The Water Resources Development Commission (WRDC) has released its final report. In 2010, the Arizona State Legislature passed House Bill 2661, which established the WRDC. The WRDC was given the task of assessing Arizona’s demand for water and the supplies available to meet those demands for the next 25, 50, and 100 years. The WRDC consists of 17 commission members and nine ex officio members representing state and federal agencies and the Governor’s office. ADWR Director Sandra Fabritz-Whitney serves as Chair for the Commission and ADWR staff provide technical and administrative support to the WRDC.
The final report contains the Commission’s assessment of water demand and supply in Arizona for the next 100 years. Five committees formed to assess various aspects of the issue and each produced a report, which is also publicly available. Beyond these assessments, the WRDC made progress in evaluating the issues and challenges associated meeting water needs. The report concludes that there are portions of the state that have supplies available to meet future needs, while other areas within the state will require development of additional supplies for future demand. Moving forward, Arizona must develop a broad portfolio of solutions to meet the numerous water supply challenges that are inherent in this diverse state. The WRDC recommends that it be given until the sunset date of September 30, 2012, to continue the development, evaluation and prioritization of potential solutions or legislative proposals. The final report, along with the data contained in the five committee reports, is intended to serve as the foundation for future water management planning.
The full text of the WRDC Final Report can be found at http://www.amwua.org/resource_documents/wrdc_final_rdln_110923.pdf.