Don’t ignore these 14 candidates
We spend a lot of time thinking about our votes in races at the top of the ballot. But there’s a race further down that you don’t want to overlook.
Not if you care about the water we depend on to live in a desert.
That would be the Central Arizona Water Conservation District, where 14 candidates (no, that’s not a typo) are vying for five seats.
Why is CAWCD so important?
The 15-member CAWCD board sets policies for the Central Arizona Project, which transports Colorado River water from Lake Mead to cities and farms in Maricopa, Pinal and Pima counties.
Yes, that Lake Mead, the one that supplies about 40 percent of Arizona’s drinking water and that could be facing its first shortage as soon as 2020.
The nonpartisan board also oversees the Central Arizona Groundwater Replenishment District, which finds water to help users comply with groundwater rules that require them to demonstrate a 100-year assured water supply.
Both roles make CAWCD a key player in the state’s water-planning efforts — particularly because the pools of water that will be cut first are delivered to farmers and cities via CAP’s canals.
What should I look for in candidates?
Serving on this board will be no easy task.
If the recent spat between CAWCD and the Arizona Department of Water Resources is any indication, the board needs people who not only have deep water knowledge but a willingness to listen and compromise. Because their work is only going to get more difficult over the next six years, the length of the winning candidates’ terms.
We know, for example, that the cost to deliver CAP water will increase once shortages hit — more so if Arizona joins a three-state drought-contingency plan to help keep water levels at Lake Mead from crashing. That’s because there will be fewer users over which to spread the fixed costs of delivering water.
What’s more, people are beginning to question the groundwater replenishment district’s mission, particularly after a contentious effort to acquire land in Mohave County for its senior water rights.
How do I choose between 14 people?
Because of all that’s at stake, this is obviously not a race to employ the eenymeeny method of voting. Picking people at random or based on their last name simply won’t work.
The good news is most candidates seem to understand the challenges our water supply is now facing. There is wide
support for passing a drought-contingency plan, and many tout the need for greater leadership and better long-term planning.
But how do you make sense of 14 candidates?
There are three incumbents: ❚ Lisa Atkins is the current board president and the Arizona state land commissioner. She has served on the board since 2003 and represents CAWCD on the committee studying how to implement the drought-contingency plan in Arizona.
❚ Terry Goddard is a former Arizona attorney general and Phoenix mayor who has served on CAWCD since 2012. But his history with water policy goes back decades, to when Congress passed the legislation that created CAP.
❚ Heather Macre, a water-law attorney, has been on the board since 2012. She promised increased transparency six years ago and has served on CAWCD’s customer service task force to improve how the board listens to and communicates with its users.
There are 11 challengers, though you can probably weed three out right away. Neither Frank Archer, April Pinger nor
Ronald Sereny have shared information about themselves or their positions on key issues, which means they are probably not serious candidates.
As for the rest: ❚ Jim Ballinger was the longtime director of the Phoenix Art Museum. He worked for the last five years on a project related to the Hoover Dam that he says sparked his interest and research into water policy.
❚ Alan Dulaney says he would bring the technical and customer-service experience of a municipal water planner to the board. He is a hydrologist and has been Peoria’s water policy administrator for more than a decade.
❚ Kerry Giangobbe works in health care, but she says she would give the west Valley the conservative voice it deserves on the board.
❚ Jim Iannuzo is an engineer and chairman of the Maricopa County Libertarian Party. He says he wants to listen first and then use his science background to make decisions.
❚ Jennifer Martin is a biologist who has spent the last four years monitoring groundwater and river levels. She touts the need for more conservation, not unbridled growth.
❚ Daniel Schweiker is the co-founder of China Mist Tea and a former Paradise Valley council member. He says he would bring an independent set of eyes that could help broker compromises on contentious issues.
❚ Rory Van Poucke manages a San Tan Valley golf course, which he says would help him connect with other water-intensive industries that must find new ways to adapt.
❚ Chris Will is a homeowner with an interest in water, which she says would make her a nonpartisan voice on the board.