Tag: ADWR

Turning the tables: reporters covering the Colorado River explain their challenges to Colorado River water users

On By azwater
Left to right: Peter Prengaman (AP); Crystal Thompson (CAP); Alex Hager (KUNC); Hunter Bassler (12 News)

Left to right: Peter Prengaman (AP); Crystal Thompson (CAP); Alex Hager (KUNC); Hunter Bassler (12 News)

The 2022 Colorado River Water Users Association meetings are setting records for attendees. It has never before sold out. This time, it has.

It literally has “sold out” of credentials for media, too. The halls of the Caesar’s Palace vast meeting-room levels are swarming with more media than these meetings ever have seen before. This “colloquium” gives attendees a unique window into the news world and how it covers Colorado River water issues.

Peter Prengaman, an environmental news editor at the Associated Press, describes a package of Colorado River stories that AP and other journalists have created for AP subscribers, including Arizona publications such as the Yuma Sun and the Arizona Daily Star.

AP, says Prengaman, previously covered climate-change issues as a science story. In this latest Colorado River series, as well as in other coverage, the news service is attempting to examine climate change more “holistically,” including pursuing stories on water issues around the world.

“A lot of people are only now starting to engage with climate change,” he said. “But the science, really, is 40 or 50 years old.”

Alex Hager, a reporter who produces NPR-style stories for public radio at his home station of KUNC, as well as for numerous other public-radio stations around the US and Canada. In addition, he produces written web features on his subjects, which include a considerable number of stories related to the Colorado River.

His work on the Colorado River is funded by the Walton Family Foundation. Hager observes that there is “a strict firewall” between his reporting and the funding foundation.

Hager notes that a lot of his story subject come from sources “other than PR pitches.” That got a laugh from the audience, which seems to include a fair number of PR people.

Like a great many other people who are attempting to understand the complex issues facing the Colorado River, Hager acknowledges that learning the complex language of water has been a continuous challenge.

Hunter Bassler of KPNX, Channel 12 in Phoenix, is a digital reporter and producer, mainly for the news station’s website.

“Visually showing the effects of climate change is pretty difficult,” said Bassler.

Through his online articles, he said, TV reporters can see whether a story can translate into something they can turn for television. Water stories, he said, need to be interesting, accurate and digestible – a real problem, he acknowledges, given their complexity.

“Water agencies have done a fine job of making water data available online,” he observed.

Jerd Smith of Fresh Water News, a service provided by Water Education Colorado, described how her news service was created to help bolster the dwindling coverage afforded by traditional news media whose newsrooms have been decimated in recent years from layoffs.

“We share our content with media organizations across (Colorado),” said Smith.

Smith noted the importance of including maps with water stories, since “all water stories are local stories.” She pointed out the need for reporters to “get out and build relationships” rather than report from “your closets and basements” – an issue that to many observers became much more serious during the pandemic.

Teal Lehto, who bills herself as “Western Water Girl,” produces water-related videos on Tik Tok, a video-format social media platform that “is the most popular platform” for people under 30, she observed. Lehto has over 50,000 regular viewers.

Like Public Radio’s Alex Hager, she said, “I also use my closet as my studio.”

Lehto noted that she only started her water-news video platform in April. “And, now, here I am up here (on a CRWUA panel) today.”

“My platform is proof that young people are interested and will be engaged, but only if you are speaking their language,” she said.

Water agencies announce partnership to invest $200 million in conservation efforts to bolster Colorado River’s Lake Mead, under 500+ plan

On By azwater

Las Vegas, Nevada (December 15, 2021) – LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Water agencies across Arizona, California and Nevada, together with the Department of the Interior, today announced a historic effort to invest up to $200 million in projects over the next two years to keep the Colorado River’s largest reservoir, Lake Mead, from dropping to critically low levels.

The agreement, known as the 500+ Plan, aims to add 500,000 acre-feet of additional water to Lake Mead in both 2022 and 2023 by facilitating actions to conserve water across the Lower Colorado River Basin. The additional water – enough water to serve about 1.5 million households a year – would add about 16 feet total to the reservoir’s level, which continues to reach record low levels.

“Two decades of drought on the Colorado River is taking a toll across the Basin and on Lake Mead. By working together we’ve staved off these historic low levels for years, thanks to collaboration and conservation in the Lower Basin. But we need even more action, and we need it now,” said Commissioner Camille Calimlim Touton of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.

In addition to Reclamation, the 500+ Plan includes the Arizona Department of Water Resources, Central Arizona Project, The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, and the Southern Nevada Water Authority.

Under the Memorandum of Understanding signed today during the Colorado River Water Users Association’s annual conference, ADWR commits up to $40 million to the initiative over two years, with CAP, Metropolitan and SNWA each contributing up to $20 million. The federal government plans to match those commitments, for a total funding pool of $200 million.

