Next Meeting: September 8, 2010, at 2:30 p.m.

For more Pima County information visit their web page: Pima_County_Drought_Management_web_page

2009 Summary from Pima County

Pima County’s Local Drought Impact Group (LDIG) consists of water providers and local, state and
federal agencies; and meets regularly to monitor drought conditions, discuss drought impacts and
coordinate drought declarations and responses. During the year presentations were made on the
drought impact reporting system DroughtWatch, climate change in the Colorado River basin along
with Central Arizona Water Conservation District’s response actions and USGS methods for
estimating flood magnitude and frequency using stream gage data.

Status of Drought. Drought Conditions continue to persist in Pima County. For the eighth straight
year Tucson recorded below average precipitation. The 2009 monsoon season was atypical and
produced below average precipitation, particularly in August. According to the National Weather
Service, 2009 saw the coolest June since 1998, the 3rd warmest July and the 2nd warmest August.
The 2009 monsoon season was the 8th warmest and 13th driest since the National Weather Service
has been recording temperature and precipitation. The consensus of Pima County’s LDIG is that
the drought is not over.

Drought Impacts. Impacts of sustained drought are being observed in several sectors.
• For ranchers, impacts to stock ponds and grasses indicate the drought is worsening.
• Stream flow at Cienega Creek was one tenth of the flow seen in pre-drought years (1992-
2002). Groundwater levels measured adjacent to the creek were four to six feet lower than
at the same time the previous year and stream flow length in September was two miles, or
about half the average September flow, as measured since 2001.
• The lack of spring flow at Agua Caliente Park required supplementing flow with
groundwater; however, pumping was limited due to falling groundwater levels.
• Stormwater harvesting at the Kino Environmental Restoration Project was below previous
years resulting in the need to purchase reclaimed water to supplement irrigation.
• Despite the warm, dry summer weather patterns, water utilities have reported reduced
water demands and a later than normal peak use day.

Comparison of Different Areas. The short-term and long-term drought status in the far western
area of Pima County has fared slightly better than the remaining areas of the county. The Lower
Gila River Watershed has ranged from normal to abnormally dry, whereas the San Simon River
and Santa Cruz River watersheds have ranged from abnormally dry to severe drought.

Drought-Related Actions. The City of Tucson and Pima County are conducting a multi-year study
of water and wastewater infrastructure, supply and planning issues. As part of this effort a technical
paper on drought management was prepared. It recommends continued coordination of drought
response actions for the region and an adaptive planning approach. Additionally, the Study
Oversight Committee prepared a primer on drought and drought preparedness. The technical
report and drought primer are available on the study’s website at:
http://www.tucsonpimawaterstudy.com

The City of Tucson published its 2009 Annual Drought Monitoring Report, which recommends
continuation of the Stage 1 Drought Response. The report is available at:
http://www.tucsonaz.gov/water/pubs-gi.htm

Tucson also approved a rainwater harvesting ordinance that mandates commercial properties to
meet 50 percent of their landscaping water requirements by capturing rainwater. The ordinance is
effective June 1, 2010.

Each of the water providers has prepared a drought response plan on file with ADWR. As of
September 2009 the status of regional drought declarations had not changed from 2008. The
status of drought declarations is:

Regional Drought Declarations