|
|
|
 |
|
Republican Gov. Jan Brewer
|
|
|
State Water Agency: Cut would Hurt Rural Areas
PHOENIX (Wire Services) October 31, 2009 — Projected state budget cuts would all but end Arizona's efforts to secure long-term water supplies, water officials say, a loss that would devastate rural communities already struggling to meet demands.
In a budget scenario requested by the governor, the Department of Water Resources says it would also eliminate its statewide drought and water-conservation programs, cutting off aid to towns and cities at a time when dry conditions have deepened again.
In all, the water agency would be forced to lay off nearly half of its workforce and cut most programs not required by state law.
Gov. Jan Brewer has asked agencies to outline the effects of a 15 percent budget cut. She says deep cuts will be needed if lawmakers decide there is no other way to close the state's spending gap.
"It eviscerates us," said Herb Guenther, the department's director. "We currently have a lot of things on our plate that are very critical to the well-being and prosperity of Arizona's future. There are places with water deficits now, where supplies are inadequate. It's very troubling."
The state faces a $1.5 billion deficit in the current fiscal spending plan. New estimates say that gap will widen to $2 billion.
Guenther said the cuts to his agency, $2.7 million from a 2010 budget of $18.2 million, would affect every function. As many as 86 people could lose their jobs, cutting the department's workforce from 177 to as few as 91. Lost would be programs that support riparian protection, track river flows, measure groundwater levels and chart unsafe dams.
The department would continue to regulate water in Phoenix, Tucson and other so-called active-management areas, or AMAs, established by state law. In those areas, communities and developers are required to submit proof of a 100-year water supply before building new homes.
But most work with rural communities would abruptly end, leaving those areas with no help to manage existing water supplies and secure sources for the future.
"Rural Arizona, they're on a more critical path than the AMAs," Guenther said. "We've got whatever's left of 100 years to play with in the cities, but you've got a lot less than that in areas like Prescott, areas like Cochise and Yavapai counties. They're already short of water, and they're living on borrowed time."
The department has provided professional support for resident-planning groups that work within watersheds, areas where water use is almost entirely unregulated by state law. In most of rural Arizona, for example, developers can build homes without proving adequate water supplies.
"We have no other place to go," said Jan Holder, executive director of the Gila Watershed Partnership, which works on water issues in east-central Arizona. "The department has been critical for us. They were the ones who convinced us to start doing planning in our area. We don't even know how much water we have under the ground, and now, all of this is being taken away. It's outrageous."
The department increased efforts in recent years to map rural Arizona's water resources and figure out how much water exists in aquifers. Such information can help better plan future use and ensure that communities don't exhaust underground supplies.
"We need more info about our aquifers in order to manage them better, but we can't do it on our own," said David Newlin, watershed-projects director for the Holbrook-based Little Colorado River Watershed Coordinating Council.
"The people who have water rights want to be certain what those rights are going to be there for a long time in the future," Newlin said. "Otherwise, they will lose investments and opportunities for growth. People need that certainty."
Among the cuts identified in the budget plan:
• The department's legal division would be reduced. Guenther said that could put the state at a disadvantage as negotiations continue with the Navajo and Hopi tribes over historic water claims. The cuts could also set back efforts to settle water rights on the Gila River system, which includes wide areas of the state.
• Additional money would be swept from the Arizona Water Banking Authority, which buys excess Colorado River water and stores it underground for future use. The water-banking fund has been all but emptied in the past several budget cycles.
• The drought and conservation offices would be closed because they are not mandated by law, Guenther said. The programs were created by then-Gov. Janet Napolitano during a series of record-dry years, and they have helped the state monitor drought conditions and help communities better prepare for dry spells and develop conservation programs.
Guenther acknowledged that he can't point to as many immediate effects from the budget cuts as some agencies, but he said that doesn't diminish the department's role. Many issues are likely to grow more complicated, such as the demand for more water on the Colorado.
"Our process is long-term," he said. "We've got some challenges that are just huge, and you're not going to resolve them overnight."
If you want to Turn Arizona Blue,
follow us:
http://twitter.com/JonGarrido
