Agriculture Program

Each IGFR owner and any person entitled to use groundwater pursuant to the right is regulated under the Base Program unless an application for regulation under an alternative conservation program is approved by ADWR. 

IGFR’s operating under the Base Program are assigned water duties and allotments based on crop type grown during 1975 to 1980.

ADWR maintains an operating flexibility account for each IGFR in the Base Program. This allows IGFRs to borrow or bank groundwater from year to year to allow for varying climatic and market conditions. Flexibility account credits can be used at any time in future years on the same farm unit and may be used to offset debits. Under certain conditions, IGFR owners regulated under the Base Program may transfer, convey, or acquire flexibility credits (A.R.S. § 45-467(O)).

The Best Management Practices (BMP) Program is an alternative conservation program designed to be at least as effective in achieving water conservation as the Base Program while providing greater flexibility to program participants.

The BMP Program is characterized by an IGFR owner’s commitment to implement specific agricultural conservation practices that involve on-farm irrigation system improvements and other improved methods for farm water management, referred to as Best Management Practices.

Under the BMP Program, it is possible to enroll multiple IGFRs under a single BMP farm as long as the IGFRs are either contiguous or in close proximity to each other and part of a single farm unit. Farms enrolled in the BMP Program are excused from their annual conservation allotment and have their flex accounts frozen so that neither flex credits are accrued nor debits subtracted.

ADWR, with the assistance of the agricultural community, develops a menu of approved BMPs listed in the Management Plans to ensure that individual farmers can select methods that provide the greatest opportunity for increased water savings and efficient operation of their farms. Best Management Practices (Appendix 4B) are listed in the Management Plans for each Active Management Area which can be viewed through the following link:

https://new.azwater.gov/ama/management-plans

The Historic Cropping Program is an alternative conservation program developed by ADWR where accrued flexibility account credits are limited to 75 percent of the farm’s annual allotment. A negative flexibility account balance that exceeds 25 percent of the annual allotment constitutes a violation of the conservation requirement. Flexibility account credits can be used at any time in future years and may be used to offset debits. Participants in the Historic Cropping Program are not allowed to convey, sell or acquire flexibility account credits.

• Best Management Practices Information

• 4MP Best Management Practices Application -- Prescott, Tucson

• 4MP Best Management Practices Application -- Phoenix, Pinal, Santa Cruz

• 4MP Best Management Practices Worksheet - for BMPs currently enrolled in the Phoenix, Pinal, and Santa Cruz 3MP BMP Program

• How to file: Schedule BMP

• 5MP Best Management Practices Worksheet - All AMAs

• View a map of Arizona Irrigation Districts

• View a list of IGR flex credit balances & credits available for transfer by District & Subbasin

• Visit our Annual Reporting page for a link to report your water use online or print out the forms. You will also find other helpful documents on annual reporting there.

• This information can be viewed using the Department’s Groundwater Rights Map. Using this map, you can search by address, county parcel number, or grandfathered right number to view location and right information associated with your search criteria.

• Both the seller and buyer of an irrigation right are responsible for notifying the Department when a change of ownership occurs within 30 days of sale. This involves submitting a Notification of Change of Ownership of an Irrigation Grandfathered Right form (form 58-500). This form can be found through the following link: https://new.azwater.gov/sites/default/files/58-0_Notification_oChange_of_Ownership_of_an_Irrigation_Grandfathered_Right_Rev10-2019.pdf/
• Previously submitted annual reports and conveyance documents can be viewed using our Imaged Records system, which can be found through the following link: https://infoshare.azwater.gov/docushare/dsweb/HomePage

• Non-appurtenant land is land within the property lines of a property that has been issued an Irrigation Grandfathered Right, which was not irrigated between the years of 1975-1980. This land is not legally allowed to be irrigated.

• Pursuant to A.R.S. § 45-467,  A person using groundwater pursuant to an irrigation grandfathered right that is appurtenant to ten or fewer irrigation acres is exempt from the reporting requirements of The Base Program unless one of the following applies:
  1. The land to which the irrigation grandfathered right is appurtenant is part of an integrated farming operation. (ex: Part of a farming operation with more than 10 irrigated acres.)
  2. Groundwater is withdrawn from the land to which the irrigation grandfathered right is appurtenant and delivered for use pursuant to either a service area right pursuant to article 6 of this chapter or a grandfathered groundwater right other than an irrigation grandfathered right that is appurtenant to irrigation acres that are exempt from irrigation water duties pursuant to section 45-563.02.
  3. Groundwater is withdrawn from land that is both owned by the owner of the irrigation grandfathered right and contiguous to the land to which the irrigation grandfathered right is appurtenant and delivered for use pursuant to either a service area right pursuant to article 6 of this chapter or a grandfathered groundwater right other than an irrigation grandfathered right that is appurtenant to irrigation acres that are exempt from irrigation water duties pursuant to A.R.S § 45-563.02.