ADWR Director expresses support for reintroduction of historic tribal water rights settlement
Phoenix, AZ — Members of Arizona’s Congressional delegation from both sides of the aisle have led the way in reintroducing legislation to ratify and fund the historic Northeastern Arizona Indian Water Rights Settlement Agreement.
Arizona Senators Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego, alongside Representatives Juan Ciscomani (R-AZ-06), Greg Stanton (D-AZ-04), David Schweikert (R-AZ-01), Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ-07) and Yassamin Ansari (D-AZ-03) announced on Tuesday the reintroduction of the vital legislation.
The bill was originally introduced in Congress last year to ratify and fund the settlement agreement entered into between the State of Arizona, the Navajo Nation, the Hopi Tribe, the San Juan Southern Paiute Tribe, and numerous other Arizona parties.
Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs signed the settlement agreement on November 19, 2024.
“Arizona’s congressional delegation is to be commended for leading the way in moving this legislation forward,” said Arizona Department of Water Resources Director Tom Buschatzke.
“Finalizing this crucial agreement, following decades of negotiation in some cases, constitutes a monumental ‘win’ for both the State of Arizona and the tribes,” said Buschatzke. “So, it is extremely gratifying to see our representatives from both sides of the political divide uniting behind this legislation.”
Congressional approval of the Act is vital to assuring clean and safe water supplies for the three Native American tribes. Although estimates vary across the Navajo Nation, Hopi Tribe, and San Juan Southern Paiute Tribe reservations, approximately one-third of homes on the three reservations lack access to running water.
The legislation creates a reservation for the San Juan Southern Paiute Tribe, settles the Arizona water rights claims for all three Tribes, and authorizes $5.1 billion to acquire, build, and maintain much needed delivery infrastructure and water development projects, including the iiná bá – paa tuwaqat’si pipeline that will bring Colorado River water to the three reservations. Settlement water supplies include both Upper and Lower Basin Colorado River water, groundwater, and other surface water supplies.
The settlement also allows the Navajo Nation and the Hopi Tribe to lease a portion of their Colorado River supplies off-reservation, creating economic opportunities until on-reservation demand is met through new infrastructure.
The leasing authorization includes authorization to lease the Tribes’ Upper Basin Colorado River water for system conservation, which will provide a benefit to the Colorado River System. The water has historically been used for system conservation.
For further information, contact ADWR communications administrator Doug MacEachern at dmaceachern@azwater.gov or 602.771.8507.
PHOENIX- Beginning the week of March 3, 2025, and continuing through April 2025, Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR) field services staff will make an extensive effort to measure water levels in wells within several groundwater basins in Southern Arizona. This survey of wells – or basin “sweep”, as it is known, was last conducted during the Spring of 2020.
The data collected will be analyzed and used to obtain a comprehensive overview of the groundwater conditions and used to support scientific and water management planning efforts. Among others, data uses will include:
Analysis of water-level trends
Groundwater modeling
Water-level change maps
Hydrologic reports
Water resource planning and management
The groundwater subbasins that will be targeted are as follows; Avra Valley, Cienega Creek, San Rafael, Santa Cruz AMA and Upper Santa Cruz. These subbasins cover several thousand square miles of Tucson Metro, farmland, riparian areas, Santa Cruz River and rugged terrain in Southern Arizona along the border of Mexico. Additional coverage areas include the cities and towns of Green Valley, Tubac, Nogales, Patagonia and Sonoita.
For more information regarding this matter, please contact Public Information Officer Shauna Evans at smevans@azwater.gov or (602) 771-8079.
Details about the nature of basin sweeps and groundwater modeling can be found here. If you would like to volunteer your well for participation in this groundwater survey please contact the Hydrology Division at (602) 771-8535.
ARIZONA WATER PROTECTION FUND WELCOMES NEW TRIBAL APPOINTMENT
Phoenix, AZ — The Arizona Water Protection Fund Commission (Commission) is proud to announce that Rolando Flores, councilmember of the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, has been appointed to the Commission by the Inter Tribal Council of Arizona on February 21.
