Transcript UNVR 195a

Comparison of Drought Impact
on Water Utilities in the Tucson
Basin
Noel McKee, Ashley Betz, Ross
Richard, and David Rodriguez
Definition of Drought
• According to Arizona Drought
Preparedness Plan
– “A sustained, natural reduction in precipitation
that results in negative impacts to the
environment and human activities”
Past Drought Plans
• Drought in Arizona was dealt with on an
emergency basis
• Governor Jack Richard Williams
– 1968 – Construction of Central Arizona
Project (CAP) was approved
– 1973-1993 – Construction in progress
Past Drought Plans Continued
• Governor Bruce Babbitt
– 1980 Groundwater Management Act
• to control the amount of overdraft that was
occurring statewide
• to most effectively distribute the state’s limited
supply of groundwater while considering the state’s
evolving needs
• to develop the water supply to increase and
recharge Arizona’s groundwater
Arizona Drought Preparedness Plan
• Governor Janet Napolitano’s newly implemented
drought action plan
• Past drought actions focused on emergency
response, this plan focuses on drought
preparedness
• Flexible to accommodate different areas of the
state
• Formed after considering drought plans of other
states
• Relies heavily on scientific resources
Drought Response Ratings
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0 – Normal Conditions
1 – Monitoring Unusual Dryness
2 – Drought Alert
3 – Drought Emergency
Scientific Resources
• Measurement of reservoir levels, stream
flow, and soil moisture
• Monitoring ocean temps
• Data from U of A Tree Ring Lab (to predict
long term climate data)
Arizona Drought Preparedness
Plan Continued
• Implemented by the Governor’s Drought Action Task
Force
• Comprised of committees of experts
– Meet regularly throughout the year to assess drought conditions
• Task Force members include
– State, Local, and Tribal leaders
– Officials from:
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US Geological Survey
Natural Resources Conservation Services
US Bureau of Reclamation
Salt River Project
– Anthropologists and Geographers
Materials and Methods
• Past and present state drought plans were
researched
• A survey was created
• Five water utilities in the Tucson area were
selected to be interviewed
• Responses were compared
Interviewees
• Marana Water Department Utilities
Director Brad DeSpain
• Metro Water General Manager Mark
Stratton
• Oro Valley Water Utilities Director Alan
Forrest
• Tucson Water Administrator Dennis Rule
• Green Valley Community Water General
Manager Arturo Gabaldon
Results
How many people is the water provided to?
Tucson Water
700,000 (80-85% of Tucson population)
Metro Water
45,000
Oro Valley
45,000
Marana
7,000
Green Valley
16,500
What is the source of the water?
Tucson Water
Metro Water
50% Groundwater, 50% CAP water
Groundwater and CAP water
Oro Valley
Groundwater
Marana
Groundwater
Green Valley
Groundwater
Does the company have a CAP allocation and is it used?
Tucson Water
Metro Water
Oro Valley
Marana
Green Valley
Yes, Yes
Yes, Yes (8,850 acre feet)
Yes, 65,000 acre feet, No, the
infrastructure to obtain the water still
needs to be built
Yes, Yes
Yes (1,337 acre feet), No –
infrastructure to obtain water needs to
be built
How is the CAP water used?
Tucson Water
Metro Water
Oro Valley
Marana
Green Valley
All used for artificial recharge
Artificial recharge, paper water, wet
water
N/A
In lieu recharge with Cortaro Marana
Irrigation District
N/A
Are there plans to buy (more) CAP water?
Tucson Water
Metro Water
Oro Valley
Marana
Green Valley
No
Yes, an additional 4,600 acre feet
N/A
Yes, an additional 1,500 acre feet
N/A
Is Tucson in a drought? If yes, for how long has there been a drought?
Tucson Water
Yes, 5-10 years
Metro Water
Yes, 6-9 years
Oro Valley
Yes, 4-5 years
Marana
Yes, 5-7 years
Green Valley
Yes, 6 years
How long has this utility dealt with/how is it affected by the drought?
Tucson Water
Not affected directly
Metro Water
Has dealt more with conservation
practices than with the drought
Oro Valley
Relatively new utility, had just
bought all of private companies by
1996, drought hit shortly after
Marana
Green Valley
Since drought started
Has not dealt with drought as of yet
What has the utility done to prepare for drought in the past?
Tucson Water
Created a water bank
Metro Water
Conservation tactics
Oro Valley
Marana
Green Valley
Company is too young, has reacted
to drought rather than prepared
Well reconditioning phases
Green Valley does have a
Curtailment plan that limits use
when in drought.
Does the company have a drought contingency plan for the future?
Tucson Water
Metro Water
Oro Valley
Marana
Green Valley
No, it has not been impacted by the
drought yet but all water utilities must
have water plans for the next 100 years;
water bank, and Emergency Supply Plan
Working with county to make ordinance or
regulatory control and further restrictions,
if necessary
General long term planning that can be
pushed forward if necessary
No, just monitoring and maintenance
No, but working on one to participate in
the state’s drought action plan
How does the company feel about Governor Napolitano’s new Drought
Action Plan?
Tucson Water
Not equally applied to all areas
Metro Water
It is a good first step. Identifies a good
number of conditions and concerns.
Good that control lies with the individual
provider
Oro Valley
Good idea. Good initiative for the state,
but water utilities should be provided
more. Positive about proactive behavior.
The more data the better
Marana
Green Valley
Good for as far as it went but has no
“teeth” (needs to be more aggressive)
Likes it, but feels that there are certain
changes that are required to work as well
as the importance of good
communication between participants and
the state
How will the Drought Action Plan affect this company?
Tucson Water
Metro Water
Developers must develop drought plans
that include drought restrictions for new
building
Has not been affected
Oro Valley
Company must submit a drought plan.
Marana
Have not been affected. Water table is
going up
Green Valley
Community Water will bring together 6
smaller water utilities and plan a drought
action plan for their specific area. Their
plan will have to be tailored specifically
to them due to nature of where they get
their water (from the south) and their
priorities (humans vs. agriculture).
What revisions would your company make to this plan?
Tucson Water
Address the issue that areas with growing
populations take up more water and make a
distinction between growing areas and
those already suffering from the drought.
Require AMA’s to develop a 100 year plan-if
they do not, state can step in to protect
water.
Metro Water
Would have implemented this plan sooner.
Each company should develop own drought
action plan. State should develop separate
office for conservation.
Oro Valley
Disagree with mandates made by the state.
Implemented programs should be left to the
jurisdiction of local authorities rather than
state. This could lead to danger if different
areas are all left under state dictation
Marana
Green Valley
More conservation. Possible statewide
conservation blitz.
The state when writing the report made the
areas too big. The cells are very different
and need to be dealt with individually. The
drought action plan is supposed to be about
conservation but really it is reallocation.
Useful Websites
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www.drought.arizona.com
www.water.az.gov.gdtf
www.arizona.org
www.cap-az.com
Conclusions
• All companies believe that Tucson is in a
drought but opinions about how long it has
lasted differ.
– Bigger companies believe the drought has lasted
longer, possibly because these areas have seen more
population growth and have experienced more strain
on their water supply.
– Smaller companies plan to invest more in CAP water,
possibly because they recognize the need to obtain
water before it is gone.
• Tucson is different from most areas because it
relies mainly on groundwater and the drought
only affects the groundwater in the long run.
Conclusions Continued
• Drought is more detrimental to CAP water
than anything else.
• Mixed reactions about the Arizona Drought
Preparedness Plan
Acknowledgments
• Thank you to the utility representatives for
giving their time and providing information
• Thank you to Dr. Riley, our classmates,
and everyone in attendance