La Jara

About La Jara

The primary purpose of La Jara is irrigation. The dam stores and diverts water for agricultural irrigation, supporting farming operations in the surrounding area. The dam is owned by Bia (federal). It impounds the La Jara Creek.

The dam stands 27 feet tall and stretches 600 feet across, creates a reservoir covering 175 acres, has a maximum storage capacity of 1,848 acre-feet, and collects water from a drainage area of 18 square miles. Completed in 1900, the structure is over a century old.

This dam carries a high hazard potential classification, which means that a failure or uncontrolled release of water would likely cause loss of human life. This classification reflects the consequences of failure, not the likelihood — it indicates that people live or work in the area downstream. Its condition is rated satisfactory, indicating no existing or potential dam safety deficiencies are recognized. Notably, no emergency action plan is currently on file for this high-hazard dam. The most recent inspection on record was 09/16/2020.

Living Downstream

If you live or work downstream of this dam, consider taking these steps: learn your local evacuation routes, check whether your county emergency management office has a dam failure inundation map, and sign up for local emergency alerts. The New Mexico dam safety program can provide more specific information about emergency planning for this structure.

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