Water Management Assistance Program
Water Management Assistance Program
The Water Management Assistance Program (WMAP) is intended to provide financial and technical resources to assist water users in the development and implementation of conservation programs, facilitate augmentation and renewable water supply utilization and obtain information on hydrologic conditions and water availability in an Active Management Area (AMA).
The WMAP is funded primarily from groundwater withdrawal fees collected from each person withdrawing groundwater in an AMA from a non-exempt well (A.R.S. § 45-611 (C)). Withdrawal fees are authorized by the 1980 Groundwater Code (Code) and are levied based on the acre-foot volume of groundwater withdrawn on an annual basis. The groundwater withdrawal fee rate for augmentation of the water supply, conservation assistance to water users within the AMA and monitoring and assessing water availability within the AMA is set annually by the Director with input from the AMA Groundwater Users Advisory Council (GUAC) and is limited to a maximum of two dollars per acre-foot per year. Programs funded by the WMAP help water users achieve efficient use of water supplies and help the AMA meet its water management goal.
If you have any questions about the WMAP process, please review the process flowchart.
WMAP Guidelines
To apply for funding for a water management project or program, follow the application process to see if the project or program is eligible. Follow the first steps below:
- Review the WMAP project proposal guidelines
- Fill out and submit the questionnaire
- Submit questionnaire to WMAP Coordinator and await response
Read more about the WMAP guidelines in Chapter 9 of the Management Plan of the AMA in which the project is proposed. If you have any questions about the WMAP process, please review the process flowchart.
Conservation Grant
$2,000,000 was appropriated by SB1227 from the State General Fund to the WMAP fund for the purpose of providing grant monies for conservation of groundwater in the Active Management Areas.
The $2,000,000 will be divided among the five AMAs on a per-capita basis, with a minimum amount of $150,000 for AMAs with smaller populations:
- Phoenix AMA: $1,245,000
- Tucson AMA: $305,000
- Pinal AMA: $150,000
- Prescott AMA: $150,000
- Santa Cruz AMA: $150,000
The grant manual includes program objectives, award information, eligibility, grant details, application details, the timeline, and the review and selection criteria. More information about the conservation grant will be released at a later date. If you have any questions about the WMAP process, please review the process flowchart
Recent Programs and Projects
Phoenix AMA
Arizona Project WET (APW)
- APW develops water stewardship and STEM literacy by providing teacher professional development that evolves instructional practice and deepens content knowledge, direct student outreach that delivers or extends classroom learning, and community engagement.
- Deliverable(s)
M36 Water Loss Technical Assistance Program
- This program trains and assists its member water utilities in conducting water audits of their potable water distribution systems based on the American Water Works Association (AWWA) manual, M36 Water Audits and Loss Control Programs, Fourth Edition, through a top-down approach.
Residential Water Use
- This study tracks water use in single family homes in the city of Phoenix.
Smartscape
- Smartscape is a comprehensive training program that instructs landscape and irrigation professionals in the fundamentals of design, installation, irrigation, and maintenance of desert-adapted landscapes.
Water Conservation Management Program (WCMP)
- It is the WCMP's and the East Maricopa Natural Resource Conservation Districts's (EMNRCD) goal to provide technical irrigation services to as many producers as possible through the use of a mobile irrigation lab to assist farmers with on-site irrigation technical assistance.
Water Use It Wisely (WUIW)
- Launched in 1999, WUIW's goal is to promote an ongoing water conservation ethic among Arizona’s rapidly growing population.
- Deliverable(s)
Xeriscape Garden
- This program demonstrates proper Xeriscape principles for residents and commercial properties in the city of Surprise, as well as showcase innovative water conservation techniques such as commercial cooling structure condensate capture.
Tucson AMA
Arizona Project WET (APW)
- APW develops water stewardship and STEM literacy by providing teacher professional development that evolves instructional practice and deepens content knowledge, direct student outreach that delivers or extends classroom learning, and community engagement.
- Deliverable(s)
Cortaro Marana Irrigation District Supervisory control and Data Acquisition (CMID SCADA)
- This project is for the installation of the SCADA system on 6 wells owned by CMID. It will allow remote access to these wells to allow starting and stopping of these wells without being on site and will also allow for off-site monitoring of the wells and will send an alarm if there are any problems with the wells. It will ultimately result in water and energy savings which will be tracked by the district.
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Aquifer-Storage Change and Land-Surface Elevation Change Monitoring
- USGS began this cooperative study with Metropolitan Domestic Water Improvement District and the town of Oro Valley in 1996 to monitor aquifer-storage change in the Lower Canada del Oro sub-basin. In 1998, the USGS began a cooperative study with the ADWR, Pima County, and the City of Tucson to monitor land-surface elevation change and aquifer-storage change. In 2003, the studies combined and the town of Marana joined the study.
Pinal AMA
Irrigation Management Service (IMS)
- This program funds the operation of a mobile irrigation lab to assist farmers with on-site irrigation technical assistance with the goal to provide technical irrigation services to as many producers as possible.
Natural Resource Education Center (NREC)
- The NREC develops and implements an environmental education program that is conducted in a balanced manner, based on current scientific information, and includes a discussion of economic and social implications.
- Deliverable(s)
Pinal County Water Augmentation Authority (PCWAA)
- The PCWAA serves as a resource and partner for the development and augmentation of water resources for the benefit of all users and supports the development of responsible, collaborative, and sustainable water planning and management in the AMA.
Prescott AMA
4MP Outreach Brochure
- This brochure details the Prescott AMA 4th Management Plan and water use within the AMA.
- Deliverable(s)
Rainwater Harvesting (RWH)
- The purpose of this project is to design, construct, and scientifically evaluate a rainwater harvesting system that recharges the aquifer rather than attempting to hold water in a storage tank in the town of Prescott Valley.
Ephemeral Stream Monitoring
- The program is intended to provide support to install stream gages to better understand the relationship between ephemeral stream flow and aquifer recharge in the town of Prescott Valley and the AMA.
- Deliverable(s)
Santa Cruz AMA
Water Resources and Climate Assessment Tool (WARCAT)
- The objective of this website is to be a one-stop portal designed to serve pertinent and timely information with respect to decision making for optimal water resources management and planning at the Santa Cruz Active Management Area (SCAMA). The portal provides an intuitive presentation of current relevant hydrological and meteorological datasets. The portal harmonizes regional database and provides a seasonal hydrologic and climate first order forecasts. The datasets are assembled in real-time from the Arizona Department of Water Resources, US Geological Survey, US National Weather Service, National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP), and the Santa Cruz County ALERT system.
- Deliverable(s)