In a letter announcing the appointment of Mr. Flores, Inter Tribal Council President Paul J. Russell observed that “Mr. Flores will bring valuable insights and contributions to the Commission, helping to further its mission of protecting and enhancing Arizona’s water resources for future generations.”
The Water Protection Fund is a competitive State grant program that provides funding for the development and implementation of measures to protect water of sufficient quality and quantity to maintain, enhance and restore rivers, streams and riparian habitat, including projects that benefit fish and wildlife that are dependent on these important resources.
Commission members are appointed for three-year terms. They may serve more than one term and may continue to serve beyond the expiration of the term until a successor is appointed and assumes office.
According to State statute, the Commission should include “(o)ne person who represents an Indian tribe and who is appointed by the chairman of the Inter Tribal Council of Arizona.”
Water Protection Fund Commission Chairman Pat Jacobs said that “we welcome Mr. Flores for his perspective and understanding of surface-water issues.”
He observed that Arizona’s tribal community “has been without a representative in that position on the Commission for a long time,” and thanked the Inter Tribal Council of Arizona “for appointing a highly qualified representative.”
Mr. Jacobs noted having a Commission member who is representative of tribal perspectives, as well as someone with Mr. Flores’ extensive understanding of surface-water issues, “is vitally important.”
Mr. Flores, an attorney and graduate of the University of Arizona College of Law, has previously served as Attorney General of the Pasqua Yaqui Tribe.
Currently, he is the co-chair for the Economic Development Oversight Committee of the Tribe. He is also the Vice Chairman of the Arizona Indian Gaming Association.
For further information about the Water Protection Fund, or for information about upcoming WPF Commission meetings, visit http://www.azwpf.gov contact WPF staff at Phone: (602) 771-8528.
ARIZONA GOVERNOR HOBBS PROPOSES ADDING OVER $60 MILLION TO DEFEND STATE’S WATER FUTURE
A breakdown of water-related investments included in the recently released Executive Budget proposal from Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs:
$14.6M Deposit to WIFA Water Conservation Grant Fund
Governor Hobbs has now allocated $14.6 million to the Water Conservation Grant Fund to enable the Water Infrastructure Finance Authority (WIFA) to continue investing in generational water conservation projects.
Thanks to $200 million awarded by the State in federal funds allocated through the American Rescue Plan Act, WIFA has been able to fund conservation-focused projects across Arizona. To date, WIFA has funded over 150 water conservation projects. The Governor’s 2025 Executive Budget proposal includes investments in current and future water solutions, including WIFA’s funding for rural water supply development and long-term augmentation.
These critical resources will help ensure that rural areas can invest in the infrastructure they need to be water resilient, statewide efforts continue their investment in the infrastructure Arizona needs to find sustainable, renewable water supplies for the future. These investments speak directly to the mission of WIFA, which has been to augment and expand Arizona’s water supplies.
$12M Grant for City of Buckeye Renewable Water Infrastructure
By enrolling in the new Alternative Designation of 100-year Assured Water Supply (ADAWS) Program, the City of Buckeye has committed to increasing the sustainability of its water resource portfolio, a major step forward toward creating sustainable growth. This allocation of $12 million will help Buckeye build infrastructure to reuse its effluent supplies and recover them from a hydrologically connected area; facilitating sustainable growth and increased use of renewable water supplies.
$7M Statewide Groundwater Monitoring and Data Collection
These allocations will provide ADWR with much needed additional tools to ensure that Arizona’s groundwater resources are properly managed and protected. Governor Hobbs has invested $7 million to ADWR to install groundwater monitoring index wells throughout rural Arizona to observe declining groundwater levels and inform ongoing groundwater protection efforts. Without these index wells, ADWR hydrologists are less able to accurately assess the health of groundwater supplies in rural areas.
$5.5M For ADWR Hydrogeologic Studies in Priority Groundwater Basins
To help rural communities understand and protect their groundwater supplies, ADWR hydrologists create groundwater models that help water managers and community leaders understand the conditions of their aquifers. This $5.5 million investment will allow ADWR hydrogeologists to collect key hydrogeologic information to build these critical models in groundwater basins experiencing severe water declines.
