With respect to all the vitally important issues being discussed this election cycle including reproductive freedom, guaranteed access to the ballot box, fully funding public schools, providing safe and green sustainable communities, and safeguarding civil rights for everyone, they may all pale in significance to confronting the water shortages and drought situation currently present (A Tier Two Shortage, or 21% reduction in Colorado River water for Arizona, was declared last month) in the Grand Canyon state.
Or put another way: If there is not enough water for the people or animals to drink, this state may become ill-suited for its current population to comfortably reside in.
That is why the race to fill the five open board seats on the Central Arizona Water Conservation District this election cycle is paramount.
Providing safe, drinkable water (40 percent of it from the currently shrinking Colorado River) to the residents of Maricopa, Pima, and Pinal Counties (where 80 percent of the state’s residents live,) it is important to have board members that are grounded in fact-based reality, will strive for common sense solutions to the water crisis, and work to bring everyone to the table to arrive at a consensus.
Four candidates: Alexandra Arboleda, Ylenia Aguliar, Benjamin Graff, and Jim Pederson are running as a team for four of those seats.
In this first segment of a two-part piece, Ms. Arboleda (a current member of the board and water attorney) and Ms. Aguilar (a seasoned leader on the Osborn Elementary School Board) graciously took the time to discuss their views and candidacies for the Central Arizona Water Conservation District.
The questions and their responses are below.
- Please tell the voters, at least three reasons they should vote for you to serve on the Central Arizona Water Conservation District.
Alexandra Arboleda: “Thank you for that question. Well, I am an incumbent. I was elected in 2016, for my first term. We have six-year terms, so I now have six years of experience on the board and as such, I’m an experienced leader. I was elected to serve as the Secretary of the board. In that capacity, I am on the executive team along with President Goddard and Vice President Taylor. I also serve as chair of the Groundwater Replenishment District Committee. It’s a standing committee. I was also appointed by the previous President, Atkins, and current President Goddard to serve as a commissioner on the Arizona Water Banking authority. The other thing I think that shows leadership is during my six-year term, I was selected as a Flinn Brown Civic Leadership Academy Fellow where we took courses over about three months. We would spend Fridays and Saturdays hearing from a lot of Arizona’s leaders in general on various topics in Arizona. I learned a lot about Arizona public policy, and then I also more recently received the Public Leadership Credential from the Harvard Kennedy School, and that involved 38 weeks of classes. It took me a year and a half to complete it. There were six-week courses on policy making decision making and leadership. So, I’m an experienced leader. In addition, I would say I’m uniquely qualified. I’ve been a water and natural resources attorney in Arizona for a couple of decades and as such, I know a lot about water law and policy. I think that helps me do my job better. Finally, I would say I’m a fiscally sound policy advocate. I ran for this board because I want to protect the Colorado River and I want to ensure a sustainable water supply for our future. I think it’s really important that we facilitate conservation, water efficiency, and water reuse, and also look at responsible augmentation. I also think we need to do it in a fiscally responsible way and I take seriously our role in setting water rates and taxes. Balancing the need for affordable rates with also rates that reflect the true cost of water. So those are the three things I’m uniquely qualified, experienced leader, and a fiscally sound policy advocate.”
Ylenia Aguilar: “Thank you for the question. I have been serving in the school district since 2016. Although it is not water-related, that’s where my leadership experience began. I was a Board President for three years until this last year and navigating through the pandemic, and the opening and closing of schools was hard. What I’m going to bring to the table because we’re going to be facing challenges, as the drought continues is the experience of working under very stressful situations and doing what is right in this case. I will take the experience that I’ve gained from working on the board, not only during stressful situations but working across the board. It’s similar to the water board. It’s a nonpartisan board. With the relationships, developing relationships, and working across the board with people who are not, the same party and ensuring that we’re doing what’s best for all our students and the community as well because the community is impacted by the role of the school board members. So that’s one of the answers The other reason is being a good steward of our taxpayer money. I would take that same leadership and ensure that we on the board will continue to be good stewards of money to ensure that the Central Arizona Water Conservation District Board is managed and operated in a way that is, meeting budget requirements and being fiscally responsible. The other leadership role that I have is on several nonprofit boards that have to do with environmental impacts. I currently sit on a board that advocates for water for the Colorado River. That is the Hispanics for the Environment, Hunting, and Camping. I’m very privileged and honored to represent that board and ensure that we’re advocating for the Colorado River and other policies that impact water. The other thing that I can share is that I currently work in the Renewable Water Technology Space. I’ve learned a lot through that role about what is currently happening in Arizona with our drought and our contamination as well. I work for a company that deploys the technology to underserved areas such as the Navajo nation, and the Apache mountain Apache, which are the U.S. Mexico unincorporated areas that don’t have access to the reservation. They don’t have utilities or water infrastructure. Most of them are living in situations where they have to drive over 20 miles to have access to clean drinking water. Some of them don’t have any running water at all. And we know that during the pandemic, some Navajo community members were dying. So that’s the work that I’ve been doing in the water space and collaborating and learning at the EPA and ADQ and all of the acronyms to ensure that we’re advocating for access to clean drinking water.”
