The Central Arizona Water Conservation District Board (CAWCD) met on Thursday, Oct. 1 at Central Arizona Project (CAP) headquarters in north Phoenix.

The meeting began with a Moment of Silence and approval of a Resolution honoring Senator Jon Kyl as an influential pillar of the Arizona water community for more than four decades, dedicating his legal acumen and public service to securing the state’s long-term water stability.

CAWCD Board President Terry Goddard congratulated Pinal County Board Member Stephen Miller and Pima County Board Members Karen Cesare, Pat Jacobs, Justin Manuel and Mark Taylor who have all been re-elected to the CAWCD Board for another term. The elections would have typically appeared on the November General Election ballot in both counties, but this year both elections were uncontested. As a result, the CAWCD elections were canceled.

Board Member Rudy Fischer presented the CAP Award for Water Research, which recognizes excellence in graduate and undergraduate water research.

• The first-place winner is Md Rayhan, a graduate student at Arizona State University pursuing a PhD in civil, environmental and sustainable engineering. His paper is “Mapping Groundwater Storage Anomalies at 1-km Resolution Across Arizona Within the Lower Colorado River Basin Using Downscaled GRACE Data.”
• The second-place winner is Muhammad Jawad, a graduate student at the University of Arizona pursuing a PhD in hydrology. His paper is “AI-Augmented Catchment-Scale Hydrological Model Significantly Improves Streamflow Estimation in Arid Regions.”

The Board approved an energy sales agreement with Capital Power, which will provide approximately 16% of the estimated energy needed for 2027. On the consent agenda, the Board also approved a professional services contract for a Recovery Capacity Study to evaluate Arizona Water Banking Authority long-term storage credit recovery opportunities across the Phoenix, Pinal, and Tucson AMAs and identify the most favorable locations for future direct recovery facilities.

The Board heard presentations on:

• 2022 Strategic Plan Accomplishments and Creation of 2028 Strategic Plan
• 700+ Plan agreements
• Colorado River conditions
• Minute 334

The CAWCD Board of Directors is a popularly elected 15-member board. Ten members are from Maricopa County, four from Pima County and one from Pinal County. Members serve six-year, unpaid terms. The board typically meets publicly the first Thursday of each month to establish policy and set rates and taxes for CAP. Meetings are open to the public – in person and via livestream.

For additional details on the Oct. 1, 2026 board meeting, take a look at the agenda. Board minutes and video will be posted here, as well.