$3.45M ADWR Leading Edge Satellite Water Monitoring Systems & Equipment
This investment with ADWR funds the acquisition and use of cutting-edge technologies including absolute gravity survey equipment to monitor aquifer conditions, funding for the Arizona Continuously Operating Reference Stations (AZCORS) Network that provides critical GPS data for scientists, engineers, and surveyors throughout Arizona. It provides funds for satellite monitoring of statewide water demand, and funding for ADWR contractual partnerships with the US Geological Survey (USGS) to collect key water use data.
GOVERNOR’S EXECUTIVE BUDGET PROPOSAL INCLUDES FUNDING FOR KEY ADWR INITIATIVES
Funding for Arizona’s on-going efforts to protect groundwater resources and to prepare for possible litigation over management of the Colorado River
Phoenix, AZ — Today Governor Hobbs released her FY2026 Executive Budget, which funds critical ADWR programs and efforts, including our expanding efforts to actively manage groundwater resources in previously unregulated areas of rural Arizona and to prepare for the possibility of litigation to defend the State’s Colorado River allocation.
While managing current endeavors, ADWR has taken on the State’s next generation of water challenges.
Those new challenges include:
Assisting an increasing number of Arizonans in rural communities who now have groundwater protections for the first time ever.
Helping builders to find a new path to build more homes in Arizona’s urban centers while reducing reliance on groundwater.
Partnering with Tribes whose efforts to reach agreement on water rights are now bearing fruit as a result of successful negotiations with the State and local parties.
Decades of drought in the Southwest, as well as significant increases in groundwater mining in recent years in rural areas, have prompted the ADWR Director to take action, including designating earlier this year Arizona’s seventh Active Management Area (AMA) in the Willcox Basin region.
The new Willcox AMA, along with the Douglas AMA established in 2022 in southern Arizona, together represent the first-ever expansions of groundwater basins actively managed by the Department since the enactment of Arizona’s landmark Groundwater Management Act of 1980.
As a result, ADWR is preparing to advance its efforts to monitor commercial groundwater extraction, assist local communities in establishing groundwater-protection goals and assure that new-home construction in the new Willcox AMA conforms to the requirements of the Groundwater Management Act, including assuring new-home buyers of at least a 100-year water supply.
To keep up with this work on behalf of Arizonans, ADWR must strengthen its team of highly skilled, technical professionals. The Executive Budget includes an ongoing General Fund appropriation of $741,300 to add 6.0 FTE positions across the agency to meet the demanding water policy challenges facing Arizona.
Governor Hobbs’ budget proposal also includes funding to protect the State’s vital Colorado River supplies in the event negotiations on new operating rules for the river falter, prompting legal action.
The Executive Budget creates a Colorado River Litigation Fund with a $1 million General Fund deposit and a transfer of $2 million from prior non-lapsing special line items for Colorado River legal expenses, for a total investment of $3 million.
“If the collaborative and cooperative partnership we have fostered in these negotiations does not bear fruit, Arizona may need to take legal action to protect its current 2.8 million acre feet of Colorado River entitlement,” said Director Tom Buschatzke.
“Litigation is not a path we wish to go down. It can be a very lengthy and expensive process.”
“Nevertheless, this proposed budget demonstrates a significant commitment by Governor Hobbs to support Arizona’s commitment to protecting its entitlement from the Colorado River,” he said.
The current guidelines for the operation and management of the Colorado River system expire at the end of calendar year 2026. Arizona and the six other Basin States are negotiating the post-2026 guidelines with the federal Bureau of Reclamation in order to develop a framework that more sustainably manages the Colorado River system.
The Director of ADWR serves as Arizona’s lead negotiator and is charged with protecting the State’s 2.8 million acre-feet entitlement of Colorado River water, representing as much as 40 percent of the State’s water supply.
While Arizona is committed to collaboration and cooperation with its Basin States partners, it is possible that new guidelines or the absence of a negotiated outcome could result in litigation among the Basin States.
