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Viewing Category: Water
Worries increase of San Pedro River's health as it runs dryThe San Pedro River is running out of water at a closely watched measuring gauge near Tombstone, raising new alarms about the ailing river's health.Permalink [Filed under: Environment, Water]Flow at the Charleston Road bridge all but stopped Thursday and could dry up as early as today, two weeks earlier than in 2005, when hydrologists blamed drought and a late-arriving monsoon.
Conservation groups say excessive groundwater pumping has diverted much of the river's aquifer-fed flow, which helps fill the gap between winter runoff and summer rains.
Posted by Editor at 07:24 AM
Burns' bill will aid effort to save the San PedroA bill signed into law on Wednesday reflects the difficulties of life in a desert where competing interests squabble eternally over a small supply of water.Permalink [Filed under: Environment, Legislature, Water]The bill, sponsored by Rep. Jennifer Burns, R-Tucson, is the most recent attempt to come to terms with the water needs of Fort Huachuca, an Army post, and Sierra Vista, the burgeoning city adjacent to the base.
Both entities want to grow, and both need water to make that possible. The problem, which Burns' bill valiantly seeks to resolve, is that every gallon pumped out of the ground eventually depletes the amount of water in the already threatened San Pedro River.
Posted by Editor at 06:59 AM
New law establishes water-use board for San Pedro ValleyPHOENIX — Gov. Janet Napolitano signed legislation Wednesday to study the water supply problem in the upper San Pedro Valley, and maybe even create a new layer of government.Permalink [Filed under: City County Local Govt, Environment, Legislature, Water]The new law sets up a nine-member board to come up with a comprehensive plan to both conserve and reuse water within the area as well as to find ways to augment the water supply. That panel also would figure out how to organize a permanent water district, elect members, determine how much it would cost to meet the goals and how to raise that money.
Posted by Editor at 07:28 AM
Ariz. Senate advances river billPHOENIX — State senators approved a measure Thursday designed to let Cochise County residents protect the San Pedro River and, by extension, Fort Huachuca.Permalink [Filed under: Environment, Legislature, Water]The preliminary vote came after lawmakers tacked some new restrictions onto legislation that would set up a nine-member board to come up with a plan to create an agency whose job it would be to ensure there is enough water in the upper San Pedro basin to keep the stream flowing.
But the final word — including whether to levy a tax — would be up to the Cochise County Board of Supervisors and, ultimately, voters of the district.
HB 2300 is designed to help Fort Huachuca comply with its agreement with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to have the area reach "sustainable yield" by 2011.
Posted by Editor at 07:17 AM
Feds to release preferred plan for Colorado River useDENVER -- Federal officials this month plan to publicize their preference for managing the Colorado River in the face of ongoing drought as part of the lead-up to a final plan expected by the end of the year.Permalink [Filed under: Environment, Water]The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation is working on a final environmental impact statement on dealing with water shortages on the river that provides water to seven Western states and Mexico.
The final guidelines, expected to be released in September, will also look at coordinating operations between Lake Powell, the upstream reservoir in Utah, and Lake Mead in Nevada. Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne, who oversees the Bureau of Reclamation, will make a final decision by the end of the year.
Posted by Editor at 07:06 AM
Series of talks on water use begin todayA series of five public educational talks on Tucson's water issues starts today.Permalink [Filed under: Environment, Tucson, Water]Water use and management, as well as water sources, will be discussed at all presentations, which are sponsored by the regional Pima Association of Governments. Claire Zucker, the association's watershed planning manager, will give the talks.
Posted by Editor at 06:29 AM
Napolitano signs bill on rural water suppliesPHOENIX -- Gov. Janet Napolitano on Monday signed into law a bill expanding the state's growth management efforts by permitting rural counties and municipalities to place new restrictions on development in areas lacking adequate water supplies.
The bipartisan bill, sent to the Napolitano by the Legislature last week, will give the new power to rural counties, cities and towns in areas not subject to existing state water-adequacy regulations.
Under the bill, (SB1575), the rural local governments could hinge their approval of new subdivisions on whether the projects have assured water supplies. In a bow to property rights advocates, ordinances imposing the requirement would have to be enacted by a unanimous vote of a county's board of supervisors.
Permalink [Filed under: Environment, Governor, Legislature, Water]Posted by Editor at 01:50 AM
Yuma Desalting plant again idle
The Yuma Desalting Plant is quiet once again. Its 90-day demonstration run to reduce salinity in water returned to the Colorado River ended at midnight Thursday.It was the first time in 14 years the $245 million plant had operated - and its output has exceeded federal officials' expectations.
Jim Cherry, Bureau of Reclamation manager in Yuma, said the plant ran "wonderfully."
