Rural Water Issues Not Apart From State, National Affairs

Economy drives policy decisions

Deb Hill, Coconino County Supervisor, contributed this Guest View.

We all agree that water issues and land use are inextricably intertwined. Since land uses in rural Arizona are changing, in some places moving rapidly from rural agrarian to semi-urban, it should come as no surprise that water issues are becoming more visible and concerning. What is not always so apparent is what is driving the changing land uses and impacting water quality and quantity.

As much as Westerners believe in local control, in many ways rural Arizona communities are most impacted by policies enacted at the state or federal levels. For example, the federal energy policy with its heavy reliance on fossil fuels and nuclear energy has an impact on rural water supplies. Current trends in energy production include increased interest in coal fired power and nuclear power plants to meet the country’s energy needs. In northern Arizona, several companies are currently conducting exploration for uranium deposits near the Grand Canyon, while coal mining at Black Mesa and just north of Arizona on the Kaiparowits Plateau continues to produce highly-sought-after low sulphur coal.

What are some impacts to water supplies resulting from our national approach to energy production? Groundwater from the Navajo aquifer was, until recently, used to slurry coal, and proposals have been floated to use the Coconino aquifer as a future source. Groundwater is being used to cool power plants such as the one at Joseph City, sometimes directly competing with local agricultural interests. Uranium mining in mid-1900s has resulted in contaminated groundwater supplies in the Tuba City and Monument Valley areas. In the past we have sometimes sacrificed water supplies depended on by local communities for other benefits. How will the current trends in energy policy impact the futures of our rural Arizona residents?
The Clinton campaign coined the phrase “the economy, stupid” as a way of keeping track of a key priority. For many rural communities, it is, in fact, the economy that drives policy decisions, which sometimes results in unintended consequences for natural resources including water. In Arizona, rural economies are heavily tourism-dependent. The more our urbanized areas experience growth and development, the more the rural areas become desirable as places for ‘escape’. This great ‘escape’ occurring throughout rural Arizona sometimes creates conflicts and impacts to water resources.

Every summer rural communities deal with what happens when conflicting resource uses collide. Picture yourself enjoying the cool waters of a rural Arizona lake with your jet skis or motorized craft. The sun sparkling on the lake waters, the cool breezes, the ability to beat the summer’s heat…life is good! However that lake is likely someone else’s drinking water. How are we dealing with the discharge of fuel and oil from water craft into the water? Then there are places like Slide Rock State Park, which has been closed 13 times so far in the summer of 2007 when bacterial counts resulting from humans and animals being in the creek exceeded maximum standards. Nothing is lovelier than the emerald green of a mountain golf course laid out among the scented pines, but in some areas the pumping of groundwater to keep that golf course green and healthy is impacting local surface water supplies, to say nothing of the impacts of the runoff containing fertilizers and other ingredients we would prefer not to drink. As the recreational use in rural areas grows, so, too, do the number of difficult water questions.

Growth in rural communities is generally welcomed and needed, and many areas of our state are experiencing a surge in second home ownership. The healthy economy of the state of Arizona, combined with early retirement and increasing personal wealth, has created a demand for the get-away home, usually located in areas rich in natural resources. Like the proverbial family farm, however, rural communities may be land rich and cash poor. Residential growth adds to our tax bases but also puts additional pressure on infrastructure, such as aging sewage treatment plants.

Even short-term residents, lodged in hotels and guest cottages, can stress the water systems of smaller communities. Imagine the impacts to a small community of the 6 million tourists a year that visit the Grand Canyon. Decreasing grant and loan funding from federal levels makes it even more difficult for communities to put the necessary infrastructure in place to protect water supplies.

All of this must sound pretty overwhelming, and from the local perspective, it certainly can feel that way! However, there are a few pieces of good news on the horizon. This past year the State Legislature approved bills that will allow local policy makers to tie water and development more closely together, as well as creating a funding source for local water projects. These tools can assist local governments to address some of the impacts created by the trends discussed above.

In addition, the Governor has supported a plan for managing the health of Arizona’s forests and other watersheds. Local governments are becoming more astute and are creating partnerships in order to address issues at the federal level. Of course we are always aware of how many other voices are at the table, and we welcome assistance to help get our message out. Water is crucial for all of us, whether urban or rural, and working together is the only way we will be able to deal with the great challenges ahead.

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