2017-04-05 Prescott pumping water residents need to save it

The Prescott area is pumping water from the Little Chino aquifer about four times as fast as it is being replenished. The impact of this overdraft includes declining water levels in the aquifer and wells drying up in the western part of Chino Valley.

Some people claim that a pipeline to bring groundwater from the Big Chino aquifer up north at the headwaters of the upper Verde River will solve our water problems. However, the cost will be enormous and pumping will reduce the flow of the Verde unless we spend millions more to mitigate the impact. The U.S. Geological Survey computer model shows that this groundwater pumping will result in dry sections of the river and impair water rights held by downstream users.

Conservation can play a major role in achieving a sustainable water supply, especially by using less water outdoors. Homeowners can use captured rainwater and attractive drought-tolerant plants to save both water and money.