The U. S. House Committee on Natural Resources hearing held on Thursday, June 15, 2023, was singularly focused on H.R. 3397, sponsored by Rep. John R. Curtis (R-UT-3), which requires the Director of the Bureau of Land Management (“USBLM”) to withdraw its‘ Conservation and Landscape Health Proposed Rule. This is the second such committee hearing held […]
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Over the past five weeks, we have described the wide range of water resources available to meet Arizona’s current and future needs. These resources include groundwater, in-state surface water, Colorado River water, long-term storage credits, and reclaimed water. We also discussed the latest developments on groundwater availability in the Phoenix Active Management Area. As these […]
The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation has initiated the Environmental Impact Statement (“EIS”) process for post-2026 operational guidelines and strategies of Lake Powell and Lake Mead. This process is in addition to the Draft Supplemental EIS we discussed in April, which is intended to ensure that the reservoirs continue to be able to produce power and […]
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On June 1, 2023, Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs revealed the results of a new groundwater model prepared by the Arizona Department of Water Resources (“ADWR”) that predicts the future availability of groundwater for pumping throughout most of the Phoenix Active Management Area (the “Phoenix AMA”) over the 100-year period mandated by ADWR’s Assured Water Supply […]
It seems that not a day goes by without another news story bringing Arizona to the forefront of a national dialogue about water security in a time of drought, changing climate, and growing population. This article is Part 6 of Snell & Wilmer’s series providing context for that dialogue as it applies to Arizona’s diverse […]
This article is Part 5 of Snell & Wilmer’s series on Arizona’s water supply and legal framework. So far in this series we have examined the most common and most-used water sources in Arizona’s diverse water portfolio: groundwater, surface water, and Colorado River water. This article describes Arizona’s long-term storage credit (LTSC) system, which provides […]
Yesterday, the United States Supreme Court curtailed the federal government’s powers to regulate private property under the auspices of the Clean Water Act (CWA). The Court in Sackett v. EPA held that “the CWA extends to only those “wetlands with a continuous surface connection to bodies that are ‘waters of the United States’ in their […]
On Wednesday, May 24, 2023, the Oversight & Investigations Subcommittee of the House Committee on Natural Resources held a hearing titled “Examining the Biden Administration’s Efforts to Limit Access to Public Lands.” In addition to discussing the Biden Administration’s actions and proposed actions in designating National Monuments via the Antiquities Act, testimony largely focused on […]
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The Department of Interior announced on Monday, May 22, 2023 an agreement with the Lower Basin states to conserve 3 million acre-feet (“MAF”) of water in Lake Mead for the next four years, with 2.3 MAF paid for with funding from the Inflation Reduction Act. The balance of 700,000 acre-feet will need to be conserved […]
On April 3, 2023, the Bureau of Land Management (“BLM”) published a proposed rule to promote the conservation of the 245 million acres of public lands it manages. The proposal purports to advance “BLM’s mission to manage the public lands for multiple use and sustained yield by prioritizing the health and resilience of ecosystems across […]
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