Arizona continues to pursue good-faith negotiations that hopefully will result in a consensus outcome for more sustainable Colorado River management. At the same time, this appropriation ensures that ADWR has the resources to defend Arizona’s interests and water users who depend on the State’s precious Colorado River entitlement.
Major ADWR initiatives funded in the Governor’s budget proposal include:
$741,300 ongoing from the General Fund to add 6.0 FTE positions across the agency.
$1 million General Fund deposit and a transfer of $2 million from prior non-lapsing special line items for Colorado River legal expenses, for a total investment of $3 million.
PHOENIX- Beginning the week of December 30, 2024, and continuing through February 2025, Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR) field services staff will make an extensive effort to measure water levels in wells within several groundwater basins in Eastern Arizona. This survey of wells – or basin “sweep”, as it is known, was last conducted during the winter 1987.
The data collected will be analyzed and used to obtain a comprehensive overview of the groundwater conditions and used to support scientific and water management planning efforts. Among others, data uses will include:
Analysis of water-level trends
Groundwater modeling
Water-level change maps
Hydrologic reports
Water resource planning and management
The groundwater subbasins that will be targeted are as follows; Bonita Creek, Duncan Valley, Gila Valley, Morenci and San Carlos Valley. These basins cover several thousand square miles of farmland, riparian areas and rugged terrain in East/Central Arizona along the border of New Mexico, through the Gila Mountains and includes the Town of Safford following the path of the Gila River.
For more information regarding this matter, please contact Communications Administrator Doug MacEachern at dmaceachern@azwater.gov or (602) 771-8507.
Details about the nature of basin sweeps and groundwater modeling can be found here. If you would like to volunteer your well for participation in this groundwater survey please contact the Hydrology Division at (602) 771-8535.
ADWR statement in response to Department of Interior’s new Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement
By the end of 2023, the Lower Basin will have voluntarily conserved more than 1 million acre-feet in the Colorado River system. This volume is on top of reductions in use mandated by the 2007 Guidelines and the 2019 Drought Contingency Plan, which resulted in a cumulative 617,000 acre-feet being stored in Lake Mead this year by the three states.
As a result of the conservation and the reductions in use, Arizona, California and Nevada this year have put just 5.8 million acre-feet to consumptive use – the lowest consumptive use since 1984.
Arizona’s conservation efforts alone have been substantial.
Including voluntary contributions and reductions mandated by the ‘07 Guidelines and the DCP, Arizona has conserved over 3.7 million acre-feet of water in Lake Mead since 2014. In 2023 alone, Arizona is on track to conserve 907,000 acre-feet:
System Conservation funded by Bureau of Reclamation – ~272 KAF
ADWR-CAWCD ICS Preservation – ~43 KAF
Total – ~907 KAF
Taken together, the ongoing voluntary commitments are on track to achieve the volumes in the Lower Basin consensus proposal offered to the federal government earlier this year. Combined with the past year’s above-average hydrology, the system is stable through 2026.
As a result, the states will continue focusing their efforts on post-2026 operational guidelines in order to stabilize the Colorado River system for the long-term.
“Appreciation Week” Recognizes Essential Services of Arizona Water Professionals
PHOENIX – During the week of April 11-17 Arizona leaders from both within and outside the state’s “water community” will take time during Arizona Water Professionals Appreciation Week to recognize the thousands of water professionals working to provide residents with clean and sustainable water supplies. Appreciation Week also aims to highlight career opportunities in the water industry and increase awareness of the state’s unique water resources.
The kick-off of the fourth-annual Arizona Water Professionals Appreciation Week — April 11-17 — is scheduled for 4 p.m. on Monday, April 11 at the State Capitol.
All Arizona water professionals are invited to be recognized at 4 p.m. on Monday, April 11 in the Rose Garden at the state capitol to participate in the photo opportunity and receive a free lapel pin.
As in previous years, Sen. Rosanna Gabaldon (D-Sahuarita) will read the Senate Proclamation from the Arizona Senate floor the day of the celebration. The Senate reading will be recorded and archived on the Arizona Legislature website (azleg.gov) under the Arizona Capitol Television tab.
