NMVFO plans 20+ volunteer work projects each year. Click here for a printable overview of the 2024 project season, and check back often for additional information posted as it becomes available. To receive updates and detailed information about upcoming projects and events, be sure to sign up for the NMVFO newsletter on the Home page. Public land agencies that are interested in proposing a project should contact our Projects Team (projects@nmvfo.org) for more information and our easy-to-complete project proposal form.
If you’re new to NMVFO, be sure to visit our FAQ page to learn more about what to expect on a project. Project leaders are always happy to answer your questions about specific projects. Have a non-project related question? Send us a message from our Contact page. Pets are not allowed on any NMVFO projects. Minors must be accompanied by a parent or other legal guardian
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Valles Caldera Wetland Restoration
October 21, 2022 @ 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Contact Leader(s): Jenny Blackmore, j.blackmore@nmvfo.org with any questions.
RESULTS: Nineteen NMVFO volunteers joined Steve Vrooman from Keystone Restoration Ecology and Maryann McGraw from Rio Puerco Alliance to re-wet meadow areas in Valles Caldera National Preserve. Volunteers gathered and loaded three trailer loads of large rocks and transported them to dispersed work sites to build one-rock dams and other structures, helping to plug channels and spread out water in wetland areas. Tasks included plugging gaps in three contour swales and repairing four excavator plugs near the East Fork of the Jemez River. Volunteers also built a culvert inlet structure to raise a pond six inches, and used sod to repair six plug and pond structures up the main drainage.
Description: On Friday, October 21, NMVFO will partner with Rio Puerco Alliance and Keystone Restoration Ecology to help restore a wetland area in the southeast corner of the Valle Grande, the largest valley in Valles Caldera National Preserve. This is part of a larger New Mexico Environmental Department (NMED) wetlands project, the East Fork Headwaters Restoration Project, which will restore 400 acres of the headwaters of the East Fork of the Jemez River. Our job will be to put some finishing touches on the project by building rock dams along a spring-fed channel and a small intermittent creek. The site is close to a road and can be accessed with a short hike.
More info about meeting location to follow, for those who sign up. Hope you can join us!
Please sign up below by Tuesday, October 18. One person per signup. A reminder that pets are not allowed on NMVFO projects.
Difficulty: 
Group Size: 20
For more information: If this is your first NMVFO project, you can find more information about difficulty ratings and what to expect at Volunteer FAQ, or email the project leader.
Please read our Volunteer Guidelines before signing up for this project.
This project is full but you can still sign up to be put on the waitlist.