WILLCOX — The public is invited to learn more about what an active management area could mean for homes, businesses and farms in the Willcox Basin during a public meeting this week.
The Arizona Department of Water Resources will conduct the meeting Friday, Nov. 22, at 1 p.m., at the Willcox Community Center, 312 W. Stewart St.
In October, the Arizona Department of Water Resources announced a Notice of Initiation of Designation Procedures for a potential Willcox Groundwater Basin AMA.
Gov. Katie Hobbs recently toured the area, and said she saw “dried up wells, fissures in the earth, and farms struggling to survive because of unchecked pumping” of groundwater.
An AMA regulates the access and withdrawal of groundwater, as well as sets conservation measures and monitors impact from wells.
In addition to Willcox, the basin includes Pearce, Sunsites and Dragoon in Cochise County; and Bonita and Sunset in Graham County.
In 2022, voters in the Willcox and Bonita areas voted against declaration of an AMA for the Willcox Basin by an almost two-to-one margin, with 2,443 votes against the AMA and 1,461 in favor.
