In a rapidly growing state the urban-agricultural boundary is ever-changing as development encroaches on farm lands. The above photo strikingly shows this situation. It might be viewed as irony or black humor but one can almost imagine the crops in the above picture as landscaping for the apartment complex. The site is located in Chandler near the 101-202 interchange.
Photo: Norbert R. Duet

WRRC Conference Focuses on Water and Growth

by Joe Gelt

Arizona is growing and developing in leaps and bounds, with major building projects considered for outside Prescott city limits, the Chino Valley area, Cottonwood and unincorporated areas close to Sedona and a boom expected down south in Cochise County. The area poised to take the biggest leap and the greatest bound is Mohave County where as many as 200,000 homes could be built over several decades to serve the housing needs of Las Vegas.

A hundred homes here, a couple hundred homes there, several thousand over there, a couple hundred thousand yonder, and it becomes obvious that Arizona is facing big-time development — and big-time water needs.

The University of Arizona’s Water Resources Research Center is addressing the critical topic of growth and water with its annual conference titled, “Providing Water to Arizona’s Growing Population: How Will We Meet the Obligation?” Scheduled June 20 and 21 in Phoenix, the conference is planned as a dialogue involving various and diverse interests.

Consider Day One: a topic up for discussion is the different strategies city, town and rural area managers adopt when taking up the issue of water resources and growth. This session has an obvious segue to another morning topic posed as a question: Where is the water coming from? Addressing the question will be a panel of water professionals from diverse organizations.

Not to be neglected are the perspectives of developers, home builders and Realtors to be presented in an afternoon panel session. Another afternoon session takes on the challenging task of explicating the role of the Central Arizona Groundwater Replenishment District. Also in the afternoon various public officials will have their say about water and growth.

Although scheduled as part of the conference, Day Two, a half-day workshop hosted by Arizona State University’s Global Institute of Sustainability, is optional and requires separate registration. The Day Two agenda features an in-depth discussion about meeting the long-term water needs of Central Arizona and the implications for the rest of the state. The decisions, infrastructure investments and water management programs this would require will be addressed in a background paper and by a panel discussion. The concluding session will be roundtable discussion of the key policy questions and issues needing to be addressed.

For additional information about the conference check the WRRC web site: http://cals.arizona.edu/AZWATER or contact Cas Sprout at csprout@cals.arizona.edu; 520-792-9591 x55; Fax: 520-792-8518)

Survey Backs WRRC Conference Topic

A recent survey shows that the Water Resources Research Center focused on an important issue when it titled its annual conference, “Providing Water to Arizona’s Growing Population: How Will We Meet the Obligation?”

The WRRC conference will be addressing the concerns of 60 percent of survey respondents who stated that there is not enough water to sustain current growth and development in Maricopa County along with the 49 percent who believe there is insufficient water to sustain growth statewide.

The survey of 401 metro Phoenix residents was conducted by WestGroup Research for Valley Forward, a business-based environmental public interest organization.

Diane Brossart, Valley Forward president, said, “We have not done a good job of communicating our efforts, as the general public is not confident in how our state and local governments are managing water.”

Informing/Entertaining Public

Communicating water information has proven to be somewhat of a conundrum; to get across what needs to be known to those who should know it requires skill, tact and sensitivity. According to Ellen Pragers, in a recent editorial in ENN, it also helps if one is entertaining. She writes, “Within the scientific community we have a poor history of making science relevant, understandable, and yes, even entertaining, to the public.”

Perhaps scientists should heed the example of journalists who often blend entertainment with information as two recent drought stories demonstrate. In Tucson, the Arizona Daily Star expressed its disappointment in the lack of rain by referring to popular songs. A Jan. 26 story with the head, “A John Denver Kind of Day,” began by stating, “We’ve been singing the chorus from Phil Collins’ ‘I Wish It Would Rain Down’ all month long.” The article goes on to note that expected rain did not pan out “prompting John Denver’s ‘Sunshine on My Shoulders’ to be the earworm of the day.”

The Arizona Republic talked a lot of sports before getting around to the record-breaking drought. A Jan. 25 article began: “They say records were made to be broken, but some probably won’t be. Wilt Chamberlain: 100 points in a single NBA game. Joe DiMaggio: 56 straight games with a base hit. The Chicago Cubs: 97 seasons in a row without a World Series title.

“No one will ever touch those. OK, the Cubs will probably make it to 98. And with Kobe Bryant scoring 81 points Sunday night, maybe 101 points in a pro basketball game is within reach.
“Then there are records that seem invincible but aren’t. For example, 101 days in a row without rain in Phoenix.”

(A gathering of water professionals, the WRRC conference will no doubt have its entertaining moments. One can expect, however, a more refined wit and humor than is the stock in trade of journalists. Consider the title of keynote speaker Grady Gammage’s talk, “Water, Growth and Sustainability — Is Arizona Heading the Way of Easter Island?”)

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