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Arizona approves first water transfer to rural areas for new construction
Key Points: Arizona approves first-ever water transfer from rural Arizona to active management areas Buckeye is now allowed to withdraw nearly 6,000 acre-feet of water from Harquahala basin Transfer will […]
New deal on Ag-to-Urban water plan moving in Senate
Key Points: Water proposal lets builders buy water from retiring farmers Plan could allow 1 million new homes statewide Rural areas feel left out, fear water shortages Housing developers left […]
Gov. Hobbs issues delay in humane treatment of laying hens over egg prices
A plan by Gov. Katie Hobbs to use her powers to make eggs more affordable might not be all it’s cracked up to be. On Friday, the governor ordered the […]
Bill proposing new groundwater regulations for rural communities advances
A Republican-sponsored bill that would repeal the Willcox Active Management Area and establish groundwater conservation requirements in other designated rural areas is advancing through the Legislature. SB1520 would allow the […]
Seeking balance between flexibility, certainty in water policy
Given appropriate and relatively predictable conservation requirements, coupled with programs that promote and reward voluntary conservation, and flexibility in water rights to allow for rural economies to adapt to the future, our rural communities will continue to be vibrant and successful for a long time to come.
No, the Saudis haven’t stopped pumping Arizona groundwater
The law has crippled groundwater regulation in most of the state and large farming operations have been exploiting it for decades. This includes American and foreign-owned companies. Even if the state can stop foreign companies from abusing Arizona’s lax water laws, American mega-dairies and large-scale alfalfa farms will continue to pump the state’s aquifer water at alarming rates.
Mines exporting to China threaten Arizona’s water
The real issue isn’t foreign demands for commodities that use Arizona’s scarce water. It is that large multi-national companies are receiving special, subsidized treatment to extract scarce resources that could be better used by current and future Arizonans.
4th generation chili farmer seeks unity on water
After a successful agricultural career from genetically modifying chilis to winning FFA awards, Edward Curry now has a bigger goal set for Arizona water concerns.
AZ farming, ranching is measure of productivity, not GDP
To put this in perspective, our economic impact rivals mining and tourism in terms of “economic output” on an annual basis. Thus, keeping farming and ranching so productive becomes good for the public focused on saving money during this inflationary era and good for the state’s economy.
Tensions are bubbling up at thirsty Arizona alfalfa farms as foreign firms exploit unregulated water
Matthew Hancock's family has used groundwater to grow forage crops here for more than six decades. But concerns about future water supplies from the valley's ancient aquifers, which hold groundwater supplies, are bubbling up in Wenden, a town of around 700 people where the Hancock family farms.
Californians bet farming agave for spirits holds key to weathering drought and groundwater limits
Leo Ortega started growing spiky blue agave plants on the arid hillsides around his Southern California home because his wife liked the way they looked. A decade later, his property is now dotted with thousands of what he and others hope is a promising new crop for the state following years of punishing drought in California, Arizona and other Western states, and a push to scale back on groundwate[...]
Water cuts force Pinal County farmers to scale back
Farmers in Pinal County left swathes of land unplanted following Colorado River water cuts. Now yielding fewer crops, they’re forced to find alternative ways to survive, as agriculture faces a bleaker future.
