Groundbreaking Ag-to-Urban Water Law Promotes Sustainable Growth for Metro Phoenix Developers

Arizona Water Company celebrates Governor Katie Hobbs’ signing of the groundbreaking ag-to-urban h2o legislation, marking a pivotal infinitesimal successful Arizona’s attack to sustainable h2o absorption and semipermanent h2o security.

The newly-signed Senate Bill 1611 was crafted arsenic a effect of much than 2 years of bipartisan negotiations with farmers, homebuilders, conservationists, tribal communities, cities, h2o providers (including AWC) and policymakers. The authorities allows developers successful Pinal and Phoenix Active Management Areas (AMAs) to entree groundwater credits from voluntarily retired cultivation lands, helping prolong maturation portion protecting our astir captious resource, groundwater.

“This historical authorities represents a win-win solution for Arizona’s h2o future,” said Casa Grande Mayor Lisa Navarro Fitzgibbons. “By allowing the conversion of cultivation h2o rights to municipality use, we’re creating a model that reduces wide h2o depletion portion supporting liable maturation successful our communities.”

Under the caller law, landowners successful groundwater-regulated areas who voluntarily discontinue farmland tin person their h2o rights to groundwater savings credits, which successful crook tin beryllium utilized to supply developers with a 100-year assured h2o proviso to conception caller subdivisions portion reducing groundwater use. The authorities incorporates cardinal safeguards to guarantee that improvement remains intimately tied to farmlands with retired rights, reduces wide groundwater use, and maintains a equilibrium betwixt economical maturation and conservation.

The ag-to-urban programme delivers aggregate benefits for Arizona residents. It conserves water—residential improvement typically uses lone 1–1.5 acre-feet per twelvemonth versus the 4–6 acre-feet consumed by agriculture—while enabling sustainable maturation successful parts of Pinal and Maricopa counties nether strict h2o protections. The authorities besides fosters economical accidental by tying a reliable h2o proviso to developable farmland, reducing the request for higher-cost h2o sources and creating much affordable caller housing. Finally, it bolsters aquifer wellness done robust safeguards that mandate groundwater replenishment and sphere semipermanent h2o supplies.

“This authorities addresses the concerns raised by h2o experts and ensures that Arizona’s aquifers are protected for aboriginal generations,” said Pinal County Chairman Stephen (Steve) Miller.

The authorities earned praise from divers stakeholders, including the Gila River Indian Community. Senator T.J. Shope, the bill’s sponsor emphasized the collaborative quality of the legislation, noting it’s “something we each shook hands connected for the aboriginal of our state. This large h2o argumentation sends a beardown connection that Arizona tin enactment unneurotic connected argumentation that benefits america all.”

Rep. Teresa Martinez was instrumental successful getting the measure done the Arizona House and added, ‘this h2o argumentation strikes the equilibrium that Arizona needs. It promotes astute maturation portion conserving groundwater – a captious triumph for some our situation and our economy.”

Arizona Water Company recognizes that hundreds of thousands of acres crossed Pinal and Phoenix AMAs volition beryllium eligible for the ag-to-urban conversion program. The institution is committed to moving with each stakeholders to guarantee the program’s palmy implementation portion maintaining sustainable h2o absorption for the state.

“This authorities positions Arizona arsenic a nationalist person successful innovative h2o policy,” added Fred Schneider, President of Arizona Water Company. “We look guardant to supporting its liable implementation arsenic we enactment unneurotic to unafraid our h2o future.”