- Arizona will hold two groundwater workshops in Salome on October 14.
- The workshops will address municipal water conservation and applications.
- Ranegras Plain became an Active Management Area in early 2026.
- The designation limits new agricultural irrigation and requires groundwater monitoring and reporting.
- The groundwater basin covers portions of La Paz and Yuma counties.
Thursday, October 8, 2026 — Arizona water officials are moving forward with groundwater management planning in the Ranegras Plain, where new restrictions are intended to slow the depletion of underground water supplies.
The Arizona Department of Water Resources has scheduled two in-person workshops
for October 14, 2026, at Desert Gold RV Resort in Salome.
The first workshop will focus on municipal water conservation. The second will address applications related to the newly designated Ranegras Plain Active Management Area.
The meetings are part of the state’s work to establish groundwater management requirements following the basin’s designation as an Active Management Area earlier in 2026.
What Will Happen at the October 14 Workshops?
The Municipal Conservation Workshop will run from 10:30 a.m. to noon.
During that session, Arizona Department of Water Resources staff will continue discussions about the framework for the Municipal Conservation Program, which will be included in the Ranegras Plain Active Management Area management plan.
An application workshop will follow.
The department has reserved the meeting location from 10:30 a.m. until 1:30 p.m.
Workshop information:
- Date: Wednesday, October 14, 2026.
- Time: 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
- Location: Desert Gold RV Resort.
- Address: 46628 East Highway 60, Salome, Arizona 85348.
Why Ranegras Plain Is Under New Groundwater Rules.
The Ranegras Plain Groundwater Basin lies within La Paz and Yuma counties in western Arizona.
It includes the Bouse Wash watershed, excluding Cunningham Wash and the Hubbard Plain.
In October 2025, the Arizona Department of Water Resources began reviewing whether the basin needed stronger groundwater management.
The department held an informational meeting on October 15, 2025, and accepted public comments through October 17.
On October 24, the department’s chief hydrologist submitted a technical memorandum describing groundwater conditions in the basin.
After reviewing the technical information and public comments, the department’s director issued an order on October 27, 2025, beginning the formal process of considering an Active Management Area designation.
A public hearing followed on December 18, 2025, at Desert Gold RV Park in Salome. During that hearing, the department presented factual information supporting the proposed designation.
On January 9, 2026, the director issued a decision and order designating the Ranegras Plain Groundwater Basin as an Active Management Area.
What Is an Active Management Area?
An Active Management Area is a region where Arizona imposes additional rules on groundwater use.
Groundwater is water stored underground. Wells bring that water to the surface for farms, communities, and other uses.
When groundwater is pumped out faster than it is replaced, underground water supplies can decline.
Arizona’s Active Management Area system establishes restrictions and reporting requirements intended to slow or reduce that depletion.
In Ranegras Plain, the designation brings two important changes.
First, it generally prohibits irrigation on new agricultural acreage, although certain limited exceptions are allowed.
Second, most people who withdraw groundwater from wells that are not legally exempt must comply with monitoring and reporting requirements.
These rules give the state additional oversight of groundwater withdrawals within the designated area.
New Limits on Agricultural Irrigation
Restrictions on expanding irrigated farmland began while the state was still considering whether to designate Ranegras Plain as an Active Management Area.
