Amid new warnings about groundwater supplies and ongoing water problems in unincorporated communities, Maricopa County regulators said they are seeking more capacity to address water challenges in the region.
Oversight Board Chairman Clint Hickman said the county government has authority over the zoning of unincorporated areas and frequently deals with developers, as well as maintains relationships with residents of these communities, and that lawmakers With their input, they may be able to help the city and state find water solutions, he said. let them.
On Monday, the regulator asked three local experts, Sarah Porter of the ASU’s Kir Water Policy Center, Chris Camacho of the Greater Phoenix Economic Council, and water attorney Mike Pearce, to discuss how Phoenix is doing. Invited to an informal briefing on what is in place and expressed interest in providing leadership on water. This area is concerned with water and economic growth.
The briefing comes a month after Gov. Katie Hobbs announced the state water agency would stop approving some new growth that relies solely on groundwater in response to new groundwater modeling. The move made national headlines and caused headaches for local officials who said the country was acting responsibly to avoid future problems.
Director Bill Gates asked experts what the board could do to support economic growth and address water challenges.
“We all know how limited we are,” Gates said. “But is there anything we can do in terms of zoning and such?”
Experts said regulators could alleviate immediate concerns about central Arizona’s water supply by spreading the message that central Arizona won’t run out of water.
Superintendent Steve Gallardo then suggested that county leaders could help guide local governments and develop regional approaches to water issues.
“If there is a way that all 15 counties can work together to address some of their concerns and challenges, I would be really interested,” he said. “It would be nice if we could have that kind of discussion.”
Few hydropower plants at the county level
County regulators have direct authority over budgetary, election, and public health decisions, but their authority is currently limited by state water laws.
Those limitations were highlighted in the county’s response to the Rio Verde Foothills, an unincorporated community near Scottsdale that was cut off in January. There, some developers subdivided the property less than six times to build new homes. This meant that many homes in the area were technically not within subdivisions and did not have to prove 100 years of water supply.
City governments can enact their own city ordinances prohibiting small land divisions, which generally prevent wildcat communities from emerging within city limits. However, because the county’s powers are more limited than those provided by state law, county regulators for many years were unable to stop construction in the area without risking lawsuits.
Some officials, including former Gov. Bruce Babbitt, who signed into law the state’s Groundwater Management Act nearly 40 years ago, have called on the Arizona legislature to give the county more authority to protect its aquifers. there is Last year, regulators in Mojave, Coconino, and Yavapai counties passed resolutions urging lawmakers to turn over water management to people in rural Arizona.
“Yuma legislators may have a perfect understanding of agriculture, but they may not have a vision for water because there are too many different sectors in the state,” Hickman said. . “But I have lived this, we have lived this for a long time.”
Sasha Hapka covers regional issues in Maricopa County, Pinal County, and the Republic of Arizona.Do you live on unincorporated land and have a story to tell? Contact her sasha.hupka@arizonarepublic.com. Follow her on Twitter: @SashaHupka.
