Lawsuit To Protect The San Pedro River Advances

Massive new development and groundwater pumping threaten river and wildlife

Tags:

Environment

2013-09-15

The challenge to the Arizona Department of Water Resources’ (ADWR) approval of a massive groundwater pumping project that threatens the survival of the Upper San Pedro River in Southern Arizona took a major step forward Thursday when Earthjustice, representing Dr. Robin Silver, presented its legal claims in an opening brief in a lawsuit in Arizona Superior Court.

Dr. Robin Silver walks along the San Pedro River.

This lawsuit seeks to protect the river flows that sustain the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area, a reserve managed by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to protect and enhance the San Pedro and the natural systems that it supports.

“Allowing the proposed groundwater pumping to proceed could be the last straw for this amazing river,” said Earthjustice attorney McCrystie Adams said. “The San Pedro is one of Arizona’s last living rivers, home to hundreds of species of birds and other wildlife. We are excited to be representing Dr. Silver in this critical effort to keep this river alive.”

ADWR’s decision ignores federal water rights granted to the BLM that guarantee river flows critical to the national conservation area. Had ADWR considered BLM’s water rights and then explored the connected relationship between surface water levels and ground water, they likely would have discovered insufficient groundwater to supply the thousands of proposed new homes without impoverishing the San Pedro River as well. Moreover, the agency’s decision fundamentally undermines the purposes of Arizona’s critical water adequacy law, put in place to help local governments conserve dwindling aquifers and end a history of developers selling land and homes without adequate water.

Earthjustice has worked with partners including Dr. Silver for more than a decade to sustain the San Pedro River and the rich ecosystems that flourish there.Dr. Silver is an Arizona native, a landowner along the San Pedro River, and a long-standing advocate for the river.

Source: Earthjustice