The Apache County Water Factsheet, the 13th in the WRRC’s Arizona Water Factsheet series, has been released! This resource highlights how diverse land ownership, a large geographic area, and complex legal landscapes shape the management and distribution of groundwater and surface water supplies in Apache County. The Factsheet underscores the importance of resolving Tribal water rights to address growing water demands and fostering partnerships to leverage state and federal funding for needed updates to water infrastructure. Major economic sectors such as recreation, thermoelectric power generation, and agriculture are discussed, as are current and future opportunities for sustainable water resources management for Tribal and non-Tribal communities.
Engagement with local stakeholders is essential to developing our Arizona Water Factsheets, ensuring the content reflects specific water resources management challenges and strategies of individual counties. For the Apache County Water Factsheet, input was received from Brown & Brown Law Offices, P.C., Salt River Project, and the United States Geological Survey (USGS). Additional stakeholders provided feedback reflective of their deep local knowledge about the county’s water resources and management.