PHOENIX (AZFamily) – As the Phoenix area grows, so does the need for safer water sources, and that’s why Arizona is exploring options to import billions of dollars in water from other states.

The Colorado River is an important water resource for Arizona, with nearly 35% of the state relying on the river.

Experts say the basin has been hit by a mega-drought over the past two decades.

“We live in a kind of different climate, a dry climate. So there is uncertainty about the Colorado River and what our share of the Colorado River will look like after 2026,” said Chelsea McGuire of the Water Infrastructure Finance Authority.

With water resources depleted, Arizona officials are now exploring other options, including bringing in billions of gallons of water from other states.

“What needs to happen is that we figure out how to use a scarce resource to achieve the growth and prosperity we want. At the same time, it’s really difficult unless you add more water to the conversation,” McGuire said.

McGuire said finding water resources has been a top priority since 2022, when state lawmakers gave them responsibility for finding new water sources.

“So 75% of our augmentation resources have to be used outside the state. That is simply the law that governs us. But the logic behind it is that if we bring water from somewhere else, we actually make the pie bigger,” McGuire said.

Just last week, WIFA spoke with major water providers such as cities and utilities that would help import this water from other states.

“We have a tender that is circulating. We are asking companies from anywhere and everywhere to provide us with fully trained teams that can take an expansion project from Point A to Point B,” McGuire said.

The state allocated approximately $430 million to this initiative.

According to the agency, the goal is to import over 100 billion gallons of water annually.

“There is surface water from other states. There is sea water. There is reclaimed or recycled water,” McGuire said.

As Arizona continues to search for more water, McGuire says finding outsourced resources will be critical to keeping pace with our growing state.

“We need more water from everywhere but Arizona,” she said.

Do you see a spelling or grammatical error in our story? Please click here to report it.

Do you have a photo or video of a recent news story? Send it to us here with a short description.

Copyright 2024 KTVK/KPHO. All rights reserved.