Phoenix, Tempe Both Implement Drought Plans This Week

PHOENIX, AZ — Both Phoenix and Tempe implemented initial stages of their city drought plans this week, amid a Colorado River water shortage.

Phoenix announced a "Stage 1 Water Alert" and activated its Drought Management Plan during a Wednesday city council meeting, according to a news release from the city.

"The City is taking this action to address the mandatory reduction of Colorado River water and deeper cuts that are likely to occur in the future," the city of Phoenix said in the news release. "The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation has been working with the seven Colorado River Basin states to manage the changing conditions. However, the levels of Lake Powell and Lake Mead continue to fall precipitously, and the projections show conditions will worsen significantly."

Phoenix attributed the shortage to "overallocation, prolonged drought, and climate change."

In the initial stages of its Drought Management Plan, the city will begin efforts to urge the public to voluntarily conserve water in ways that the city says will have minimal impact on their lifestyles.

That primarily includes watering landscaping correctly and finding and fixing leaks in sinks and toilets.

"The situation on the Colorado River is unprecedented, and we are taking it very seriously," Mayor Kate Gallego said in the news release. "Each of us is responsible for making simple changes to live more sustainably in the desert environment we call home. The City of Phoenix is committed to reducing water use in city operations and providing the tools residents and businesses need to use this precious resource efficiently."

The Colorado River supplies around 40 percent of Phoenix's water.

"As the drought intensifies, the City continues to innovate new, proactive actions to prepare for even deeper shortages on the Colorado River, which is over-allocated and in decline due to climate change," said Phoenix Water Services Director Troy Hayes. "The City is prepared to implement additional actions, including those described in our Drought Management Plan."

The city has promised to continue to invest and conserve to provide water to its customers without interruption and to prepare for worsening Colorado River shortages.

Phoenix reuses almost all of its wastewater in agriculture, energy production, urban irrigation, aquifer recharge and riparian wetland maintenance.

"Our customers have always been our partners in conservation, and we need that more than ever now," Cynthia Campbell, City of Phoenix Water Resources Management Advisor said in the news release. "We want them to understand what it means to live in a desert and how to use water as efficiently as possible."

Tempe also announced this week that it was implementing Stage 0 of its Drought Preparedness Plan, according to a news release from the city.

Similar to Phoenix, the initial stage of Tempe's plan includes increasing awareness of the Valley's drought conditions and urging voluntary conservation.

During the first stage of the plan, Tempe is set to provide frequent drought status updates and water conservation tips, to increase recharge of available water supplies for future use, to begin using reclaimed water and to put together a Water Shortage Response Team to monitor the situation and to formulate strategies to help mitigate the situation.