Water RAPIDS
Water RAPIDS
Water RAPIDS (Water Research and Planning Innovations for Dryland Systems) helps communities balance a secure water future for residential, commercial, industrial, and agricultural sectors with the water demands of the natural environment. Planning for people and natural resources together will lead to a more sustainable future.
Quick Resources
Getting Down to Facts: A Visual Guide to Water In the Pinal Active Management Area. Download the report here.
A Landowner's Guide to the Upper Gila River is now available for download.
This helpful resource provides quick answers to common (but complex) questions landowners might have about their land along the Upper Gila River.
The Desert Flows Database is expanded and improved with a fresh interface that makes querying data even easier.
Click here to read more and try out the new version: desertflowsdata
A 45-minute webinar on how to use the database is available via the Desert LCC YouTube channel.
To discuss partnering opportunities and collaborative research, contact Ashley Hullinger.
Water RAPIDS Projects
An innovative approach to conserving water and building community by transferring the value of your water savings to local projects. Conserve2EnhanceTM (C2E) developed an online Dashboard to make your drops count!
In collaboration with Desert Landscape Conservation Cooperative (LCC) and Northern Arizona University (NAU), this project has developed a tool that will enable more resilient and effective management of riparian and aquatic systems throughout the deserts of the United States and Mexico.
Watershed Planning in the Upper Gila Watershed
The Upper Gila River is one of the last stretches of free-flowing river in the American West. Through stakeholder engagement, watershed assessment and scenario planning, the WRRC is working to assist local water planning efforts to ensure adequate supply for all water using sectors.
Cobre Valley Watershed Research Initiative
With Gila County Cooperative Extension and US Bureau of Reclamation, we are exploring opportunities for residents, non-profits, and local government to raise public awareness and balance their water supply and infrastructure with current and future demands.
Providing Support and Expertise
- Watershed management and planning that integrates natural resources, water resources, and community development
- Stakeholder engagement process design and facilitation services for communities seeking feedback on water resources issues or in need of assistance to address water-related conflicts
- Geographic information system (GIS) analysis of water and natural resource issues
- Innovative approaches and tools for increasing household water conservation, while building awareness of the relationship between natural resources and water use
RECENT WATER RAPIDS PROJECTS
Connecting the Environment to Arizona Water Planning (EnWaP): Building on the results of the Environmental Water Needs Assessment, the WRRC worked with communities throughout Arizona to incorporate environmental water needs into water management and planning. Project products included:
- Roadmap for Considering Water for Arizona's Natural Areas: The Roadmap contains information on the current scientific understanding of water for natural areas and existing legal considerations for providing water to natural areas, examples of where natural areas are already included in water management decisions, and an overview of available paths forward for including natural areas alongside human uses.
Sustainable Clarkdale: The town of Clarkdale, Arizona is working to become a sustainable community. The Water RAPIDS team assisted the town to develop a model water resource management program that will reduce per capita water consumption to sustainable levels in order to protect the Verde River. The end goal of this project was to balance water consumption and supply by exploring benefits and consequences of management options, the policies and outreach required to initiate a public engagement process, and an information campaign to build support from citizens for the Sustainable Clarkdale initiative.
In 2014 the WRRC lead a Water Experts Meeting in February and a Small Town Water Management Forum in June. In advance of the Water Experts Meeting a Water Primer for the Town of Clarkdale was prepared to introduce the invited experts to the geography and hydrologic conditions of Clarkdale, as well as the current water management challenges and potential solutions identified by the Town.
Water RAPIDS - Publications
May 31, 2017
Desert Flows Methodology Guidebook
Successful implementation of environmental flow projects depends on land and water managers having clear objectives and access to reliable data. This guidebook provides information on a variety of methods that can be utilized under different fiscal or temporal constraints to determine and implement appropriate environmental flow targets. Based on evidence from cases focused in the Southwestern United States and Northern Mexico, steps are suggested to help ensure maintenance of flows under uncertain future natural and socio-economic conditions. The importance of education and engagement to...
May 25, 2017
A Guide for Landowners on the Upper Gila River
What activities or modifications are legally allowable on land adjacent to the Gila River? In too many cases, that question is met with conflicting responses and, sometimes, general puzzlement in communities that harbor stretches of the Upper Gila River in Graham and Greenlee Counties of Arizona. With simple answers to realistic questions, A Guide for Landowners on the Upper Gila River addresses common misunderstandings about what private landowners can and cannot do with their land adjacent to the river.
September 12, 2016
Desert Flows Assessment
In the past decade there has been increased interest in providing water to meet the needs of riparian and aquatic ecosystems in the western United States and policymakers are using their knowledge of environmental flow needs to advocate for both political and scientific changes. However, there are significant challenges associated with including environmental flows in water management and planning. First, water rights for environmental flows are not universal, and in many cases legal tools used to incorporate the environment into water management and planning only require new users to...
July 06, 2016
Wet Water and Paper Water in the Upper Gila River Watershed
As one of Arizona’s principal surface water systems, the Gila River has and will continue to be a valuable and highly sought after water source. The river, its tributaries, and underlying groundwater reserves have enabled a robust farming, ranching, and mining heritage, while providing a rich and diverse riparian landscape in an arid region. However, as much as these water resources have shaped the history of the watershed, a variety of legal, economic, and climatic uncertainties will undoubtedly – and potentially drastically – influence future water supplies. An understanding of the area’s...
January 01, 2016
Using Scenario Planning to Prepare for Uncertainty in Rural Watersheds
Planning for an uncertain future presents many challenges. Thinking systematically and creatively about what is in store through a process called scenario planning can help illuminate options for action and improve decision-making. This guide focuses on a process for developing scenarios to help communities and watershed groups explore what might happen in the years to come, make more informed decisions today, and build a watershed management process. The systematic approach to scenario planning described here is based on the lessons learned through a yearlong scenario planning process in the...
December 15, 2014
Roadmap for Considering Water for Arizona's Natural Areas
The Roadmap for Considering Water for Arizona’s Natural Areas contains information on the current scientific understanding of water for natural areas and existing legal considerations for providing water to natural areas, examples of where natural areas are already included in water management decisions, and an overview of available paths forward for including natural areas alongside human uses.