Posts Tagged ‘water’
Arizona suspends efforts to take over provisions of Clean Water Act
Good news for clean water in Arizona! The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) has officially suspended its efforts to take over a key part of the federal Clean Water Act. According to the ADEQ website:
In 2018, ADEQ began a collaborative stakeholder process to draft a roadmap for Arizona to assume the Clean Water Act Section 404 Permitting program. Almost 500 people engaged by attending stakeholder meetings, participating in work groups and providing over 2,100 comments. The majority of stakeholder input supported retaining the current process.
Based on this, ADEQ has decided not to continue pursuing state assumption of the 404 permitting program. Stakeholder engagement is an integral part of the potential development of any program, and the Department appreciates the participation of so many people sharing their perspectives.
In November 2019, CSDP was a part of a coalition of environmental groups that submitted a letter to ADEQ urging them to suspend their efforts to take over the 404 permitting process under the Clean Water Act, which protects our waterways from pollution, degradation and disturbance by industrial and development projects. On December 4, 2019, this coalition of groups issued a press release praising this decision by ADEQ.
According to Sandy Bahr, chapter director for Sierra Club – Grand Canyon (Arizona) Chapter, “Arizona’s waters, including those—and perhaps especially those—with limited water should be afforded the highest levels of protection. Plants, animals, cultural resources, and the public interest must be top priorities in considering permits to alter our waters. We are pleased that the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality is not moving forward with the program without the necessary strong public review and involvement process and better and stronger cultural and natural resource protections.”
Thank you for supporting our advocacy for clean water in the Sonoran Desert – our voices can make a difference!
Action Alert: Sign on to “A Conservation Vision for Arizona’s Water Future”!
March 30, 2017
The conservation of our water resources is essential for the future health and resilience of both people and wildlife. A group of organizations, including the Coalition and spearheaded by Coalition member group Sierra Club-Grand Canyon Chapter, recently drafted “A Conservation Vision for Arizona’s Water Future.” This visionary document outlines the many reasons and ways we believe Arizona water policy needs to be changed and revised. More than anything, the Coalition believes environmental water needs should be considered in Arizona water policy. This includes policies that try to keep our rivers, streams, and springs flowing and subsequently support our incredible Sonoran Desert wildlife.
The vision document states in part:
“We believe a clearer vision of water sustainability for Arizona’s future is needed, one that would:
• Consider environmental water needs and propose policies to keep rivers, streams, and springs flowing;
• Consider the water needs of rural Arizona;
• Incorporate the high probability that climate change will afflict Arizona with multidecadal droughts, increased temperatures, and diminished water supplies;
• Include new possibilities for controlling water demand through creative and strong water conservation measures; and
• Include a comprehensive economic evaluation of alternative augmentation techniques and advanced water reuse technology.”
It also concludes, “We are committed to including a broad range of stakeholders (both large and small) in the discussion, including our towns and communities, rural communities, Indian tribes, grassroots and community groups, local businesses, and the environmental community.”
Will you support “A Conservation Vision for Arizona’s Water Future” by adding your name in support of this document? We are seeking both individuals and organizations to sign on so please inform any organizations that you are involved in that this opportunity for action is available to them too. Sign on here.
You can read the full vision document here.
Going forward, we will be keeping you updated on how this new vision document will be used to advocate directly to Arizona’s water policy decision-makers and other ways you can be involved.
Thank you for supporting water policies that support our environment and wildlife!
