Phoenix Area Office - Programs & Activities

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INTRODUCTION TO WESTCAPS:

The West Valley Central Arizona Project Subcontractors (WESTCAPS) are nine public and private Central Arizona Project (CAP) municipal subcontractors in western Maricopa County who formed a coalition to work together to utilize their CAP allocations.  The CAP delivers approximately 1.5 million acre-feet of Colorado River Water to central Arizona municipal, Native American, and agricultural water users via the CAP canal, which was constructed by the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) and is operated and maintained by the Central Arizona Water Conservation District. WESTCAPS consists of the following agencies: City of Avondale, EPCOR, Arizona Water Company, Town of Buckeye, City of El Mirage, Global Water Resources, City of Goodyear, City of Peoria, and the City of Surprise. WESTCAPS conducts its work in concert with Reclamation, Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR), Central Arizona Project, and other key stakeholders in the region.

WESTCAPS’ mission is to develop workable alternatives for its members to provide their customers with a cost effective, sustainable, reliable, and high-quality water supply through partnerships and cooperative efforts in regional water resource planning and management, emphasizing CAP water utilization

The study area shown represents the geographic boundaries of the WESTCAPS water study area and includes both present and proposed WESTCAPS members' year 2025 service areas.

Problem Statement

Each water provider in the West Salt River Valley (WSRV) conducts its own water resources planning and management without much consideration for the plans and actions of neighboring communities.  The ground water aquifer and local surface water supply systems are a resource that is shared by all the communities in the WSRV. 

WSRV water providers must work together to protect, preserve and develop these shared resources and to respond to issues, such as: increasing regulatory pressure; CAP water utilization; declining groundwater levels; groundwater quality; land subsidence; and managing costs.

Goals

The primary goal of the planning process is to increase the efficient use of CAP water by WSRV entities possessing municipal and industrial subcontracts. In addition to this goal, WESTCAPS membership expressed desired outcomes for both the planning process and what the process produces. Considering those desired outcomes, the following goals were established:

Process Goals

• Develop a plan that each WESTCAPS member can support

• Develop a common base of understanding of the issues and options

• Develop a mission statement and define the tenets for members involvement

Outcome Goals

• Protect, preserve, and enhance CAP allocations

• Maximize efficient use of CAP and other renewable resources available to the WSRV

• Understand and influence water policy in Arizona related to water and wastewater management in the WSRV (ADEQ, Arizona Department of Water Resources, Central Arizona Water Conservation District, and the Arizona Corporation Commission)

• Develop long-term, sustainable regional water resource management, infrastructure, and implementation strategies

 

WESTCAPS Reports

 

Last Reviewed:
August 6, 2012

Webmaster:
Joseph J. Billerbeck - jbillerbeck@usbr.gov