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
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





