Funding under Inflation Reduction Act will help water managers utilize tens of thousands of acre-feet of water
TEMPE—Rep. Greg Stanton today announced $154 million in funding under the Inflation Reduction Act to construct an interconnection facility allowing for water deliveries from the Salt River Federal Reclamation project (SRP) to upstream users along the Central Arizona Project (CAP) and the Colorado River.
As the state faces historic drought, this project will be critical to support the resiliency of CAP. In fact, if this project had been in place in 2023, there would have been more than enough capacity to move 50,000-acre feet of water from SRP during the high-water periods that spring to water treatment plants or underground storage facilities along the CAP system, instead of it being spilled downstream.
Stanton fought to include significant funding to combat drought in the West in the Inflation Reduction Act, and worked to push the legislation through the House. In a December 2023 meeting, he pressed Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Camille Calimlim Touton to prioritize this project for funding under the IRA’s Lower Colorado River Basin System Conservation and Efficiency Program.
Rep. Stanton’s statement, as delivered at the announcement today by staff, is below.
“Commissioner, you may remember that we first discussed this project way back in December of 2023. . . how it would create an important connection between two key water systems in our state – the Salt River Project and the Central Arizona Project, and how it was a perfect candidate for drought resiliency funding under our Inflation Reduction Act.
In that conversation more than a year ago, Commissioner, I stressed to you then how essential it was that we create opportunities to capture excess water during wet periods, and put it to use across central Arizona. To get the most out of every single drop of this precious resource.
In fact, if this project had been in place in 2023, there would have been more than enough capacity to move 50,000-acre feet of water from SRP during the high-water period we experienced that spring to water treatment plants or underground storage facilities along the CAP system . . . instead of that water being spilled downstream.
I’ve been a broken record about how the federal government needed to prioritize IRA funding for innovative system-wide conservation efforts and projects that conserve water long-term.
Today, we’re making good on that. This project will go a long, long way to conserve water in the Colorado River system for decades to come, and support central Arizona water users.
Now this project is benefitting from historic federal funding, but it wouldn’t be possible without the steadfast advocacy of our state partners. I want to thank SRP, which I am proud to have in my district, for their visionary leadership and foresight to put their resources to work for the greater good of our state. Thank you to the Central Arizona Project for their leadership and partnership to get us here today. And to the Central Arizona Water Conservation District, particularly my friend Terry Goddard, for contributing additional funding to make this project possible.
And thank you especially to Commissioner Touton and your team at the Bureau of Reclamation for your partnership over the last four years.”