Balancing the access to groundwater for Pinal County community
by Mark Phillips | ABC15
For generations, the Gila River ran mostly under the Gila River Indian Community. Now, along one small stretch of desert, it glistens in the sun marking the site of a newly constructed aquifer recharge system which allows the community to capture groundwater, store it for later use, and most importantly lessen the Gila’s reliance on Colorado River water.
The conservation project is considered an important part of Arizona’s drought contingency plan.
“With the Bureau of Reclamation, we were able to use federal funds to build and expand this facility and put in a major new groundwater well field nearby that expands our ability to pump the water we need here on our reservation,” Gila Indian River Community Governor Stephen Lewis said.
