Before 1980, groundwater was the primary source of water throughout Arizona, especially if you could not tap into the Salt River. State leaders knew that groundwater was not a sustainable source of water for the life and growth of Arizona.

With land settling and subsidence threatening existing development, state leaders determined the reliance on groundwater had to be controlled. The construction of the Central Arizona Project (CAP) canal was the major initiative to develop from this effort. In 1980, the Arizona Groundwater Management Act (GMA) was placed into law and the Assured Water Supply (AWS) Program was established. 

The AWS Program requires residential developments to show it has a enough water to support the development and will be “physically, legally and continuously available for the next 100 years”. The 1980 GMA also requires that a renewable supply of water be used to meet demand, rather than groundwater. A renewable supply of water is defined as water that comes from a source such as rivers and streams, reclaimed water (also known as effluent) or water from outside of the area.

Buckeye's water stats:

• Over $310 million of infrastructure assets
• Provide water to approx. 29,000 customers
• Delivers over 10,000 acre-feet of water a year
• Recharges nearly 4,000 acre-feet of reclaimed water back into the ground
• Operates 29 wells and 15 booster stations
• Maintains 540 miles of water lines
  • Over 5,600 valves
  • Nearly 3,400 fire hydrants

Water use in Arizona has slowly dropped since the Arizona Department of Water Resources was created, even as our population increased. This is mostly due to new policies in place and agricultural land being developed.

1 Acre-foot = 325,851 gallons
This is enough water to supply three residential homes for a year, agricultural land uses four times more water.

Buckeye's Water Facts and Stats Flyer

All existing homes and businesses in Buckeye have a 100-year CAWS issued to them by ADWR. The results of the ADWR study does not impact any of these developments or any under development. However, it will impact how the city and developers approach planning for future businesses and homes. Buckeye has already started searching for ways to grow and diversify our water portfolio and decrease our reliance on groundwater.

Buckeye's Water Conservation and Cost Flyer

Over the next few years, Buckeye will be pursing the following initiatives:

• Adopting citywide water management policies

  These policies will establish a framework focused on the major facets of operating and maintaining a sustainable water business for the city such as the use of reclaimed water, water purchases and others.

• Become a Designated Water Provider

  Buckeye’s Water Resource Department is actively evaluating the establishment of a Designation of Assured Water Supply (DAWS) in all or part of the city’s water service area. This will assist in giving Buckeye better control of how we develop.

• Grow our water portfolio
  In addition to our current assets, the city is also evaluating several opportunities that could strengthen and grow our portfolio such as:

• Securing strategic partnerships with other agencies with access to water within the city, such as the irrigation districts
• Establishing partnerships with other municipalities with similar water interests and goals
• Treating currently unusable groundwater from the Buckeye Waterlogged Area
• Expanding the use of effluent water for landscape irrigation, reducing the need for new water supplies of outdoor use
• Participating in the Bartlett Dam Project that could allocate a renewable supply of water for Buckeye
• Purchasing or leasing Colorado River water from others not currently using their allocations, such smaller communities, private owners and Native American Tribes

It’s tempting to compare your water bill to another city or water provider, however, this is not a fair comparison. Every water provider in Arizona has a unique water portfolio that requires different management. Some cities have significant rights to the Salt, Verde and/or Colorado Rivers, while cities like Buckeye rely mostly on groundwater impacting the cost of how water is treated and delivered.

Depending on where you live in Buckeye, there are three different water providers. Buckeye Water Resources (city), EPCOR Water and Arizona Water Company. While their approach to the delivery of water to customers is similar, each of these organizations face different challenges to refine the water into a safe, reliable product.  These challenges are reflected in the rates they charge their customers.

Buckeye’s biggest cost challenge lie in our source water, groundwater. While groundwater is readily available in the central part of the city, the ability to pump the water from the ground is challenging and the cost to bring it up to drinking standards is high.

Conservation Codes
While the majority of the code provisions are aimed at reducing outdoor water usage for future developments, several sections directly affect existing homeowners associations and residents.

Drought Management Plan
The city of Buckeye has implemented a Drought Management Plan that will help relieve the stress of the states water supply. This plan is broken down in four phases, all with different levels of cutbacks. Currently, Buckeye has not implemented any part of the Drought Management Plan.

Water Resources Strategic Plan
This plan ensures we are using proven best practices that result in efficient and effective delivery of services. Our work is also in line with council initiatives that allow us to achieve our goals to improve water quality, enhance the customer experience, support economic growth, invest in future water supplies and maintain financial stability.

Water Resources Master Plan
The purpose of this plan is to explore opportunities for additional water resources to provide a sustainable water supply so that Buckeye can continue to grow.

Water Quality Report
Our certified water operators sample water throughout the system daily and perform over 150 tests for new wells. They work closely with the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality and the Maricopa County Environmental Services Department to ensure all drinking water standards are met 365 days a year.