Expert says Arizona will not ‘run out of water’

PHOENIX — We’re approaching two decades of drought in the Southwest.

The good news is, we’re not going to run out of water, according to Pam Pickard, president of the Central Arizona Project Board.

“There are two reasons why (the state won’t run out of water): One is that Arizona has done such a great job of preparing for the future, because we know we live in an arid and dry area,” said Pickard. “I would say Arizona is probably in the best condition, and I don’t think I’d be only one to say that, of any state in the U.S., with regards to having prepared for the possibility of water shortage.”

For right now and for 2015, the Colorado River system is healthy, she said.

“We do a great job of using affluent recharged water for our golf courses,” said Pickard. “Palo Verde Nuclear Plant uses a lot of reused water.

There is the possibility coming, however, that after 2015 or 2016, Arizona will have a shortage called on the river, she said.

“We are taking out more water than we are putting in,” she said. “Unless the entire system — not just the State of Arizona — does good augmentation of the river, as well as good conservation, we’re going to have to take some measures.”

Pickard said a Colorado River water shortage will affect the agriculture community first.