Some of the specific conservation actions and programs that will be implemented through the 500+ Plan have already begun, while others are still being identified. The MOU includes conservation efforts in both urban and agricultural communities, such as funding crop fallowing on farms to save water, including the recent approval of a short-term agricultural land fallowing program in California, or urban conservation to reduce diversions from Lake Mead.

In 2019, Arizona, Nevada and California signed the Lower Basin Drought Contingency Plan and agreed to contribute water to Lake Mead as it reached certain levels, to keep it from dropping even further and reaching critically low levels. The DCP also included a provision that if modeling indicates a possibility of the reservoir reaching an elevation of 1,030 feet, action would be required.

“Our work on the 2019 DCP took more than five years to complete. This commitment to work together to stabilize Lake Mead came together in a matter of a few months,” said Arizona Department of Water Resources Director Tom Buschatzke. “That alone is a powerful testament to the commitment of the Lower Basin States to work together with our partners at Reclamation to protect this vital river system.”

“These past months have presented tremendous challenges with the additional pressure of the need to work quickly. But rather than drive us apart, this difficult situation has further strengthened our relationships. It’s amazing that work of this magnitude, sensitivity and expense could come together in this amount of time,” said Central Arizona Project General Manager Ted Cooke.

“We had hoped the contributions made under the DCP would be enough to stabilize Lake Mead while we seek longer-term solutions to the challenges on the Colorado River. But they aren’t, which is why we are moving forward with the 500+ Plan,” said Metropolitan General Manager Adel Hagekhalil.

“It is imperative that all users on the Colorado River take action now to preserve this critical resource that we all depend upon,” said SNWA General Manager John Entsminger. “We hope as this initiative is developed, that along with our other many conservation efforts, it will provide strong support for Lake Mead water levels.”

The plan marks the latest collaborative effort by the Lower Basin states in partnership with Reclamation to bring sustainability to the Colorado River, which has been in a historic drought since 2000.

The plan also highlights the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s historic $8.3 billion investment in water infrastructure and will help minimize the impacts of drought, and develop a long-term plan to facilitate conservation and economic growth. The BID’s investments will fund water efficiency and recycling programs, rural water projects, WaterSMART grants and dam safety to ensure that irrigators, Tribes and adjoining communities receive adequate assistance and support.

BUREAU OF RECLAMATION
Patti Aaron
paaron@usbr.gov
702-293-8189		ARIZONA DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES
Shauna Evans
smevans@azwater.gov
602-771-8079		SOUTHERN NEVADA WATER AUTHORITY
Bronson Mack
bronson.mack@lvvwd.com 702-249-5518
CENTRAL ARIZONA PROJECT
DeEtte Person
dperson@cap-az.com
623-869-2597		METROPOLITAN WATER DISTRICT
Rebecca Kimitch
rkimitch@mwdh2o.com
202-821-5253		 

2019 Pinal Groundwater model released

On By azwater1 Comment

The “2019 Pinal Model and 100-year Assured Water Supply Projection Technical Memorandum” — an analysis of the Pinal County area’s groundwater conditions, performed by the Arizona Department of Water Resources,  is now complete and available for viewing.

The model can be viewed here.

 

#  #  #

How do we sustain the Colorado River past 2026? Here’s how Arizona intends to find out.

On By azwater

The Opinion piece below was initially published on AZCentral.com on Friday, Sept. 13, 2019.

By Tom Buschatzke, Director, Arizona Department of Water Resources, and Ted Cooke, General Manager, Central Arizona Project


It didn’t take long for the completion of the Drought Contingency Plan to create value to Arizona and the Colorado River Basin.

Its focus on stabilizing Lake Mead and creating incentives to “bank” water in the reservoir already are paying dividends.

We can say with confidence that DCP is already a success.

DCP is providing a safe harbor while we work on important issues leading up to 2026, when the existing guidelines for the operation of the Colorado River system expire.

We now have an opportunity to build on the successful Arizona process that led to the DCP signing. Arizona is Stronger Together. And that will serve us well as we work toward the next step – maintaining a stable, healthy Colorado River system as we face a hotter and drier future.

Lake Mead is 22 feet higher than expected

A year ago, many of us were immersed in the details of Arizona’s Drought Contingency Implementation Plan, which benefited from the cooperative spirit of its participants, including elected leaders and representatives from every sector of the state’s water-using community.

ADWR Director Buschatzke
Tom Buschatzke

In 2020 and likely 2021, we will be operating under DCP’s Tier Zero, a reduction of 192,000 acre-feet to Arizona. The estimated impact of contributing this water is more than $40 million, but the investment is worth it to protect the Colorado River system.

