Mesa water regulators have said the city is prepared for and monitors for any signs of water shortage.

The city works with large-water users — those using more than 500,000 gallons of water a day — to come up with a plan moving forward so a situation is not created where supply cannot meet the demand, Mesa Water Resources Advisor Brian Draper said.

Mesa resident Connie Westlund said she is “worried if we will have enough water for consumption down the line,” following the growth of the East Valley and the declaration of a water shortage on the Colorado River by the federal government in 2021.

“Right now, there will be no immediate impact concerning water supplies, but there are people being shorted,” following concerns from the Colorado River water shortage, Draper said.

According to Draper, if the Central Arizona Project water amount is reduced, underground water has been saved for emergencies from 500,000 acres of land to serve the entire city of Mesa for 6.5 years if there is no new water supply coming from rainfall or other sources.

The Central Arizona Project is Arizona’s largest resource for renewable water resources.

The levels of groundwater in Arizona have increased with the Groundwater Management Act and the incoming of CAP water, so much so that some areas are having to pump water out to keep the levels down, Draper said.

The Groundwater Management Act is a law that was passed in 1980 aimed at preserving groundwater in the state of Arizona, according to the Arizona Department of Water Resources.

Draper said there are 500,000 people currently receiving water from Mesa Water Resources and 89% of the water used by city of Mesa residents comes from surface water supplies that are renewable, so any shortfalls are made up by groundwater supply.

The city looks at all water users and makes sure they have what they need to meet the supply and demand of the growing East Valley, while commercial and residential development is all taken into consideration and put into its hydraulic model, Draper said.

“We want to make sure that we are prepared, should cuts go deeper, and in all likelihood, they will go deeper,” Draper said.

The Mesa City Council approved the Mesa Water Resource’s most recent plan, called the Water Shortage Management Plan, which is not a drought plan, Draper said.

The plan includes mostly water stewardship recommendations, which is the more environmentally sustainable and economically beneficial use of water, according to Draper.

The mayor’s and city council’s Climate Action Plan includes initiative to improve water stewardship among city residents. This means that people should not become careless with their water usage.

“Everybody wants water, and you can’t develop if you don’t have it,” Draper said.

The mega water users of the city are mostly Mesa businesses and corporations, not residents’ homes, Draper said.

But making changes such as moving from grass landscaping to xeriscape, a style of landscaping that requires little to no water, makes for much more environmentally responsible water use, as 70% of water use in Mesa is outdoors, Conservation Specialist Donna DiFrancesco said.

Grass loses more than 6 feet of water each year through just evaporation. In a 3,000-square-foot area, 105,000 gallons of water is used for a grass lawn and only 44,000 gallons of water is used for a desert “lawn,” according to DiFrancesco.

There is a water conservation rate structure, where “the amount of water you use will change the amount you are charged on your water bill,” according to DiFrancesco.

The city of Mesa offers a water utility portal to gain online access to more specific water usage.

“Our mission is to keep water conservation at the forefront of people’s minds,” DiFrancesco said.

Editor’s note: Alyssa Bickle wrote the article as a journalism student at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communications at Arizona State University.