Officials in Mojave County are currently in the middle of an ongoing lawsuit against the U.S. Bureau of Rehabilitation over the transfer of water rights to the Colorado River to central Arizona as the city of Yuma and two other counties in Arizona participate. , seeking an agreement to share the costs of litigation.
Talks began on November 7 when Yuma officials sued Yuma and La Paz counties in a lawsuit sought by the Mojave County Board of Supervisors regarding the transfer of more than 2,000 acre feet of water per year on the Colorado River to the community of Queen. joined the Creek. On Monday, the Mojave County Board of Supervisors will vote on whether to approve the Co-Representation Agreement for communities opposing the transfer.
That agent, which will be contracted through Phoenix-based law firm Clark Hill, was nominated by the Mojave County Board of Supervisors in September to prevent the water transfer from taking place. Authorized to pursue possible legal action against According to county records, that representative’s expenses are less than $100,000 for him under this year’s county budget.
Since 2019, Scottsdale-based Greenstone Acquisitions has proposed an agreement with state officials to move that water from its Cibola-based GSC farm to a central Arizona community, about moving its Colorado River water rights to Queen Creek. Debate continues. The Colorado River community has long opposed the move, citing it would enrich central Arizona at the river community’s expense, setting a dangerous precedent that could lead to similar deals in the future.
The agreement was approved by the Arizona Department of Water Resources last year and is currently awaiting final decision by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. Mojave County called for an environmental analysis of the transfer before the deal was finalized this year, but the reclamation agency said the transfer would not constitute a “major federal action” with significant impacts on the human environment. The Secretariat argued that no environmental impact statement was required.
The Mojave County Board of Supervisors will discuss whether to approve the co-representation agreement and cost-sharing agreement between Yuma County, City of Yuma, La Paz County, Mojave County and Clark Hill at its next board meeting scheduled for Monday. I plan to vote. Kingman.
