• Environmentalists sued Gov. Katie Hobbs and the Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR) on June 24, 2024 for failing to protect the San Pedro River from groundwater pumping.
• The lawsuit seeks a court order directing ADWR to designate the Upper San Pedro River Basin as an Active Management Area (AMA), which would give it authority to limit groundwater pumping in the area.
• The San Pedro River is the last free-flowing desert river in the Southwest and provides habitat for a variety of endangered species.
• Creation of an AMA in the San Pedro River Basin would likely be politically controversial, as it could lead to restrictions on groundwater pumping and development in the area.

June 26, 2024 — The Center for Biological Diversity, the San Pedro Alliance, and activist Robin Silver filed a lawsuit on June 24, 2024, against Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs and the Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR). The lawsuit alleges that the state has failed to protect the San Pedro River from groundwater pumping, allegedly threatening the river’s future for decades.

The lawsuit seeks a court order directing ADWR to designate the Upper San Pedro River Basin as an Active Management Area (AMA). AMAs are political subdivisions with the authority to limit groundwater pumping in their areas. There are currently six AMAs in Arizona, but none specifically designed to protect a river from groundwater depletion.

The San Pedro River.

The San Pedro River is an internationally known birdwatching destination, drawing hundreds of bird species to its cottonwood and willow trees and extensive understory vegetation. It is the last undammed, free-flowing river in the desert Southwest. It also provides habitat for a variety of endangered species, including the Southwestern willow flycatcher, Huachuca water umbel, desert pupfish, loach minnow, spikedace, yellow-billed cuckoo, Arizona eryngo, and northern Mexican garter snake.

The Issue of Groundwater Pumping.

Groundwater pumping has been a major dispute for the San Pedro River for many years. Opponents argue that over-pumping has lowered the water table, reducing water flow into the river. This has led to concerns that the river could dry up entirely, which would have devastating consequences for the ecosystem and the communities that depend on it.

The Proposed Active Management Area.

Environmentalists say the creation of an AMA in the Upper San Pedro River Basin could help address groundwater pumping. An AMA would have the authority to limit groundwater pumping in the area, which could help protect the river’s flow. However, creating an AMA is likely to be politically controversial, as it could restrict groundwater pumping and development in the area.

Previous Attempts to Protect the San Pedro River.

The Arizona Daily Star reports this is not the first time conservationists have sought to protect the San Pedro River by creating an AMA. The San Pedro Alliance, a coalition of conservation groups, previously petitioned ADWR to designate the Upper San Pedro River Basin as an AMA in 2005. However, the petition was denied. In their June 2024 lawsuit, the conservationists allege that the state has a “mandatory duty” to conduct a review to determine whether an AMA is needed in the basin. The lawsuit also claims that the state has “abused [its] discretion by ignoring incontrovertible scientific data showing that groundwater is threatened in the basin.”

The environmentalists hope their lawsuit will lead to the protection of the San Pedro River. “Gov. Hobbs is making a mockery of Arizona’s Groundwater Management Act by refusing to put any restrictions on San Pedro River-killing groundwater pumping,” said Robin Silver, co-founder of the Center for Biological Diversity, in a press release. “Her inaction is causing an existential crisis that will lead to the demise of the river and the plants and animals whose existence depends on its flows.”

Image:

San Pedro River, Cochise County, Arizona, upstream from San Pedro House.  By Alan Schmierer, Jan 2019.  Licenced under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication.

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