"We had anticipated a little less than 3,000-acre-feet (one acre-foot is 325,851 gallons) and we got a little over 4,000 sent back to the river," he said.
Permalink [Filed under: Environment, Water]
Posted by Editor at 09:42 PM
Panel OKs San Pedro water districtPHOENIX — A Senate panel approved a compromise plan Thursday to allow residents of the upper San Pedro Valley to create a new layer of government to cut water use, restrict growth and possibly levy a tax.Permalink [Filed under: Environment, Legislature, Water]Backers of the legislation say it is the only way to ensure water continues to flow in the river. But they conceded the real aim is to save Fort Huachuca, which could be severely curtailed, or even shut down, if the river's water supply remains endangered.
The 6-1 vote by the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Rural Affairs came over the objections of Mary Ann Black, a supervisor in the Hereford Natural Resources Conservation District.
Posted by Editor at 07:27 AM
Arizona lawmakers OK new water management power in rural areasPHOENIX - Arizona lawmakers voted Thursday to expand the state's growth management efforts, approving a bipartisan bill to empower counties and municipalities to place new restrictions on development in rural areas lacking adequate water supplies.Permalink [Filed under: Environment, Legislature, Water]The House's 50-1 vote completed legislative action on the bill, which now goes to Gov. Janet Napolitano, a supporter. The Senate approved the bill on March 8 on a 26-2 vote.
Legislative approval of the measure came a quarter-century after the 1980 enactment of a historic groundwater management law imposing new pumping and irrigation restrictions in "active management areas." Those areas include Phoenix, Tucson and Prescott. Those urban-oriented restrictions were aimed at curbing overdrafts that saw groundwater being depleted faster than natural replacement.
Posted by Editor at 12:44 AM
County wants spot on board: Supervisors discuss water district proposal at CapitolBISBEE — With so much at stake, the Cochise County Board of Supervisors want a seat on the organizing board that would determine the future of the Upper San Pedro Water District.Permalink [Filed under: City County Local Govt, Environment, Water]“Once the request left the county, we’ve been left out,” Chairman Richard Searle said during Tuesday’s board meeting. “There’s been no input from us requested.”
The wording in the bill notes that the governor will appoint five people. One will be from a city located within the district that has a population of 35,000 or more, and one will be from another city in the district with less than 35,000 people. One may represent a conservation organization involved in the Upper San Pedro Partnership. The fourth may represent an investor-owned utility, and the fifth is someone who has retired from the military.
Posted by Editor at 07:16 AM
Yuma's water system loses a billion gallons per yearRoughly a billion gallons of water goes unaccounted for each year for the city of Yuma, but utilities manager Hank Baer said this loss is normal and the cost to ratepayers remains minimal.Permalink [Filed under: City County Local Govt, Environment, Water]The water may be considered an unaccounted-for loss, but that doesn't mean that Baer has no idea where it goes - he said it is used by the Yuma and Rural/Metro fire departments, taken by theft or, in some cases, lost through leakage. The city compares its metered production to metered sales to track the loss. "At last check, it was at 11 percent," he said.
Posted by Editor at 07:16 AM
Cities' goal: Save waterPhoenix maintenance crews will patch more than 8,000 water leaks this year, most of them 3 feet or deeper underground, many buried beneath busy streets. Nearly all are invisible until the first backhoe arrives.Makes fixing that bathroom faucet a little less daunting, doesn't it?
Leaky pipes are an unavoidable part of delivering water to a big city, especially one growing rapidly, where each new connection creates another potential leak. The best Phoenix and other cities can do is maintain their systems well enough to keep lost water to a minimum.
Permalink [Filed under: Environment, Phoenix, Water]
Posted by Editor at 03:35 AM
Council to cover array of sewer project itemsThe 11-year sewer expansion project takes center stage at City Council chambers Tuesday night.Permalink [Filed under: City County Local Govt, Environment, Water]With average wastewater bills around $57, residents are looking for help from any source. It looks unlikely that the state Legislature will pass an annual $250 tax credit originally proposed by Mayor Mark Nexsen.
On council's plate are federal grants to cover the $2,000 sewer hookup fee, the establishment of a “rate stabilization fund,” a presentation on the project's finances and new loans requiring authorization.
Posted by Editor at 07:51 AM
Phoenix ranks fifth-driest among U.S. citiesIt's a dry heat out there, but it's not the driest.Permalink [Filed under: Environment, Phoenix, Water]Phoenix, according to an analysis of rainfall data, is America's fifth-driest city, averaging 8.2 inches of rain each year.
Las Vegas, with an average of 4.5 inches of rain a year, ranks as the driest of 195 cities in the 48 contiguous states examined by WeatherBill, a company that helps protect businesses from bad weather.
