M.C. Nelson
SaddleBrooke Ranch Democrats invited Arizona Senate Democratic Leader Priya Sundareshan from Tucson’s Legislative District 18 to review the state of water locally and in Arizona. Priya, a Tucson native, has taught natural resource law at the University of Arizona and previously advocated for sustainable resource management with the Environmental Defense Fund. She holds a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from M.I.T., a M.S. in Natural Resource Economics, and a J.D. from the University of Arizona.
She did a great presentation of the state of our water for the Ranch and greater Pinal County, plus covered Pima and the wider state of Arizona. While it appears we (at the Ranch) are sufficient in groundwater at this time, our concern will be with growth and the need for Pinal County taking a stronger stance on agriculture and CAP water active management as proactive measures. Our water is from groundwater (not Colorado), which is local water mostly stemming from Mount Lemmon.
We plan on asking our Pinal County legislators about proactive management to avoid future water restrictions for our county that aligns more with the rest of Arizona. Priya also showed us common sense legislation she introduced at the Arizona capitol that was not passed by the current legislative majority—she will keep working with her counterparts to help bring smart changes and reform on legislation to ensure Arizona has a successful water future.
In addition, the Democratic Club also ran a very successful food drive for IMPACT of Southern Arizona. People brought food to the meeting. We donated close to 500 pounds of food from the Democratic Club just in time for the Thanksgiving holiday. IMPACT of Southern Arizona was grateful for the timely contribution.
The Democratic Club meets the third Tuesday of the Month at 4:15 p.m. For Information, contact us at sbrdems@gmail.com.