More information regarding the Arizona Water Professionals Appreciation Week celebration can be found at arizonawaterprofessionals.com.
See Also
This event is sponsored by AZ Water Association. For more information, please contact Suzanne Durkin-Bighorn, Executive Director suzannedb@azwater.org or Juliet McKenna, event co-organizer, jmckenna@elmontgomery.com
In delivering his second Inaugural Address, Arizona Governor Doug Ducey told the audience at the State Capitol that the time has come to “press forward on some of the biggest challenges facing us.”
“Because none of us came here to do little things — we came here to do the things that matter, big things — and we can do them together.”
Among those big things the Governor identified was securing the State’s water future. Specifically, Governor Ducey called on lawmakers and stakeholders to take action on protecting the State’s Colorado River water supplies.
“We cannot kick the can any further,” he said.
Governor Ducey’s comments on Arizona water security, in full:
Our duty is to leave this state in far better shape than we found it — and we are well on our way.
These are the tasks before us. And if there’s any question of how Arizonans expect us to solve these problems, I’d say, look around. Taking the oath with me today are Republicans and Democrats – all hired by the same electorate.
When conversations stall, as they sometimes do during difficult discussions, we let history be our guide and the hand that lifts us back up.
Nearly four decades ago, in 1980, Arizona’s accelerated water consumption forced a sobering ultimatum from the federal government: reform or suffer severe water cutbacks.
The can could not be kicked any further.
But Arizona’s history is not one of missed opportunities or efforts that came up short. Rather we find, that in the darkest times, Arizona’s pioneering spirit shines the brightest.
Democrats and Republicans rose above party labels. They brought skeptical and reluctant stakeholders to the table. And they acted – and they did it with good faith and honest intentions.
For the people in this crowd and many across our state, I don’t have to spell out the parallel circumstances in which we find ourselves today.
It’s simple. Arizona and our neighboring states draw more water from the Colorado River than mother nature puts back. And with a critical shortfall imminent, we cannot kick the can any further.
It’s going to mean rising above self-interest, and doing the right thing. It means taking the action our past and future generations demand.
Among its many duties focused on the protection and health of Arizona’s forestlands, the Forestry Department provides public outreach through various platforms including social media, billboard marketing campaigns, public service announcements, and community-wide events – all of it focused on informing Arizonans about the condition of their forests and the need to protect this valuable resource.As Arizona warily approaches an early summer fire season marked by record-low watershed runoff and tinder-dry forests, the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management is gearing up for what many fear may be a challenging time ahead.
Much of that work falls to Tiffany Davila, a public information officer for Forestry and Fire Management. Tiffany has long been a familiar face among Arizona media covering wildfires in Arizona, providing up-to-date information on many of the more serious conflagrations that plague the state at this time of year.
Arizona Water News recently caught up with Tiffany to get her sense of what lies ahead for Arizona’s forests.
Arizona Water News:With the human-caused Rattlesnake Fire southwest of Alpine, the state’s wildfire ‘season’ already seems to be underway. Are we seeing an unusually early start this year for forest fires?
Tiffany Davila: Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be a ‘season’ anymore. Wildfire activity picks up every month nowadays. This January and February we had fire activity across southern Arizona and we expect it to get even busier across the entire State as we move into the warmer months.
The Rattlesnake Fire, posted to Inciweb approximately April 20, 2018. Photographer unknown;
Last year, the Sawmill Fire started on April 23rd and burned nearly 47,000 acres. This year, the Rattlesnake Fire started even earlier and has already reached 22,000 acres.
Southern Arizona was very active last year. But this year is different. The lack of precipitation over the winter and increasingly warm temperatures means a decrease in fuel moisture. Therefore, the fire outlook predicted is for high wildfire activity across all of Arizona.
AWN:Rangers in the Tonto National Forest reported issuing 300 warnings and citations between April 20 and 22 for violations of Stage II fire restrictions in the forest – violations that include use of wood and charcoal in campfires, smoking outdoors, parking on dry vegetation. Is it tough getting out the message that these are extremely dangerous things to do in the forest at this time of year?
