The five-year water and wastewater capital improvement program will spend $32.2million dollars on the water delivery system. This investment makes sure that the delivery system from the CAP Canal to the Cave Creek Water Treatment Plant is reliable. If this delivery system breaks down, the City of Phoenix, through the Phoenix Interconnect Project, will provide Cave Creek with treated water for a period of up to 90 days while repairs are made. This Project costs $23million dollars. As early as 2025, there will be a mandatory 25% reduction in Colorado River allocation. The Capital Improvement Program includes no funds to replace this loss.
This is Mayor Morris’ comment about groundwater in his Letter to the Editor: “…the Town has substantial water pumping rights in the Carefree Aquifer underlying Cave Creek and the aquifer in Desert Hills. A well reactivation study is underway to determine the highest and best uses for this untapped water supply. We also have a close eye on protecting the well water depended upon by about 500 residents.”
This is a quote from Mayor Morris’ recent letter to the Governor: “… the Cave Creek service area also includes historical aquifers which are producing negligible water after years of decline, causing Cave Creek to rely on CAP water to fill the gap. Several residential wells are expected to dry up soon causing additional serious shortfalls due to the continued loss of groundwater supply.”
Mayor Morris’ statements are contradictory. There are no funds allocated in the capital improvement program that invest in solutions to assure the stability of groundwater for landowners with wells.
The top priority for my time in office as mayor will be investing in solutions to the water supply and ground water situations.
Jim Grubb for Mayor
Cave Creek
