Water

wastewater tank
Gov. Doug Ducey recently announced that the state will pursue desalination as a new source of water for Arizona. But the Bureau of Reclamation also offers opportunities for new water sources.
Jan. 19, 2022
Light rail phoenix
As construction continues for two light rail extensions in Phoenix, leaders are feeling optimistic about adding more.
Jan. 19, 2022
A Valley Metro bus in Phoenix
Phoenix is working on early plans to spend its share from the Federal Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act of 2021, also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
Jan. 17, 2022
Fronteras Desk logo
Some of the planned projects will address water access issues among several indigenous groups in Sonora.
Jan. 11, 2022
Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey
Gov. Doug Ducey delivered his eighth and final State of the State address Monday afternoon. In it, he pushed for a $1 billion investment in water, pledged to cut taxes and promoted summer school for kids catching up during the pandemic.
More Arizona politics news
Jan. 10, 2022
Colorado River
Tribal nations were once excluded from talks about how to divvy up the state’s water supply, but that has changed over the years.
Jan. 10, 2022
Arizona State Capitol building
Gov. Doug Ducey and Arizona lawmakers appear finally ready to act on a more permanent solution to the fact that it's hotter and dryer — and there just isn't enough water to sustain the state's growth.
Jan. 8, 2022
clean water
The United States Department of Agriculture is sending more than $19 million to rural communities in Arizona. The grants and loans will help expand access to clean water and high-speed internet.
Dec. 30, 2021
Navajo Nation
The massive infrastructure bill signed earlier this year promises to bring change to Native American tribes that lack clean water or indoor plumbing through the largest single infusion of money into Indian Country. It includes $3.5 billion for the federal Indian Health Service, which provides health care to more than 2 million Native Americans and Alaska Natives.
Dec. 24, 2021
Antelope Point Public Launch Ramp at Lake Powell
Water levels at Lake Powell remain low, and Bureau of Reclamation projections indicate they will continue to drop. As water levels have dropped, access to boat ramps on Lake Powell has become more difficult.
Dec. 22, 2021
Construction on the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project
Arizona residents are facing water shortages as Colorado River water declines, but Navajo Nation members have been living without easy access to water for years. That’s why the federal government started building a drinking water system on the reservation.
Dec. 22, 2021
ASU iGEM 2021 team
Arizonans in rural areas rely on well water, which commonly contains at least some arsenic. Now, an ASU team of students has earned a gold medal at a global competition by engineering algae that can remove the toxic element.
Dec. 22, 2021
Colorado River
The Colorado River Water Users’ Association ended last week with an agreement to find more ways to conserve water, and this year’s conference included tribal perspectives.
Dec. 20, 2021
Justin Brundin
The Cocopah Indian Tribe has lived along the Colorado River delta for centuries. But drought, climate change and damming has transformed the once verdant stretch.
More Fronteras Desk news
Dec. 15, 2021
Colorado River
To help stave off another round of mandatory cutbacks, water leaders for Arizona, Nevada and California are preparing to sign an agreement that would voluntarily reduce Colorado River water to the lower basin states by 500,000 acre-feet — enough to supply about 750,000 households for a year — for both 2022 and 2023.
Dec. 15, 2021
Colorado River
Lake Mead is at historically low levels, and Arizona will take mandatory cuts to its Colorado River water supply starting in January. But one tribe that lives along the river’s banks along the Arizona-California border says it has enough supply to lease to other cities.
Dec. 6, 2021
Colorado River in Yuma
The bill comes amid historic low levels in Lake Mead and as Arizona faces a harsh water future. The state is set to take mandatory cuts to its share of Colorado River water starting in January.
Dec. 3, 2021
water faucet
The Pima County Board of Supervisors voted last Wednesday to pursue legal action against the city of Tucson over water rates for rural residents. The supervisors said they reached out to the city in August, but had not received a response.
Nov. 29, 2021
yellow fire hydrant on street corner
As of September, Phoenix had 709 fire hydrants that didn’t work and another 2,000 that needed repaired or replaced. Executive Assistant Fire Chief Scott Walker told a city subcommittee that when crews respond to calls, they assume the nearest fire hydrant is working. If their 1,000-foot hose cannot reach a functioning hydrant, they must come up with another plan.
Nov. 24, 2021
solar panels
Climate change is creating water challenges; it’s also making it tougher for farmers to efficiently grow certain crops. But a new $10 million federal grant is looking into one potential solution for both issues: agrivoltaics.
Nov. 23, 2021

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