Arizona Braces for Water War August 25 2005

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Arizona bracing for legal battle over Colorado River water By The Associated Press Printed in the Casper Star - Tribune August 25, 2005 PHOENIX (AP) -- Arizona hopes to create a $1.5 million legal defense fund to protect its Colorado River allocation in case a simmering dispute among neighboring states turns into a regional water war. A worst -case loss in court could force the state to give up half of the water that flows through the Central Arizona Project canal and leave it in reservoirs to benefit upstream users or satisfy a treaty with Mexico. Most of that water is now reserved for cities in Maricopa, Pima and Pinal counties or set aside to settle claims with Indian tribes. Representatives from all seven Colorado River states were scheduled to meet Thursday in San Diego to consider a plan that might solve some of the issues without legal action. The states hope to submit their proposals to Interior Secretary Gale Norton next week as part of a larger effort to create a long -term drought plan for the Colorado. Drought and growth have pushed the river past its limits and renewed tensions among the states who rely on the river's water. Without a workable plan, "litigation is inevitable at some point," said Herb Guenther, director of Arizona's Department of Water Resources. "We've been staring at it for a long time. But we're trying to avoid the head -on collision and see if we can't work together on these issues." Guenther's agency has come up with the first $200,000 for the defense fund, and Arizona will ask boards governing the CAP and Salt River Project to contribute similar amounts. A fund - raising committee will then seek donations from others with a stake in the river, including cities and home builders, Guenther added. There have been long- standing arguments over how the river and its tributaries are divided among users. In states along the upper river -- which include Colorado, Wyoming, New Mexico and Utah -- water taken from tributaries is counted against the states' shares. In states on the lower river -- Arizona, Nevada and California -- tributaries are not included in the accounting.