The Arizona Department of Water Resources designated an Active Management Area in the Willcox groundwater basin on Friday, following a series of public hearings in which the agency presented evidence of aquifer depletion and increasing ground subsidence.

The aquifer is the only source of water for homes, farms, industries, and municipal providers.

Residents in the basin voted against such a designation two years ago. The agency used a second legal pathway to establish the AMA because it determined critical conditions in the basin meet all requirements. It was the first time since 1980 that the state used such powers.

“I think it shows that the agency has maybe learned that if you don’t take action it just gets worse. And I think it just became so apparent to everyone,” said Kathy Ferris, former state Department of Water Resources director who helped write the 1980 Groundwater Management Act.

Political pushback to create groundwater regulations in rural communities has been strong, particularly from key legislators like Rep. Gail Griffin, R-Hereford. But local leaders and domestic water users’ demand for rural groundwater protection has also grown louder across the state, calling for action against unrestricted groundwater pumping.

“Even though it is late, I applaud the department and the administration for doing this,” Ferris said.

The AMA, which is in both Graham and Cochise counties, will effectively block any agricultural expansion. Under the designation, no new lands can be farmed in the basin. Additionally, growers must prove “substantial capital investment” in lands that had not been irrigated in the past five years if they want to irrigate them in the future. About 6,500 acres of farmland would need to go through this test.

“While there is a range of views on the AMA, the urgency of addressing our water challenges cannot be overstated,” Willcox Mayor Greg Hancock said in a statement, praising Gov. Katie Hobbs’ action. “We are committed to ensuring that our community’s voice is heard throughout this process.”

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Lingering concerns about agricultural rules

Hobbs’ office said in a statement that the AMA will “protect over 8,100 people and the local economies that rely on the Willcox Basin.”

Many residents who opposed the AMA see the action as a state “overreach.” Others argue that there is an urgent need to stop agricultural expansion, but the regulatory tool, as it is, would give unfair water allotments to growers using the least water, hurt numerous family operations, and leave the largest water users virtually unaffected.

Growers in the Douglas AMA, which was designated by popular vote in 2022, have raised concerns over fixed water allotments tied to the growers’ crop history. The management plan was approved on Nov. 27 with minimal changes to the proposed version.

Hearing concerns from local growers, Ethan Orr, associate director of the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension, said he expects ADWR to consider changes to how water allotments and irrigated grandfathered rights are determined, making sure they are “not punishing growers who have invested in greater water efficiency or reduced water-usage crops.”

“ADWR staff is really competent and they are trying incredibly hard to do the right thing in this implementation,” he said. “It’s just making sure they have the right guidance and guidelines, legislatively and scientifically.”

Some of this guidance is tied to finding the right data sources and scientific evidence for things like crops’ water use, but also from the need to narrow guidelines to determine “substantial capital investment” because the statute for it is very broad, he added.

Special programs and funding could help growers save more water and adapt to some of the Douglas and Willcox AMA rules. Orr said he expects the Water Irrigation Efficiency Program, run by the university, could help. The initial $64 million in funding has all been allocated and the program is not taking new applications, but there is talk in the state Legislature to approve more funding the next session, he said.

Having lawmakers modify rules on how those funds are distributed by giving priority to growers on “emerging AMAs” could help.

Compared with other parts of the state, there is not much room for water efficiency in the Sulphur Springs Valley. Groundwater pumping has ramped up due to agricultural expansion, which the AMA can’t undo, and many farmers grow water-intensive crops, though they mostly use center pivots and drip irrigation.

“There’s marginal gains to make there,” Orr said. Programs could still focus on helping some growers transition and make the best use of these technologies by installing new tools like soil moisture sensors and weather trackers.

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Locals still hope for amendments

The Sulphur Springs Water Alliance, which holds a wide range of views and brings together farmers, ranchers, homeowners, utility companies, and city and county staff, didn’t take a position on the AMA designation.

The alliance acknowledged that “groundwater declines at current rates threaten the long-term economies and well-being of residents and agricultural operations.” The group added that water use reductions “must be enacted at a sufficient pace, ranging typically from 20 to 50 years” to have real results, yet sustain a viable agricultural economy.

In a letter to ADWR, the alliance wrote that if an AMA were enacted, it should be followed by amendments or a future redesignation to a regulatory tool “specific to the nuances of the Willcox Basin.”

The alliance believes the standards of any groundwater management plan should give authority to local stakeholders who “represent the values and well-being of the local community,” have adaptive and flexible agricultural programs that don’t penalize farms that have taken steps to reduce water use, allow the transfer of water allotments and irrigation rights, and seek state and federal funding to support research and incentives to reduce water use.

Any changes to modify AMA statutes or create new regulation frameworks for rural Arizona would need to happen in the Legislature, Ferris said.

“It’s not very realistic unless legislative leaders in the Republican Party want to work toward that goal,” she said. “But they really haven’t been showing that. The idea has been to pass something that wouldn’t do anything.”

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Clara Migoya covers agriculture and water issues for The Arizona Republic and azcentral. Send tips or questions to clara.migoya@arizonarepublic.com.

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