Recent reports from The Arizona Republic and PBS’s Horizon highlight the water crisis faced by rural Arizona families. Out-of-state corporations are extracting vast amounts of groundwater to grow crops like hay, corn, and pistachios. This unsustainable use has caused water tables in some areas to drop by as much as 300 feet. Arizona has around 20 water basins, each with multiple sub-basins, according to Sarah Porter, Director of ASU’s Kyl Center for Water Policy.
A 2020 USA Today article by Ian James noted that managed areas must maintain a balance between water pumped out and what’s replenished in aquifers. Unfortunately, many areas are struggling or failing to meet these goals.
Arizona employs two primary water management strategies: Irrigation Non-Expansion Areas (INAs) and Active Management Areas (AMAs)—covering cities like Phoenix, Tucson and Prescott.
However, these systems do not address future well developments outside AMAs, leaving rural areas vulnerable. Industrial farms and large developments can afford deeper wells, but rural residents cannot. Sarah Porter emphasizes that this crisis is solvable, but it requires granting the Arizona Department of Water Resources authority to regulate developments outside AMAs. This would allow the department to plan for future water demands, not just current needs.
In rural Yavapai County, where dense housing developments are being debated, water issues are excluded from discussions involving Planning and Zoning Commissioners and Supervisors. For many, this lack of oversight on groundwater management is a growing concern.