Posted by Editor at 07:39 AM
Desalinization plant drawing visitors from around globeA 90-day trial run of a desalination plant on the western edge of Yuma has drawn visitors from across the nation and the world.Permalink [Filed under: Environment, Water]The plant, mothballed shortly after it was completed about 15 years ago, was restarted amid concerns over a potential water shortage in the Colorado River stemming from continued drought and surging regional growth.
The goal is to have the plant ready if it's needed to help provide water that could be used by Arizonans or others who rely on the river.
Posted by Editor at 02:15 AM
Prescott water project will take awhilePRESCOTT — City officials acknowledge that construction won't begin as planned this summer on a 30-mile pipeline to bring water from a ranch to the city.Permalink [Filed under: Environment, Water]Authorities still have to acquire more than 180 right-of-way easements. Easement negotiations are under way with the Arizona State Land Department. And an application is pending with the Arizona Department of Water Resources.
Officials reported that the summer 2009 date for the completion of the Big Chino Water Ranch pipeline is no longer realistic, though they stopped short of setting a new deadline for finishing the project.
Posted by Editor at 07:07 AM
River bill dries up in LegislaturePHOENIX - Arizona's rivers are coming up empty this legislative session.Permalink [Filed under: Environment, Water]Despite continued threats from drought, climate change and laws that promise water for growth without safeguards for natural resources, state rivers will not receive any new protections this legislative year.
A Tucson-based conservation group says current polices are aimed at using up water instead of managing it in a sustainable way.
Posted by Editor at 06:14 AM
City wells pumping at capacityWater customers in the city of Flagstaff are nearing the city's capacity to provide well water.Permalink [Filed under: City County Local Govt, Environment, Water]That means the city might have to dip into Upper Lake Mary and tap the Inner Basin of the San Francisco Peaks.
Customers used 10.12 million gallons on Sunday, just under the 11 million gallons per day the city can produce via wells, said Randy Pellatz, assistant director of city utilities.
Posted by Editor at 06:11 AM
Water use down; public awareness of ongoing drought may be reasonTUCSON, Ariz. - Despite a surge in population, Tucson Water customers have used significantly less water over the past year..From Jan. 1 through April 30, the 225,600 homes and businesses in the city utility's service area used 10.471 billion gallons, down 7 percent from those months last year
Permalink [Filed under: Environment, Water]
Posted by Editor at 07:59 AM
River pact gives Ariz. less water in droughtDENVER -- The four upper basin states that use Colorado River water have a big stake in the success of a proposal for managing the river, especially as the region's drought drags on, say negotiators and water managers.Permalink [Filed under: Environment, Water]The upper basin states -- Colorado, Utah, Wyoming and New Mexico -- are already struggling with drought and could face cutbacks if they and other users of the river water in Arizona, California and Nevada fight rather than cooperate, said Jim Lochhead, an attorney representing several Colorado water districts and communities.
Posted by Editor at 07:56 AM
Oro Valley takes step to curb water useOro Valley became the first Tucson-area government to impose mandatory water conservation during the current drought, by announcing Thursday that it will ban daytime outdoor watering. Effective immediately, residents and businesses there are forbidden from watering their plants outdoors from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. That's when authorities say water losses to evaporation are at a peak.Permalink [Filed under: City County Local Govt, Environment, Water]
Posted by Editor at 10:06 AM
Governor vetoes water bill that would have affected GilbertGov. Janet Napolitano today vetoed a water bill that could have had implications in Gilbert.Permalink [Filed under: Environment, Governor, Legislature, Water]The bill sought to keep municipalities from limiting landowners' rights to use irrigation district water if their land is in an overlapping service area.
Posted by Editor at 07:13 AM
7 Colorado River states submit plan for sharing water in droughtLAS VEGAS - Seven states dependent on the Colorado River filed a plan with the Interior Department on Monday aimed at divvying up water resources during times of drought.Permalink [Filed under: Environment, Water]Officials said the long-debated pact would protect 30 million people who depend on the river for drinking water.
Posted by Editor at 06:39 AM
New Mexico river claims dubious honorThe nation's most endangered river flows from melted snow in the high country, down into the semi-arid desert, runs into a couple of dams along the way and sputters into dust before it reaches the bigger river it feeds.Permalink [Filed under: Environment, Water]Sound familiar? It could describe many of Arizona's ailing rivers, but topping American Rivers' list this year is the Santa Fe River in New Mexico. The list doesn't brand the 10 waterways as the worst, rather as rivers that face uncertain futures.
"Endangered rivers this year face a dizzying array of threats from sewage pollution, proposals for unnecessary dams, power lines to highways, but all have one thing in common: These are rivers at a crossroads," said Rebecca Wodder, president of American Rivers. "This is a make or break year for all 10 rivers on the list."
Posted by Editor at 06:15 AM
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