Pinal’s environmental prospects raise tough choices
by Aaron Dorman | Maricopa Monitor
A recent study from ProPublica and the Rhodium Group identified Pinal County as the state’s second-most at-risk county due to climate change.
The study combined several factors to evaluate the impact on areas that would take shape over the years 2040 to 2060. Pinal County is projected to see major increases in heat, as well as drought, with resultant losses in agriculture and economic damage.
Despite the projections, various interconnected county plans see major development all along the Interstate 10 corridor between Phoenix and Tucson, as well as a planned north-south highway between the East Valley and Tucson that would go through Coolidge and the planned Inland Port megacomplex.
Pinal Partnership President and CEO Harold Christ said that in particular, drought is a major concern for county planners.
“We’re not seeing rainfall or snow packs that we normally see,” Christ said. “Pinal County has historically been such a strong agricultural economy. I think as Americans we take for granted a lot of things until it becomes an issue.”
