Ready to begin: Rural Arizona points the way on groundwater solutions
Groundwater recharge area in Arizona. Rural residents across the state prioritized managed aquifer recharge as an important strategy to deal with declining groundwater. Photo by François Molle
As groundwater challenges intensify across rural Arizona, more communities are deciding they can't afford to wait for perfect solutions before taking practical steps together.
Communities continue to face different groundwater realities, different economies and different views about water management. But as groundwater challenges become harder to ignore, many are reaching the same conclusion: Waiting for someone else to solve the problem isn't a strategy.
A new synthesis captures those recurring priorities across Arizona, offering a statewide picture of how rural communities themselves believe groundwater resilience can be strengthened.
The effort was led by Impact Water - Arizona, a pillar of the Arizona Water Innovation Initiative, housed in the Julie Ann Wrigley Global Futures Laboratory in collaboration with the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at Arizona State University. The workshops are also supported by the Babbitt Center for Land and Water Policy, a center of the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, the Arizona Institute for Resilience at the University of Arizona and Southwest Decision Resources.
Communities across the state repeatedly saw opportunities to act by strengthening groundwater data, building local leadership, expanding community science, pursuing locally appropriate conservation and recharge strategies, and creating more opportunities for rural communities to learn from one another.
Putting priorities into practice
"Communities already know their landscapes, their economies and their water challenges better than anyone," said Susan Craig, director of Impact Water - Arizona. “Our role was to bring technical expertise, connect people across groundwater basins and help communities move their own ideas into action."
As new communities joined the effort, facilitators drew on knowledge and experience gained from earlier workshops while each community identified priorities and implementation approaches that reflected its own landscape, economy and concerns. Over time, those conversations produced a broader statewide picture of where communities saw opportunities to act.
One of the clearest priorities to emerge statewide was the need for better groundwater information.
In Patagonia, that work is already underway through the LABraries program, a collaboration with the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, where residents can borrow groundwater monitoring equipment locally.
"I thought it was important to start collecting data on the quality of the water," said Bob Proctor, Patagonia resident and president of Friends of Sonoita Creek, a key partner in the LABrary effort in the area. "I started asking, 'What could we do ourselves?'"
Participants also emphasized the importance of local organizations to lead groundwater work forward over time. Since the workshops began, communities in places such as Sulphur Springs Valley and La Paz County have established groundwater alliances, bringing together residents, agricultural producers, businesses, water providers and local governments committed to protecting and sustaining groundwater resources.
Water storage and recharge emerged as another recurring priority. While the most appropriate approaches differ from basin to basin, many communities identified opportunities to better capture and store water when it is available.
Those priorities also align with broader work already underway, including the Arizona Tri-University Recharge and Water Reliability Project, a statewide managed aquifer recharge assessment led by University of Arizona hydrologist Neha Gupta, a key partner in the workshop series, with collaborators from all of Arizona’s public universities.
The next chapter
For La Paz County Supervisor Holly Irwin, who has led groundwater conversations in her community for years, the process “allowed people to talk with one another, to begin to truly collaborate.”
That willingness to continue working together is already shaping the next phase of the effort.
The Rural Groundwater Resilience Exchange (RGRx), launched in partnership with the Arizona Cross-Watershed Network, builds on relationships and priorities that emerged through the workshops and provides a structure for communities to continue moving locally identified ideas toward implementation.
At its first planning meetingSupport for the first RGRx meeting was provided by Arizona State University's Rob Walton College of Global Futures, ASU Julie Ann Wrigley Global Futures Laboratory and Principled Innovation, courtesy of the Kern Family Foundation, and the Principled Innovation Exchange. this summer, participants organized around four immediate priorities that closely mirrored the themes emerging from the statewide synthesis: strengthening local groundwater organizations, expanding community science, improving shared communication and creating regular opportunities for rural communities to learn from one another.
Patrick Adams, senior advisor for water policy to Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs, told participants that local champions are essential to extending the reach of state agencies and encouraged the exchange to coordinate efforts and continue building on incremental progress.
Participants also began planning a rotating Rural Groundwater Summit designed to bring together residents, agricultural producers, businesses, elected officials, researchers and state agencies to continue sharing lessons across groundwater basins and translate those conversations into locally led action.
Arizona's groundwater challenges remain among the state's most difficult, and communities will continue to wrestle with complex questions about water management, growth and long-term sustainability. The work ahead will require continued collaboration, technical expertise and sustained support.
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