- Please advise where at least three main issues in the Conservation District race. Please Explain.
Alexandra Arboleda: “I think the overarching most important issue that we’re facing on the Colorado River in the Central Arizona Project is ensuring a reliable, resilient, sustainable water supply for the future of Arizona. That’s the umbrella of what we are doing and I’ve identified three issues, in this race that I think where there might be disagreement between different candidates to kind of highlight what some of those differences might be.”
“One relates to climate change. Seeing what I have seen over the last six years on the board, we get reports on the hydrology of the Colorado River and read a lot of the scientific studies about that. And there’s simply just less water flowing through the Colorado River than there was in 1922 when the states divided up the waters and that’s a big component of the problem that we’re facing. What we’re seeing is even in years where we have average or better snow in Colorado and Wyoming, which is the mountains that the snow pack that feeds the Colorado River system, that water isn’t making it too back to the stream, back to the river in the way that it used to. So, we’re seeing lower than average inflows into Lake Powell and Lake Mead, even in years where we have average to better snow packs. The reason for that is from my understanding is hotter temperatures. We’re seeing the snow melt earlier and more evaporation.”
“We are also seeing drier soils. Some people are calling it aridification so the soil’s moisture levels are lower and so they’re absorbing more of that water when it comes through. So, just less is making it to the River. So, we are seeing what it used to be in the early 1900s when it was estimated the Colorado River had annual flows between 15 and 20 million acre feet but they’re looking more like between nine and 13 million acre feet now. So, we have a reduced supply due to climate change and over-allocation. But I think the climate change piece of it is one where there is disagreement but I do think we are seeing the impacts of climate change and so one of the things that I support is diversification of our energy portfolio. We’re one of the largest users of electricity in the state and we used to be powered mostly by the Navajo Generating Station, which was a Coal-Fired plant, the third largest emitter of carbon in the country. We were powered also by hydropower from the dams, but in 2019, Navajo Generating Station NGS (WHAT IS THAT?) was closed. Some of the other board members and I were involved in developing a diversified energy portfolio that included some solar usage. We’ve completed phase one of our solar contract and we’re working towards phase two. While I do recognize the importance of the kind of having a diverse portfolio, we have to deliver water no matter what, even when the sun’s not shining. We need a base load. The more renewable energy we can responsibly rely upon the better.”
“Another issue is the importance of conservation efficiency and water reuse. I think that is really important. I think there’s more that we can do across all sectors. We currently are promoting technologies that improve agricultural irrigation efficiency. We’re piloting some studies to see if gravity flow drip irrigation can be used effectively. Different soils, different crops, and how that will actually work on the ground. We’re also looking at other types of technologies to improve agricultural efficiencies. We’re also working with different water providers on water reuse projects. So, using more recycled water, and more reclaimed water and we’re also working to facilitate and encourage conservation. One of the things I did as chair of the Central Arizona Groundwater Replenishment DistrictCAGRD and underground storage committee, is we’ve developed a new conservation incentive program for home builders to use water, efficient plumbing, fixtures, and things like that to promote the removal of turf, where that works with our customers and the more efficient like sprinkler systems. I’m a big proponent of new technologies to promote these things. I think in the long term, we also have to look at responsible augmentation, but it has to go along with conservation efficiency and reuse.”
“The last issue that there’s often disagreement about is taxes and rates. I do think we’re in unprecedented times facing enormous challenges on the Colorado River and we have the statutory authority to levy property taxes up to 14 cents per a hundred dollars of assessed property value. I think that it’s important that we continue to do so and also set rates that our customers are paying for operation and maintenance and that property taxes can be used for fixed costs. So those are three issues that I think will come up in this race where there might be disagreement.”
Ylenia Aguilar: “I have a different perspective on some of the issues Alexandra brought up including climate change. Not everyone believes this is the reason that we’re experiencing this mega drought. That is one of the issues that we’ve been facing, not just in this election, but in previous elections. The other one is trying to bring these long-term solutions that are not really going to be happening anytime soon, like salination augmentation and that whole conversation with Mexico Permit, and it could take up to six years or longer. That’s something that is going to have to happen. The relationship with Mexico is important because desalination, is one of the many approaches, solutions that need to happen. The other issue that I would say is the increase in water rates, As we’ve moved into tier two drought conditions, we know that, there’s less water, so there’s going to be an increase in rates and that will be an issue, that we will have to talk about and address. After the election, we know that this is only going to worsen as mentioned before. We are going to continue to see the shortages and the way that the water rates are, to my understanding, the way that they are determined by the amount of water that is delivered. So, as we continue to see shortages, we’ll continue to see an increase in these rates. That is something that I, foresee happening in the future and we need to ensure that, as Alex mentioned, we were recovering water that’s underground. Recovering the water underground is something that’s already happening. I think we need to move towards more effort in doing that. We need to ensure that we have more supplies for future generations and that’s through enhancing our water conservation. I know that only less than 10% of the water comes from reuse.”
