By Cami Parrish | Arizona Republic
A water authority created in 2020 by legislation sponsored by Rep. Greg Stanton to bolster water accessibility and cleanliness for rural and Indigenous communities will get $18.5 million via the recently passed bipartisan infrastructure law.
“For far too long, small, rural and tribal communities in Arizona haven’t gotten their fair share of federal infrastructure dollars,” Stanton, D-Ariz., said in a written statement announcing the funding. “It’s only right that the largest infrastructure investment in a generation includes funds for these communities to protect and conserve the Southwest’s most precious resource.”
According to the spending plan, the $18.5 million will go toward the creation of water pipelines, wastewater treatment plans, flood detention and filtration treatments for rural and Native American communities.
The projects are expected to benefit Maricopa, Buckeye, the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, the Yavapai-Apache Nation, the Queen Creek Restoration Project, Quartzite, Pima County, and a few northern Arizona neighborhoods in need of flood mitigation structures.
