Elements of the comprehensive plan now include planning for water resources that must address the currently available surface water, groundwater, and effluent supplies and provide an analysis of how the future growth projected in the county plan will be adequately served by the legally and physically available water supply. This is the first study to be issued as part of the Water Resources Element and identifies a number of measures that can be taken to conserve water, including measures that can be taken by Pima County in the form of ordinance adoption.

The SDCP recognizes the important links between groundwater, streamflow, and vegetation that still exist along some streams and springs in Pima County. Unfortunately, depletion of aquifers has altered streamflow and associated groundwater-dependent vegetation along the Santa Cruz River and other streams. The main purpose of this report is to establish priorities for potential expansion of Pima County's existing aquifer monitoring for groundwater-dependent ecosystems.

Provides a review of eight monitoring efforts in southern Arizona to highlight their accomplishments and to critique their efficacy and overview of important attributes of a monitoring program. This review of projects and successful attributes will provide an assessment framework to better guide the development of the Pima County Ecological Monitoring Program.