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Willcox, AZ - In case you missed it, last week Governor Hobbs visited Willcox, making four stops to meet with city officials, experts, homeowners and farmers to take a closer look at the water issues affecting rural Cochise County. The visit is part of her commitment to protecting Arizona’s water resources and addressing the long-ignored water issues faced by families in rural Arizona, following the state legislature’s failure to pass a bill allowing groundwater pumping regulations.
Governor Hobbs told farmers, families, and community leaders she’s working with legislators to find water conservation solutions in the upcoming session, but is also prepared to take action to protect Arizona’s water and prevent further devastating consequences.
Read more:
Arizona Republic: In the 'wild West' of groundwater use, Hobbs hears about dry wells, ground fissures
- "This part of Arizona is somewhat the Wild West, where they can pump as much water as they want to and there are zero restrictions on that," Michael Resare, deputy city manager, told The Arizona Republic. The city now monitors the well water levels every month, instead of every year.
- Groundwater mining has caused the ground to sink across the basin. Fifteen miles north of Willcox, land is 11 feet lower than in the 1970s due to subsidence. In some areas, it sinks half a foot every year.
Arizona Daily Star: Gov. Hobbs pushes tough pumping curbs in Willcox Basin visit
- Willcox officials told Hobbs Thursday that one of their two main wells started “pumping air” in May. That came after a commercial user came in and started pumping massive amounts of water from a well located 400 feet from the city well. The well’s water level had fallen below where its pump stood.
- “We got 1,500 gallons a month in water. We had water coming into the sink, into the toilet and we could use the shower,” he said. “But we were not living much better. I couldn’t clean the way I wanted, I had to go to the laundromat every month and I was still debating, ‘Do I take a shower today?’”
Arizona Public Media: Hobbs willing to use administrative action over water
- Willcox officials, including the mayor and city manager, told Hobbs that large corporate farms use more water in a day than all of the residents of the town. They also said they have set up water fill stations for residents whose wells have run dry but can not afford to pay for deeper wells.
- Hobbs also stopped at a fissure cutting across open land. Water officials told the governor that fissures, which dot the county, are the result of falling aquifers and they cannot be repaired.