Senators hopeful on state’s water
Kelly, Sinema seek long-term solution
Both of Arizona’s U.S. senators, in different ways, are projecting optimism about the state’s long-term water security even after a week in which California could not join other Southwestern states on a plan for sharp cuts to preserve the receding Colorado River.
Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., criticized California for not proposing more serious measures ahead of a federal deadline to do so, but he is looking to major changes such as rerouting water from the northwest or pumping desalinated water from Mexico as ways to engineer a permanent solution.
Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz., suggested Thursday the creation of a Colorado River Water Caucus for the 14 senators from the seven states dependent on the river’s supply, and she will convene Friday another meeting of water stakeholders to continue discussions on a plan to manage existing resources.
“This is an incredibly complex issue. There is no magic solution to our water crisis,” Sinema said.
Both of Arizona’s senators touted the billions in federal spending set aside to help mitigate the effects of climate change in the parched southwest.
The falling water levels of the Colorado River have reached a critical juncture, with federal authorities requiring cutbacks. The affected states were unable to agree on a unified plan by the Tuesday deadline to cut at least 15% of the current use, which is at least 2 million acre-feet per year.
Instead, all the states except California submitted to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation what they characterized as a “consensus” plan that suggests potential water cuts. California is the biggest water user in the region.
In Washington, House Republicans are looking at ways to make steep cuts to the federal budget even as the Southwest may need an ambitious — and pricey — water lifeline project.
Meanwhile, the governor of Sonora, Mexico, reportedly repeated his view this week that Sonora isn’t on board with a proposal to send desalinated water to Arizona. Any plan must also accommodate Mexican water needs, he has said.
States need to face the reality of a water supply that cannot match demand, Kelly said.
“This needs to be a collaborative effort between states. Every state’s got to step up and do more than they would like,” Kelly said. “When we negotiated the Drought Contingency (Plan) it wasn’t intended to get to this point this quick.
“We are not going to solve this problem, in my opinion, by doing any one thing. This is going to have to be a systemwide conservation effort. On top of that, I think long term, we seriously have to consider other sources of water, figure out what is the most affordable and the quickest option if we feel that time is of the essence here.”
Sinema said the senators from the river basin states understand the issue isn’t partisan and they need to act together to ensure the best federal action moving forward.
In the near term, Sinema said the region will benefit from a combined $13 billion in federal funding from the infrastructure and climate-change laws passed in the past two years. That can help modernize existing water systems, among other purposes.
That buys the region more time to figure out what can be done in the long term.
“I am optimistic we will get this done,” Sinema said, even as she noted those who must work cooperatively, from Congress to the state governors to the Arizona Legislature.
Others, such as Rep. Raúl Grijalva, DAriz., who is the senior Democrat on the House Natural Resources Committee, believe partisan politics will prevent a breakthrough on water issues anytime soon.
“I don’t see from this (Republican) majority any urgency around the drought,” he said. “They would prefer to leave things as is and let everybody fend for themselves. That’s why the (Biden) administration and the Bureau of Reclamation become so important on what they mandate the states have to do.
“That’s where we’re going to wind up. And I hope we do because otherwise I don’t see any movement in Arizona and none of the other states, particularly California, want to participate unless they get their way.”
Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., a member of the House Natural Resources Committee whose district runs along the Colorado River, maintained that other priorities will not prevent Congress from addressing the water shortage in the southwest.
“Congress definitely has enough bandwidth to tackle the water crisis in the West. I am working on water pipelines, desalination and small modular reactor combinations to get new water to the West,” Gosar said. “As Chairman of the Colorado River Caucus, which is restarting this Congress, I will be pursuing these options for water infrastructure and funding. This is a top priority. We cannot conserve our way out of this. The only solution is new water.”
Longer term, Kelly is focused on multiple ways to ensure water security.
“Often, (desalination) is thought of as something that can be put online faster than, let’s say, moving water from another watershed, like the Pacific Northwest,” he said.
“The problem you have with the Pacific Northwest right now is because of an act of Congress it’s not legal to move water from the Pacific Northwest to the Southwest. That could be changed.”
The Columbia River that forms much of the border between Washington and Oregon empties into the Pacific Ocean with nearly 200 million acre-feet annually, Kelly said. That’s more than 12 times the estimated flow of the Colorado River.
Kelly recently traveled to Israel and met with officials there about desalination. Israeli drip-irrigation technology is
The affected states were unable to agree on a unified plan by the Tuesday deadline to cut at least 15% of the current use, which is at least 2 million acre-feet per year.
in use in Yuma, he said.
The Israelis also do something familiar to astronauts: They reuse water — all types.
“We use that water over and over again,” he said.
“It comes out as urine and two weeks later you’re drinking it again. … It works.”
Beyond that, Kelly pointed to legislation that allows tribes with Colorado River water rights to sell or lease part of their allocated shares.
“When they lease their water, they get revenue from leasing it and they can use that money to line their canals, to install drip-irrigation systems,” he said. “They’ve already installed some pilot projects doing this.
“I’m convinced we will solve this problem. If you’re a company contemplating a move to Arizona or somewhere else in the Southwest, this shouldn’t concern you. We’re going to have the water for people to move here and for businesses to grow.”