Arizona governor and water resources agency move to regulate rural groundwater pumping

PHOENIX (AP) — Gov. Katie Hobbs and the Arizona Department of Water Resources have made the first move toward regulating the use of groundwater in the state’s rural southeast. That water is rapidly being drawn down through agricultural use. The state agency announced on Wednesday a Nov. 22 public hearing to present data and hear comments about designating an “active management area” for the Willcox Groundwater Basin. The basin is located in Arizona’s Cochise and Graham counties southeast of Tucson. Scheduling the hearing has closed the basin to new agriculture use while the department decides whether to form a management area.