Claunch Pinto Soil & Water Conservation District (CPSWCD) Natural Resources Conservation Center (NRCC)
Location: Mountainair, New Mexico
Project Info:
Completed: (Unbuilt)
Project Description:
The NRCC will provide administrative support areas and house educational and training facilities. In supporting CPSWCD’s mission: “Provide leadership and administer programs to help people wisely use, conserve, consistently improve, and perpetually sustain our natural environment”; the facilities will promote scientific and cultural events, display historical natural resource documentation, and provide indoor and outdoor learning environments dedicated to teaching and demonstrating fire management techniques, ecological principles, natural resource conservation practices and cultural influences on the land, water, animals, and people.
Located one mile south of the center of Mountainair, NM, the site is 70 miles southeast of Albuquerque. The climate is high desert semi-arid with 13” of annual precipitation. The vegetation is mainly pinon-juniper with a variety of grasses and shrubs. The soils range from fine sandy loam to clay loam with sedimentary rock deposits. The building design reflects the mission of CPSWCD. The requirements of the multiple funding sources have dictated that separate buildings are required: CPSWCD Office, the National Park Service – Salinas Pueblo Mission Office, and the Conference Center.
The buildings are fire resistant and incorporate green building initiatives. The exterior metal and composite cement panels provide excellent fire resistance. The metal roof panels facilitate rain water harvesting and the incorporation of roof mounted photovoltaic panels for on-site electricity generation. A 10 kw wind turbine generator mounted on a 100’ high tower will also provide on-site generated electricity. LEED Gold will be targeted. The buildings will be well insulated, incorporate high performance windows for daylighting, have solar panels for hot water heating, have building overhangs for solar control, and utilize a ground source heat pump system. Rain water and gray water from plumbing fixtures will be stored in cisterns and piped to irrigation, and outdoor demonstration areas.
