Happy New Year! As our plans for 2022 continue to take shape, here is a selection of what’s on the horizon for the WRRC. On January 24, we are co-hosting a webinar with Dr. Ranalda L. Tsosie as part of the Indige-FEWSS Native Voices in STEM seminar series. We have an excellent line-up of presenters in the works for our Spring 2022 Brown Bag webinar series. Topics will include the revitalization of the Salt River corridor, work with the Bishop Paiute Tribe in California, restoration of the Colorado River Delta, and more! Our 2022 Annual Conference is under development with the help of many active advisors and will focus on water use by the agricultural sector. Keep an eye on our events page to stay up to date on these outreach activities! On the education front, WRRC Director Sharon B. Megdal will be teaching her graduate water policy class again this spring semester. Our research and community-based programs also have a busy year planned.

Native Voices in STEM Spring 2022 Seminar Series: Utilizing Diné Science and Innovation to Tackle Longstanding Water Challenges in Diné Communities

Date: January 24, 2022

Time: 3:00-4:00 pm Arizona Time

Location: Webinar Only

Ranalda L. Tsosie, Post-Doctoral Fellow, University of Montana

Dr. Tsosie is a post-doctoral scholar at Montana State University in Bozeman, MT. She is currently working on a point of use filter optimization project and continuing to work with Indigenous communities and water challenges. Dr. Tsosie completed Ph.D. in interdisciplinary Studies with a subject emphasis in the fields of Chemistry, Geosciences and Environmental Science/Studies from the University of Montana. In her free time, she enjoys beading, sewing, practicing traditional Diné arts. 

As 2021 ended, the Lower Colorado River Basin states, their partners, and the US Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) reached an agreement to take additional steps to protect the water level in Lake Mead. Referred to as the “500+ Plan,” the agreement aims to leave an additional 500,000 acre-feet of water (per year) in the reservoir above the 2019 Drought Contingency Plan commitments for 2022 and 2023. Funded by the State of Arizona, Central Arizona Water Conservation District (CAP), Reclamation, California, Nevada, and others, the 500+ Plan outlines conservation actions in both urban and agricultural communities throughout the Lower Colorado River Basin. The goal of the Plan is to reduce the likelihood that the water level in Lake Mead will drop below elevation 1,020’ through 2026. 

On October 29 and 30, 2021, the WRRC, Gila County Cooperative Extension, and Cobre Valley Watershed Partnership co-convened the After the Fire public meeting to unpack the status and outlook for local watersheds affected by the Telegraph and Mescal Fires. In June 2021, these fires burned over 250,000 acres across Pinal and Gila Counties and San Carlos Apache Reservation. Following containment, the record monsoon season triggered floods and debris flows that threatened property and lives. Hosted at the Bullion Plaza Cultural Center & Museum in Miami, AZ, community leaders and natural resource managers provided outstanding presentations and panel discussions to aid the public in understanding the short and long-term impacts of these fires and floods, as well as recovery efforts. The event was sponsored by the Town of Superior, Town of Miami, City of Globe, Gila County, US Forest Service, Arizona Water Company, Capstone, Freeport-McMoRan, Resolution Copper, National Forest Foundation, and South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. 

Many Arizona cities observed hot temperatures this year, with 2021 being the 5^th hottest year in Tucson, 10^th hottest in Phoenix, and 8^th hottest in Yuma, to name a few. APW shared its work in building climate resilience with Tucson students and teachers at the American Geophysical Union annual meeting with a poster sharing climate-related art by local middle and high school students. Students created their artwork around the themes of Home, Hope, and Action after learning about climate change and ways that the Tucson community can build resilience through rainwater harvesting, political change, and planting more trees. Much of the work was shared in an online zine that can be viewed here. Several other posters in the session shared information about Alaskan students investigating the effect of dirty snow on climate change, 4-H youth “hacking” food waste in New Mexico, and Louisiana students building expertise in decreasing vulnerability to hurricanes. While the statistics on climate are a bit grim, the tenor of the session was a hopeful way to end 2021.

Photo: Micro Ecosystem by Isis R., Basis North 8^th Grade student

A recent reference to the WRRC’s 2021 Arroyo in The Water Report (Issue #214, December 15, 2021) prompted a reflection on the impacts of that annual publication in Arizona and beyond. The Arroyo is unique and, although it is distributed primarily through email subscription, it also continues to be printed and distributed to a list of loyal subscribers that includes individuals, agencies, and libraries. In addition, conference organizers, such as the Agribusiness & Water Council of Arizona and Arizona Farm Bureau, have distributed copies at their conferences. The 2009 and 2010 issues were used as basic documents by Governor Jan Brewer’s Blue Ribbon Panel on Water Sustainability in their deliberations. Reporters from the press, radio, and TV news often ask for follow-up interviews, one commending the 2007 Arroyo on groundwater recharge as the clearest explanation of the topic she had seen, a sentiment repeated a decade later by groundwater geologist Bridget Scanlon. Examples of broad interest include reprints and synopses. A summary of the 2014 issue on the value of water appeared in the Arizona Capitol Times and was reprinted in Reeves Journal, a magazine for plumbing, heating, and cooling professionals. The 2015 issue, Closing the Water Demand-Supply Gap in Arizona, was reprinted by The Water Report in a modified form and summarized as part of a series of articles on water for the national Renewable Natural Resources Foundation’s 2015 Congress on Sustaining Western Water. An article derived from the 2016 issue on potable reuse was published in IMPACT, the American Water Resources Association magazine. Look for the 2022 Arroyo on water resilience from Tribal perspectives, coming out this spring, and a special issue on the 2021 International Arid Lands Consortium conference Addressing the Environmental Challenges of Arid Lands.

Please visit WRRC's website for a complete listing of water jobs & opportunities.

ASU Kyl Center for Water Policy launches Story Map on Colorado River shortage.