HB2132 ~ Points to Ponder

UPDATE: This bill is being held in the Senate by Chairman Bob Burns.

1. This is probably the only water with an industrial only designation, but that doesn't make it a good thing. Local officials should be who decide which is the best use at any given time. Certainly Kingman, LHC, BHC and MVIDD all have water which is used by industry and all are recruiting additional industry. Related issue : do high water use industries make sense in a desert?

2. Industry certainly could have used the temporary water since it could have been leased to them long term. We also had permanent water which could have been leased to an industry. We have not been approached by a single industry seeking water since our formation in 1996. No doubt it is more valuable as a permanent supply but , again, who should be making decisions on the best use of water in our local communities?

3. It is prudent to take steps to avoid losing this water under the "use it or lose it" doctrine. Kingman's allocation would have been lost to the Phoenix area if MCWA had not been formed to facilitate its transfer to Mohave County's river communities.

4.. If there were a reasonably priced way to get Colorado River water to Griffith Energy and nearby industrial properties the City of Kingman would have kept their allocation. The construction and operating costs of such a pipeline are cost prohibitive for such a small (3500a/f) amount of water.