Related articles:

'Recycled' drinking water may get look (with poll) Exploring all water options a necessity

Other articles by Erica Meltzer:

County staff in $100K club up 87% since 2006Supervisors fret about Kino money, to file brief in Phoenix garage casePima weighs new, less-complicated system of building feesPima plans to buy 4 parcels for open spacePima County set to spend $12.8 million on land purchases Major data firm drops plan for S. Ariz. site amid power concerns Firm's input on Kino Hospital shushed Off-road track at center of Court of Appeals challenge Gate near river is cut, restored County gets role in Rosemont mine study

Administrative & Professional
Jorgensen Brooks Group
Counselor Sales and Marketing
Everready Glass
Sales Reps Health Care
Dependable Health Services
Physical Therapists Health Care
CENTRAL ARIZONA COLLEGE
DIRECTOR OF HEALTH INFORMATION MANAGEMENT Mechanical
Komatsu Equipment Co
Resident Field Mechanic Finance and Accounting
Charles E. Gillman Company
Accounting Specialist Health Care
Sierra Tucson
Eating Disorders Program Coordinator

The Pima County Board of Supervisors gave the go-ahead Tuesday to a joint city-county water study.

The study could be the first step toward more cooperation between Tucson Water and the Pima County Regional Wastewater Reclamation Department.

Supervisor Ray Carroll voted no after the other supervisors didn't support his proposal to delay the vote for 60 days to allow for more public discussion.

He proposed holding a series of forums or tutorials on water issues at night and on weekends to educate the community about water issues and allow for discussion before the supervisors voted on the scope of work.

He also said there needs to be more involvement from outlying jurisdictions and small water companies.

"We will not build any trust or buy-in without inclusion of the smaller jurisdictions and the water utilities," he said. "There's a saying: If you're not at the table, you're on the menu."

But the other supervisors said there will be plenty of time for public involvement before policy decisions are made. They did ask that the committee overseeing the study come up with a plan for public involvement starting at the second phase of the study within the next 60 days.

That committee will include members of the city's Citizens Water Advisory Committee, the county's Wastewater Advisory Committee and both jurisdictions' planning and zoning commissions. Their meetings will be open to the public.

Two concerned residents asked the county supervisors to move more slowly.

"I voted no on Prop. 200 because city and county leaders promised a public dialogue on water," said Debbie Collazo, referring to the voter initiative that would have restricted water hook-ups and the use of reclaimed water. "I'm still waiting for that. Please don't relegate the dialogue about these important issues to little-publicized subcommittees."

The first phase of the study will be an inventory of water and wastewater infrastructure and an assessment of future water supplies and demand. It also will include discussion of the location of a reclaimed water facility in the Southeast, construction of a recharge facility for effluent and finalizing an agreement on using effluent for conservation.

The first phase is expected to last until the end of the year.

The second phase will include a discussion of values and policies, including population, land-use planning, appropriate uses for reclaimed water, additional renewable water supplies, drought management and water-conservation standards.

The city and county have called on smaller water utilities to conduct their own inventories and policy discussions.

The third, fourth and fifth phases are less well defined and will expand the discussion to a regional level, with a goal of a "sustainable water future."

The city and county have agreed to commit between $100,000 and $150,000 each toward the study.

The other supervisors rejected the idea that they were excluding the public. They said the first stage is really just a compiling, by city and county staffs, of existing information. They said the second phase was an appropriate time to bring in the public, including environmentalists, business interests and community groups, as the board and the City Council try to agree on common policies.

"There will be many public hearings on this topic," Supervisor Richard Elías said. "I think it is important to hear from everyone, but especially those dissenting voices."