PEARCE, Ariz. (KGUN) — “To feed this world is going to take a lot of groundwater,” said farmer and owner of Curry Seed & Chili Co., Ed Curry.
Ed Curry has been farming in Pearce for over 50 years. He says over the years he's seen the water levels in the basin rise and sink. “That's what got my attention— was we were going down, even though we weren't pumping (more),” Curry said.
He has four wells on his properties, all pumping water from deeper than when he started 53 years ago. Seeing his wells having to pump water at a deeper level, even though his usage didn't change, made realize something had to be done to protect the Willcox Basin. "If my grandchildren and great grandchildren aren't going to have an opportunity to operate in this valley in the fashion that we have, we've got to cut back,” Curry said.
When he started he purposely planted crops that don’t need a lot of water. His chilis and other crops that require lots of water are planted throughout the southwest to avoid using a lot of water in on area. "I made those decisions because I could see water is an issue," Curry said.
"I knew our basin was in trouble.” Trouble, he’s now hoping an Active Management Area (AMA) agreement for the Willcox Basin can help with. “The reality is, if we don't stop the expansion, we're really in trouble,” Curry said.
An AMA would limit water usage for property owners based on their average usage over the last five years. It would also prevent any additional irrig.