Aerial View of the Colorado River
Ted Cooke

DCP’s incentives allowed for greater storage in Lake Mead this year. That, coupled with a lot of snow from the Rocky Mountains and additional tributary flow, increased storage in Lake Mead by more than 22 feet from what was initially projected.

An excellent winter snowpack in the Rockies helped Lake Mead a lot. But here is the kicker: Almost half of that 22-foot rise in Lake Mead was due to storage and contributions to system conservation.

But DCP won’t hold us forever

The term used for the coming negotiations on the system’s new guidelines is “reconsultation” of the “Colorado River Interim Guidelines for Lower Basin Shortages and the Coordinated Operations for Lake Powell and Lake Mead.”

The emphasis is on “interim.” The 2007 Guidelines expire in 2026. So, when people ask “what’s next?” for Colorado River management, that’s it – the difficult challenge of assessing the effectiveness of the current Guidelines, with the DCP overlay, and exploring new approaches for the next iteration of the Guidelines.

As we learned on January 31 when the State Legislature passed, and Governor Doug Ducey signed Arizona’s DCP, we achieved success because we worked together. We intend to bring the steering committee process back to life, reviving that spirit of cooperation that so infused negotiations.

To that end, we are embarking on a listening and data-collecting effort. It is our plan to meet first with the elected leaders who contributed so much time and effort to the successful steering committee process. Then, we plan to sit down with other delegates, including those representing Arizona tribes, cities, agriculture, mining, development and the nonprofit community.

Our goal: To develop a shared vision

Our new goal? Gather our stakeholders’ thoughts and develop a shared vision as we plan for Arizona’s Colorado River water supply.

This will ensure Arizona is a strong voice among the Colorado River Basin states and the federal government as we hammer out the next set of agreements for management of the Colorado River Basin beyond 2026.

That is our “Next Step.” It’s a big one and we must be prepared. And we will be, because Arizona truly is Stronger Together.

 

ADWR Director to provide congressional testimony on Wednesday on behalf of tribal settlement

On By azwater

Arizona Department of Water Resources Director Tom Buschatzke on Wednesday will express Arizona’s strong support for an important tribal settlement before a subcommittee of the House Natural Resources Committee.

Director Buschatzke is scheduled to testify before the House Committee on Natural Resources’ Subcommittee on Water, Oceans, and Wildlife on H.R. 2459, the Hualapai Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act of 2019.

The federal legislation approves a settlement agreement involving the tribe and state parties that includes providing the tribe with 4,000 acre-feet per year of Central Arizona Project water from the Colorado River. The settlement also includes the planning, design and construction of the “Hualapai Water Project,” which includes a pipeline capable of delivering 3,414 acre-feet per year to the tribal reservation at Peach Springs and beyond to the tribe’s major tourist attractions at Grand Canyon West.

Approval by Congress would authorize an appropriation of $134.5 million for construction of the Project, $32 million for operation, maintenance and replacement costs by the Tribe, and $7 million for use by the Secretary of the Interior in operating the water project before title is conveyed to the Tribe. The funding also provides technical assistance to prepare the Tribe for the operation of the Project.

For the Hualapai Tribe, the settlement provides a renewable water supply and the infrastructure to convey that water supply from the Colorado River to critical areas on the Tribe’s reservation.

“The State of Arizona strongly supports this legislation,” said Director Buschatzke.

“Half of the 22 federally recognized Indian tribes in Arizona still have unresolved water rights claims. Resolving these claims through settlement is a priority for the State.”

This appearance is the second time this year that Director Buschatzke has testified before the House Subcommittee on Water, Oceans, and Wildlife. On March 28, he joined other representatives of the Colorado River Basin States, as well as Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Brenda Burman, speaking on behalf the successful effort to pass the Colorado River Drought Contingency Plan.

The Director also testified on Capitol Hill in support of the Hualapai Tribe water-rights settlement on December 6, 2017.

https://naturalresources.house.gov/hearings/legislative-hearing-on-hr-644-hr-2459-and-hr-3292

Who: ADWR Director Tom Buschatzke

What: Testimony on behalf of H.R. 2459, sponsored by Rep. Tom O’Halleran of Arizona

Where: Before the Subcommittee on Water, Oceans, and Wildlife of the House Natural Resources Committee

When: 2 p.m. (EDT); 11 a.m. (MST)

First meeting of the Management Plans Work Group set for July 9

On By azwater1 Comment

The Management Plans Working Group is the stakeholder forum for the development of the Active Management Areas Fifth Management Plans, with a goal of working to assess existing AMA conservation programs and to develop new management strategies for the 5th management period and beyond.

The first meeting will detail the recommendations of the Arizona Department of Water Resources for the remaining 4th Management Plans and begin discussions of the research and analysis needed to begin work on the 5th Management Plans.

