Water planning past due, Town Hall warns

Expect stronger calls in the East Valley for water conservation and safeguards to ensure there’s enough supply to meet the demands of urban and suburban development.

Local officials and residents who took part in the 85th Arizona Town Hall last week at the Grand Canyon say it’s past time to make water issues a top priority in growth planning and to do more than just talk about conservation.

They were among about 180 Arizonans discussing the state’s water situation at the latest of the annual Town Hall sessions.

The challenge of facing constant growth with uncertainty about future water

resources was brought into sharp focus, said Roc Arnett, president of the East Valley Partnership business and civic group.

Arnett said he expects the forum’s message will inspire Town Hall participants to “do some cheerleading” for more conservation and water planning in their communities.

Among cheerleaders will be Mesa City Manager Michael Hutchinson.

“Drought has heightened awareness about the fragility of our water systems. . . . We’ve really got to step (conservation) up a notch,’’ Hutchinson said. Most East Valley communities have done a good job ensuring a steady supply for the near future through water banking, reclamation and recharge projects, but the prospect of long-term drought and the potential for much more urban growth means the efforts must be intensified, he said.

Drastic measures aren’t necessary, but “a culture of conservation has to be instilled. . . . We’re not in a crisis yet, but we need to be thinking about the possibility and we have to be ready for it,” said Tim Bray, a Scottsdale resident elected last week to the board of the Central Arizona Water Conservation District. It oversees allocation of Colorado River water to Maricopa, Pinal and Pima counties through the Central Arizona Project.

The need to put conservation policies into effect is an urgent one, said Gilbert resident Karl Kohlhoff, a water engineering consultant.

“Balancing economic and population growth has to be based on sound water policy, and what level of growth we can sustain has to be communicated to the public now,” Kohlhoff said.

A lack of definitive answers about water supplies and sustainable growth levels was pointed out in Town Hall discussions.

There’s not enough data “to get a measure of actual (water) shortages . . . We don’t have a good assessment of how much growth we can support,’’ said Tempe resident Shiela Schmidt, an attorney specializing in environmental and water resources issues.

A strong consensus was reached that funding depleted by state budget cuts in recent years must be restored to the Arizona Department of Water Resources. The department needs more funds to provide research for effective water planning, Schmidt said.

It’s needed to give communities a factual basis on which to curb development that would strain water supplies, said Chandler farmer Norman Knox.

“We need to quantify our water resources so we are not shooting in the dark,” Knox said.

Scottsdale City Councilwoman Betty Drake, an urban planning consultant, said ordinances outlawing grass lawns and mandating water-saving desert landscaping are not on the horizon. “But we do need to encourage a radical cultural shift’’ toward a conservation mind-set, she said.

“People have to realize that a lot of little things, like not leaving the water running when you’re brushing your teeth, saves a lot of water in the long run.”