TD: It’s very hard and at times I feel like a broken record repeating the same things: ‘Don’t drag tow chains… put out your campfires completely… create defensible space… don’t burn on windy days…’ I think I even say it in my sleep.
But seriously, if we keep reinforcing and pushing the messaging it will eventually stick with folks. Many times, people become complacent and yes, accidents do happen, but one spark is really all it takes to start a major wildfire and that’s why it’s very important we continue our marketing efforts to push out our prevention messaging year-round.
AWN:On the plus side, cooler weather and lighter winds for several days have appeared to have helped firefighters with the Rattlesnake Fire. On the minus side, forecasters anticipate dry lightning moving into Arizona during the coming weekend. Is it fair to say you have a love-hate relationship with the weather service at this time of the year?
TD: Actually, we have a love-hate relationship with mother nature. Ha! The forecasters are just doing their jobs. We are fortunate that all our forecasters excel at what they do.
The weather service is very good at keeping us briefed on incoming or poor weather conditions during a fire. In a critical fire situation, we can call them for a spot weather report and they will immediately get us the data we need. Spot weather forecasts are very important because they are based off a pinpointed location of a fire and can be customized to that area.
The forecasters help us do our jobs more effectively and safely and we thank them for that.
AWN:Governor Ducey recently announced doubling his request for fire prevention funding this year to $2 million. How does that funding get used?
TD: That funding is specific for the Department of Forestry and Fire Management’s Hazardous Vegetation Removal program. We use that funding to conduct mitigation projects across the state.
We have several ongoing projects, including one in Safford that is targeting the salt cedar along the Gila River Corridor. Salt cedar, or tamarisk, is a highly flammable and invasive plant that can cause a fire to spread fast and burn very hot. Since last fall, DFFM crews have been working to remove the salt cedar and treat it with herbicide to prevent it from growing back.
Another project that was part of our HVR funding was the fuel break project near Mayer. The 270-acre fuel break installation was a multi-year project that essentially created a buffer zone for the town of Mayer. The break was tested after last year’s Goodwin Fire and proved successful in stopping the fire from moving into the town.
HVR funding is essential for our work, and having that additional money, should the Legislature approve, will be critical in allowing us to do more projects in high-risk areas around our state.
AWN: The communications team at Forestry and Fire Management notoriously gets zero rest when a major fire breaks out. Can you tell us what you do to keep Arizonans aware of things during a fire incident?
TD: We just drink a lot of coffee and energy drinks. I think last year, I worked more than 100 hours during the first seven days the Sawmill Fire started. I’m not even sure how that’s possible.
We have multiple ways to get information out to the public, and one of them is using InciWeb, a public website. There, the public can find evacuation or road closure notices, fire size and containment numbers, pictures, maps, and other information they may be looking for or needing.
We also work closely with our county emergency managers, the sheriff departments, the Arizona Department of Transportation, the Red Cross and, of course, our partnering agencies — the Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service — to make sure we are getting the public the pertinent information they need in a timely manner.
Often, we conduct public meetings or town halls to ensure we are reaching all the residents impacted by a fire. We also use ‘trap lines,’ which are basically informational booths, that we set up throughout impacted communities, like at a convenience store or post office, where residents can get information on fire size, suppression efforts, and assistance services, like the Red Cross.
And we can’t forget about social media! The Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management uses social media to update the public once a fire breaks out and throughout its duration.
Every fire is different, so each requires a different approach from a public information standpoint. In the end, our goal is to make sure our residents are safe, and they are getting the information they need to keep them briefed and try to make them at ease during tense situations.
AWN: Your Twitter handle is “asusundevils2000.” Just how big a Sun Devils fan are you?
TD: Let’s just say I bleed maroon and gold. I’m a huge Sun Devil fan! How can I not be? I’m a native Arizonan! I graduated from Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication and I am a football season ticket holder! My grandparents were season ticket holders for decades and used to take my brother and I to football games and it just became a family tradition. Our whole family supports ASU, not only the football program, but the institution itself! Forks up! Go Devils!
Arizona Water News 