U.S. Water News Online
PHOENIX -- Fearing possible lawsuits over Colorado River water allocation, the Central Arizona Project's board has pledged to contribute at least $200,000 to a legal defense fund created by the state.
Board members also agreed to match, dollar for dollar, any other contributions to the fund until the state reaches its goal of $1.5 million.
"I think it's important that we avoid litigation, that we should go to the table to try to settle these issues," said Maricopa County board member Paul Hendricks. "But when it comes down to it, I want to make sure there is enough money to defend our rights."
The state Department of Water Resources, working with the governor's office, established the defense fund amid fears that Colorado, Wyoming or other states on the upper Colorado River might force Arizona into court over questions about how the river is divided.
The department contributed the initial $200,000 and announced plans to seek additional money from others that rely on the Colorado, including cities, water providers, home builders and businesses.
The CAP board was expected to support the fund because it oversees more than half the state's Colorado River allocation and would suffer the worst losses if the upper river states were to prevail in court.
"The prospect of some litigation is very real," said CAP general manager Sid Wilson.
Wilson told the board that although the seven river states signed a framework agreement to deal with some water issues, Arizona still needs to work out a legal strategy.
At issue, at least among the upper river states, is whether Arizona and Nevada should be able to take water from in-state tributaries of the Colorado River without subtracting that water from their allocation.
Arizona claimed its primary tributary, the Gila River, decades ago and until recently no one has challenged that use.
If the upper river states won a lawsuit on the issue, Arizona could lose as much as half the water that flows down the CAP Canal, taking water from Maricopa, Pima and Pinal counties.
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