Title
Agreement with Salt River Project to Produce a Wintertime Orographic Cloud Seeding Climatology for the White Mountains of Arizona (Ordinance S-48115)
Description
Request to authorize the City Manager, or his designee, to enter into cost sharing agreement with the Salt River Project Agricultural Improvement and Power District to share the costs to develop a Wintertime Orographic Cloud Seeding Climatology for the White Mountains of Arizona. Further request to authorize the City Controller to disburse all funds related to this item. The cost will not exceed $40,000.
Report
Summary
Nearly 60 percent of the City's water supply originates in the Salt and Verde watersheds, and the primary source of water is precipitation in the form of winter snowpack. The State of Arizona has been in drought conditions for over 20 years, impacting water supplies from all sources. This is a concern for both Salt River Project Agricultural Improvement and Power District (SRP) and the City which rely upon water supplies generated from snowpack.
Cloud seeding is a process that introduces ice into subfreezing clouds containing super cooled liquid water which can enhance the precipitation efficiency of the clouds and add to the snowpack and subsequent runoff. During the late 20th century, the United States Bureau of Reclamation indicated there was significant potential to enhance surface water supplies from winter cloud seeding; however, the Salt River watershed in the White Mountains was not included in the research.
SRP would like to further study the value of cloud seeding in the Salt River watershed. Due to the Salt River watershed being a significant source of the City's water portfolio, SRP has requested that the City participate in a cost sharing agreement to support the study.
Contract Term
The agreement will terminate once the Wintertime Orographic Cloud Seeding Climatology study has been completed.
Financial Impact
The total cost estimate for the Wintertime Orographic Cloud Seeding Climatology study is approximately $140,000. The City's share of the costs as specified by the Agreement is $40,000.
Funding for this agreement is available in the Water Services Department's Capital Improvement budget.
Location
White Mountains of Arizona
Council District: Out of City
Department
Responsible Department
This item is submitted by Deputy City Manager Karen Peters and the Water Services Department.