- Please describe your campaign strategy to reach voters, including Independents and disaffected Republicans.
Ylenia Aguilar: “We’re all running and I believe that we’re trying to have very honest conversations through all of our platforms, whether it is through social media, which includes Twitter, Facebook, TikTok, or via email to inform our base and all constituents impacted by water issues. This isn’t a partisan issue. This is something that we all care about. We all want to have access to water. So, definitely messaging and meeting people where they are is definitely my, my biggest approach.”
“My strategy is to really spend a lot of time as I can, like in front of people. That doesn’t necessarily mean knocking on doors because we’re talking about to about two million voters in Maricopa County and that’s impossible for one person to be in front of all the people, but definitely like opportunities to speak, at different events and forums. That’s been one of the approaches that I’ve taken. I have gotten out and knocked on doors and I will continue to do so. I think that’s so meaningful to have the one-on-one with the constituents, but I know that that’s not going to get me the win. It definitely is going to be continued conversations through various platforms. Unfortunately, TV and radio are extremely costly. So, something like what you’re doing for us right now is an amazing opportunity because you get to share this and we get to share this. With all of the people that we know, you are expanding our network and the opportunity for us to share a message with other people. So, we’re very grateful for this opportunity and this jumping on calls like this is definitely going to make a difference for us. Because even if it’s just one to a hundred to a million people listening, that makes the difference for a race. So, thank you very much.”
Alexandra Arboleda: “Just to add to Ylenia’s answer, you know, this is a nonpartisan race and, and I think the board was designed as a nonpartisan board, for a reason: because it’s better to keep politics out of our decisions about really safe, secure, reliable, affordable water. It crosses party lines. It really is more than politics. I have tried to reach Independent and Republican voters by focusing on the issues and talking about the issues that all of us care about: conservation, sustainability, and water security. As a board member, and also as a candidate, I try very hard to speak to a wide variety of community groups and really listen. I go into the rooms and listen to the agribusiness and water council and listen to what are the concerns of agriculture and what are they worried about and what are their questions and their concerns. And then I go to the Arizona Municipal Water Users Association and ask what are the cities grappling with? What are they worried about? And I do the same with the home builders. I try to reach out to nonprofit organizations and environmental groups, and I try to reach out to and engage with people from all of the different stakeholders and community groups. The Native American Tribes and Nations are incredibly important. We’ve made trips to visit some of the different reservations and the tribes that receive Central Arizona Project water or use Colorado River Water and develop a partnership and share meals together. And I think these kinds of things lay a foundation for being able to work collaboratively on the solutions. That’s what we have to do to be able to forge a path to solving these big water challenges that we’re facing. We’re going to have to be able to work together. We’re going to have to even though it’s often divided based on urban and rural considerations or other stakeholder lines. We have to listen to each other. We have to communicate in ways that everybody is engaged and part of the process. I’m a big, big advocate for collaboration and partnership, and I think that’s how we can reach across party lines.”
- Is there anything not covered in the first three questions that you would like the readers to know about you your candidacy for the Central Arizona Water Board?
Ylenia Aguilar: “One thing that I would say that is very important is that this race is critical for our future generations and we for this race, there are five seats and four people running. We are asking that you vote for the both of us along with Benjamin Graff and Jim Pederson.”
“We also ask that you vote down ballot because most people don’t ever pay attention to the bottom of the ballot. If they don’t recognize a name or understand what that board does, they don’t, they usually leave it blank. And that’s a missed opportunity, especially for us, we’re experiencing the real prices, climate change, and electing the right leaders who have the same values as you are going to determine what’s going to happen.”
“The future of the Central Project is on the line so definitely paying attention like down ballot and really recognizing and becoming familiar with the candidates and voting, because that will make a difference for not just us as candidates who are running but for the future of our children and that’s so important.”
Alexandra Arboleda: “I think people should really do their research on this race. It’s down ballot. A lot of people don’t really know that much about water but care about it. It’s a top priority and it’s important to look at people who share your values, and find the candidates who have background and experience that you think would be useful and they could bring to the table. It would be beneficial to have on the board to have that voice but also just remind people, this is an unpaid position. It takes, it’s a big commitment. It’s a big-time commitment from your life. Many of us work full-time jobs and have families. It’s also important to choose people who are, are dedicated community leaders and who are willing to put in the time to, learn about these complex issues and work towards meaningful solutions. It is a huge commitment so I would encourage people to look for candidates who show a commitment to their community, as well as the background and experience to exercise, good judgment, show leadership, and, have the knowledge and experience that would be helpful on water issues.”
Please click on the below social media sites for more information on Alexandra Arboleda and Ylenia Aguilar and their candidacies for board positions in the Central Arizona Water Conservation District.
Website: alexandra4az.com
Social Media (FB, IG, T, LI): @Alexandra4AZ
Website: Aguilar4az.vote
Social Media: Twitter: Aguilar_Ylenia
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