ Interviews of concerned citizens

~ Video clips of public testimony

~ A well-illustrated presentation of the subsurface geology of the Rio Grande Rift and the techniques of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracking.

~ Animated sequences demonstrating the dangers that fracking poses to the one, continuous aquifer underlying the Albuquerque Basin, which provides 85% of the drinking water to its over 800,000 residents.

Also illuminated throughout the film are the enriching multi-cultural, faith and spirit, art and science confluences, and the people and creatures co-existing in our thriving ecosystem.


The Multimedia Documentary
SACRED LAND, SACRED WATER: Confluences in the Rio Grande Valley
53 minutes

Just released in DVD format, and narrated by Nick Sagan, the Film, along with the Preview,  can also be viewed at:  http://www.SacredlandSacredwater.com



FUNDING NEEDS

WE NEED YOUR HELP WITH FUNDING IN ORDER TO POWER THE MESSAGE OF SACRED LAND SACRED WATER FORWARD!

You can be a part of history!

Please join us in helping to save the Albuquerque Basin aquifer!

The future is in our hands!

We will be extremely grateful for any amount you can contribute towards the creation, awareness and distribution, and continued promotion and screening of SACRED LAND, SACRED WATER.

WHO WE ARE
A very small group of six local residents, including a videographer, a geologist, writers, former publishers, a journalist and an IT specialist, we produced this film as a public service. Some of us have been working around the clock for eight straight months! To get the job done in time to meet the looming oil and gas threat, we had to dip into our personal savings.

We are grateful to have been able to make a difference by dedicating our time to this documentary, but now we need your help in recovering our expenses to date as well as our ongoing distribution and promotion expenses.

Your help will enable us to keep powering the message forward.
We will be extremely grateful for any amount you can contribute towards the creation, awareness, distribution, and continued promotion of our documentary SACRED LAND, SACRED WATER.

FUNDING NEEDS

You can be a part of history!
Please join us in helping to save the Albuquerque Basin aquifer!
The future is in all our hands!

OUR FUNDING GOAL IS $43,074.
We've broken this into three tiers, which represent our goals for this project:

TIER I - IMMEDIATE
For Materials and Services paid to date, from personal savings.
From $1.00 to $18,074

~ Permissions acquisition management; rights fees
~ Narrator and recording studio fees
~ Unit Production Crew (when needed)
~ Equipment
~ Software
~ Travel
~ Postage and Shipping
~ 1,000 DVDs

TIER II - NEXT
For Time Compensation to replenish the our personal savings, and to partially make up for lost job opportunities turned down in order to concentrate on this project.
Expenses from $18,075 - $43,074 

- 8 months, from January to September 2018
- Over 2200 total hours on:

- script and content development, writing, and revisions
- filming and film editing
- conducting interviews
- recording and sound editing
- source research and oversight of rights acquisitions
- project planning and coordination
- data file management
- narration and recording editing
- quality control of manufacturing and printing
- crafting promotional messages

TIER III - ONGOING
For the future of the movement
Expenses above $43,074.
We have just entered this phase of the project.  These funds will help us in our continued efforts to educate the public and to counter misinformation being spread by the oil and gas industry lobby.

- Advertising, promotional materials, and publicity
- Public screenings and presentations
- Public Service announcements and advertising
- Website content and design
- GoFundMe content and design
- Database management
- Publicity shipping expenses
- Monitor oil and gas and media news and research
- Communications
- Further distribution and education for Water Protectors around the globe - 
- Possible sequels to Sacred Land, Sacred Water: Confluences in the Rio Grande Valley

WE NEED YOUR HELP and SUPPORT.
JOIN WITH US and SUPPORT SACRED LAND, SACRED WATER!


HOW TO STAY IN TOUCH
Updates
By signing up for updates - see selection below, you will be able to receive our updates on the latest developments in our GoFundMe Campaign, and in our struggle to protect our water.

Website
Please visit our web site to view the film, donate to obtain a DVD in consideration (which also supports this campaign), and for Resources and an action plan, and much more information. Sacred Land, Sacred Water web site 

Facebook
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JOIN WITH US and SUPPORT SACRED LAND, SACRED WATER!

For future generations, please help save our way of life and the beautiful Rio Grande Valley ecosystem in the  legendary Land of Enchantment, and ensure we can continue to help others under threat!

In prayer and solidarity with water protectors everywhere!

Thank you so much for joining with us!
Sacred Land, Sacred Water Team


All photographs, except as otherwise indicated, are made by SACRED LAND, SACRED WATER filmmaker, Lewis Jacobs, and are  ©2018 Lewis Jacobs. All rights reserved.




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