Some rural areas of the state have passed groundwater regulations themselves or have successfully persuaded the Arizona Department of Water Resources to grant them some protections that stop unlimited water use. One of those farms, owned by a Saudi company, has gotten increased scrutiny from state officials, including Arizona’s new Democratic attorney general Kris Mayes. In addition to Arizona’s groundwater crisis, the state has also faced significant shortages of its surface water allocation from the Colorado River, which it shares with six other states.Īnd while the groundwater supplies around Phoenix and other Arizona cities are regulated under state law, much of rural Arizona is unregulated – allowing large corporate farms to use unlimited groundwater for crops. Mark Kelly, a Democrat – have advocated for creating new water supply through desalination, where ocean water is treated to remove the salt. Desalination is used in some water-scarce countries, but it’s been criticized for being expensive and energy-intensive.Īrizona and other Southwest states are facing water shortages on a number of fronts. There’s this runway of continued development.”īut Porter likened Thursday’s announcement to a “big, flashing billboard” telling private developers to find a new, more sustainable source of water – or build elsewhere.īesides conserving water and projects recycling water, Arizona elected officials – including Sen. “There will continue to be new homes built because they have already proved up their 100-year water supply using groundwater, and they were figured into the model. “It really is only impacting housing subdivisions,” Porter said. Growth in the Phoenix area will likely continue under the new restrictions, the analysis said, but the rate of growth will likely change. Thursday’s announcement is an example of the law working as intended, according to an analysis by Arizona State University’s Kyl Center for Water Policy. Many cities in the Phoenix metro area, including Scottsdale and Tempe, already have this assured water supply, but private developers also must demonstrate they can meet it. Under state law, having that assured supply is the key to getting the necessary certificates to build housing developments or large industrial buildings that use water. However, developers that are seeking to build new construction will have to demonstrate they can provide an “assured water supply” for 100 years using water from a source that is not local groundwater.

State officials said the announcement wouldn’t impact developments that have already been approved. The study found that around 4% of the area’s demand for groundwater, close to 4.9 million acre-feet, cannot be met over the next 100 years under current conditions – a huge shortage that will have significant implications for housing developments in the coming years in the booming Phoenix metro area, which has led the nation in population growth. Katie Hobbs and the state’s top water officials outlined the results of the study looking at groundwater demand within the Phoenix metro area, which is regulated by a state law that tries to ensure Arizona’s housing developments, businesses and farms are not using more groundwater than is being replaced. Arizona officials announced Thursday the state will no longer grant certifications for new developments within the Phoenix area, as groundwater rapidly disappears amid years of water overuse and climate change-driven drought.Ī new study showed that the groundwater supporting the Phoenix area likely can’t meet additional development demand in the coming century, officials said at a news conference.

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