September 2004 – Arizona’s Water Management Framework and Current Challenges

• Jim Holway, Ph.D.

  Assistant Director, ADWR

• Kathryn Sorensen, Ph.D.

  Water Resources Coordinator, City of Mesa

• Brad Hill, R.G.

  Water Resource Manager, City of Peoria

• Karen Smith

  Division Director, Water Quality, Arizona Department of Environmental Quality

Water management policy in Arizona has been shaped by the availability of the resource, economics of acquiring, treating and distributing the water, the legal framework of ownership and management and the politics of area and major actors. Policy design must consider goals and objectives, actions to be affected, possible influence of those actions, and the available tools for implementation. The Department of Water Resources (ADWR) has a three-tiered management structure that includes state-wide policies, active management areas (AMAs) and irrigation non-expansion areas.
Presentation (4 MB pdf)

The municipalities located in greater Phoenix are within the jurisdiction of AMAs. Two of those include the City of Mesa in the southeast valley and the City of Peoria in the northwest valley. Mesa supplies water to approximately 437,000 customers in three designated areas: on-project (local surface water and groundwater), Roosevelt Water Conservation District (RWCD) and desert lands. The on-project area is primarily urbanized and the demand is not expected to increase significantly. The remaining areas will increase demand by greater than 100% in the next 25 years. In order to enact successful policy, the City is faced with challenges such as efficient reclaimed water use, water banking, drought impacts, and cooperative partnerships. Peoria serves approximately 135,000 customers with anticipated growth to exceed 400,000.
Mesa Presentation (2 MB pdf)

While Peoria has a water supply that includes groundwater, effluent, CAP water, and SRP water, it expects demand to exceed supply within the nest 15 years. Major factors in Peoria’s policy development include educating the public, improving its use of effluent, and acquiring new supplies.
Peoria Presentation (2 MB pdf)

Meanwhile, the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality struggles with quality concerns among all of the region's water supplies. If and when groundwater in the metropolitan area is pumped at an increased rate, existing contamination plumes will threaten the ability of the infrastructure to provide potable water. The Colorado River also has quality concerns that put the future of its supply at risk. The complexity of factors influencing water policy decisions continually shifts as the demand fluctuates and uncertainties arise.

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