These meetings are open to the public, and webinar information will be available upon request. Meeting information, agendas, and other documents will be posted at new.azwater.gov/5MP.

When: Tuesday, July 9, 2019, 1:00pm – 2:30pm
Where: ADWR main offices; 1110 W. Washington St, Phoenix, AZ 85007; Conference Room 3175

Who: ADWR; direct questions to managementplans@azwater.gov 

ADWR Director to present on potential impacts of DCP at Colo River conference

On By azwater1 Comment

GWC_Conference 2019

Arizona Department of Water Resources Director Tom Buschatzke will participate Thursday in a panel discussion on “Charting a Better Course for the Colorado River” at the annual Getches-Wilkinson Center Summer Conference in Boulder, Colo.

Buschatzke’s panel discussion will delve into expectations for the new management guidelines on the Colorado River system, including the new Drought Contingency Plans that were signed on May 20 at an event at Hoover Dam. The panel also will discuss expectations for the new Guidelines for river management that must be worked out before the existing Guidelines expire in 2026.

Panelists will consider how (or, whether) the  DCPs may provide a “roadmap” for reaching agreement on those post-2026 Guidelines.

As noted in the GWC Summer Conference schedule of events, “(n)owhere was the DCP road more turbulent, and the upcoming implementation more salient, than in Arizona.”

The discussion, which begins at 9:00 a.m. (MST) will be recorded and livestreamed. It will be available for viewing here.

 

ADWR completes groundwater flow model update of North Santa Cruz AMA

On By azwater

5.10.2019 Santa_Cruz_River

Photo courtesy of University of Arizona Water Resources Research Center

Arizona Department of Water Resources hydrologists have completed an update  to the North Santa Cruz Active Management Area groundwater flow model, the first such updates since the release of modeling reports on the NSCAMA in 2007 and 2010.

The model is updated to include data for the approximately 14-year period beginning in 2002 through water year 2016. The calibrated, extended model will be used to provide model-simulated estimates of natural recharge and discharge components for the draft Fourth Management Plan for the Santa Cruz AMA.

Overall, the NSCAMA model update did not produce any big surprises or changes in the Department’s interpretation of the hydrology in  the area.

However, the groundwater flow model update did reinforce the importance to the NSCAMA aquifer of “episodic flood pulses” — episodes, usually lasting days or weeks, when runoff from large rainfall events flows into the Santa Cruz River and increases the amount of surface flow, often by orders of magnitude.

Water levels in the Santa Cruz AMA are largely dependent on stream recharge, which varies significantly from year to year in response to streamflow coming down the Santa Cruz River. That recharge mostly occurs as a result of those episodic flood pulses generated by substantial rain events.

The North Santa Cruz AMA aquifer is a narrow, shallow basin that provides less long-term storage capacity than wider, deeper aquifers such as that of the Tucson and Phoenix AMAs. Especially following major rain events, water flows through the aquifer quickly because the soil properties are such that the conductivities are very high.

The model update found that groundwater pumping in the southern Tucson AMA is continuing to impact water levels in the northern Santa Cruz AMA north of the town of Tubac.

From 1997 to 2016, water levels in this area have been steadily dropping – up to 45 feet, using 1997-1998 as the baseline.

The northern portion of the Santa Cruz AMA is simulated as a model separate from the southern portion due to the  distinct hydrologic regimes along the upper and lower reaches of the Santa Cruz River within the AMA.

For further information regarding the model update of the North Santa Cruz AMA, contact Sally Stewart Lee at ADWR. sslee@azwater.gov

 

 

 

President signs Colorado DCP Authorization Act, clearing path to finalize historic agreement

On By azwater

President Trump this afternoon signed the Colorado River Drought Contingency Plan Authorization Act, the federal legislation that opens the door for the Secretary of the Interior to sign the vital drought plan along with the governor’s representatives of the Seven Basin States.

Arizona Department of Water Resources Director Tom Buschatzke will sign on behalf of Governor Ducey. Buschatzke himself was authorized to sign the agreement on January 31 by an act of the Arizona Legislature, which the governor promptly signed.

The DCP is an agreement among the Colorado River states to take steps to protect Lake Mead in the event of a shortage declaration. Years in the making, the agreement would help protect Lake Mead water levels from falling into critical depths.

Introduced to Congress in late March, the DCP Authorization Act flew through both the U.S. Senate and House, thanks in no small part to the strong support provided by the Arizona congressional delegation, notably Sen. Martha McSally and Rep. Raul Grijalva, both of whom played key roles.

Within eleven days of its introduction, on April 8, both the House and Senate approved the legislation by acclimation and sent the Act to the President’s desk for his signature.