why are they so afraid to hear our voice

The drought's not over yet
Many more wet winters are necessary to bring Arizona back in balance
Shaun McKinnonThe Arizona RepublicMar. 1, 2008 12:00 AM
Runoff overflowing from the Verde River reservoirs continues to slosh down the front of the Tempe Town Lake dam,
into the normally dry lower Salt River, but don't be fooled, state officials said Tuesday.This drought isn't over yet. Heavy rain and snow and the excess runoff has tempted a lot of folks to suggest Arizona has been rescued from
its long dry spell, which would enter its 14th dust-choked year this spring. And it's easy to take a breath in anticipation of a relieved

"The wet winter has definitely been a bonanza for us," said Tony Haffer, meteorologist-in-charge at the National Weather Service in Phoenix. "
But the Southwest in general, and Arizona in particular, has been in deficit for many years. Naturally, it will take many winters like this one to get us back into balance." Haffer also chairs the technical monitoring committee of the State Drought Task Force, which tried to throw a little cold water on all the drought-busting talk. A headline on a press advisory read: Deficit is the key word here: Since 1996, Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport has recorded rainfall above normal just once, in 1998.
In the other years, the rain gauge ran a deficit. That deficit, at the end of 2007, totaled more than 24 inches, or nearly three years' worth
of rain. The situation is similar elsewhere in the state.Snowpacks in Arizona's mountains are above normal almost without exception, as is the upper Colorado River, where snowpack
is at 129 percent of normal. The driest basin in Arizona, the upper Gila River, reports 101 percent of normal snow for late February;
the Verde River reports 169 percent of normal. You can read more about the State Drought Task Force and its outlooks at www. azwater.gov/dwr/drought.


I have no problem with this advisory group, just don’t present is as representative of “we” – the “little-people” because you have chosen to summarily exclude us from having any voice on how our water is allocated.

Usual suspects, government, attorneys, lobbyists, corporate agriculture, politicians, but not you or me.

Why are they so afraid to hear our voice…?

Ever wonder who exactly comprises your - State Drought Task Force - so did I …? I was not surprised that your name was not included, nor was mine ….? Here’s the list as currently posted on the ADWR website…
STATEWIDE WATER ADVISORY GROUP - MEMBERSHIP
NAME
REPRESENTING
Bas Aja
AZ Cattlemen’s Association
Liz Archuleta
Coconino County
Marsha Arzberger
AZ State Senate
Ray Benally
Navajo Nation
Dave Brown
Apache County
Tom Buschatzke
City of Phoenix
Pete Byers
Mohave County
Patrick Call
Cochise County
Tom Carr
ADWR
Peter Culp
Squire, Sanders & Dempsey LLP
Mary Dahl
Santa Cruz County
Scott Davis
Arizona Public Service
J. R. DeSpain
Navajo County
Herb Dishlip
Consultant
Ron Doba
City of Flagstaff
Kay Dyson
Town of Springerville
Sandy Fabritz-W.
ADWR – Water Mgt
Lori Faeth
Governor’s Office
Tom Farley
Arizona Association of Realtors
Jake Flake
Arizona State Senate
Bill Garfield
Arizona Water Company
Maureen George
Mohave County Water Authority
Pat Graham
The Nature Conservancy
Herb Guenther
ADWR
Bob Hardy
City of Cottonwood
Bradley M. Hill
City of Peoria
Jay Howe
City of Safford
Jonathan Hunter
Ft. Huachuca
Carole Klopatek
Ft McDowell Yavapai Nation
Andy Laurenzi
The Sonoran Institute
Rick Lavis
AZ Cotton Growers Association
John Lewis
Inter Tribal Council of Arizona
David Modeer
City of Tucson
John Munderloh
Town of Prescott Valley
Wade Noble
Yuma County Water Association
Tom O’Halleran
AZ House of Representatives
Steve Olea
AZ Corporation Commission
Steve Olson
AMWUA
Stephen Owens
ADEQ
Robert Shuler
Ryley Carlock & Applewhite
Joe Sigg
Arizona Farm Bureau
Ken Slowinski
ADWR - Legal
David Snider
Pinal County
Alan Stephens
Governor’s Office
Bob Strain
City of Sierra Vista
Mark Stratton
Metro Water District

I have no problem with this advisory group, just don’t present is as representative of “we” – the “little-people” because you have chosen to summarily exclude us from having any voice on how our water is allocated.

Usual suspects, government, attorneys, lobbyists, corporate agriculture, politicians, but not you or me.

Why are they so afraid to hear our voice…?