For years, the water table has been dropping below thousands of acres of desert farmland in western Arizona, where a Saudi-owned dairy company is allowed to pump groundwater to raise its cattle.
But the company and other landowners in the area will now face restrictions under state officials’ decision to impose regulations.
Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs said Monday that her administration is trying to “stop special interests from affecting our state while Arizona families and farmers suffer.”
Fondomonte, part of the Saudi dairy arm Almarai, is the largest user of water in the region, using dozens of wells to irrigate alfalfa that it exports overseas to the Middle East.
After conducting a review, the state Department of Water Resources designated the Ranegras Plain area, about 100 miles west of Phoenix, as a new “active management” area for groundwater conservation.
This is not the first time that a democratic governor and his administration have used this method to stop excessive pumping of water in rural areas. In January 2025, his administration similarly established a new controlled zone to limit agricultural pumping in the town of Wilcox in southeastern Arizona.
Hobbs indicated that other residents’ sources have it dry as water levels have dropped in the Ranegras Plain, and that the land has been sinking as the aquifer depletes.
“Unlike politicians of the past, I refuse to bury my head in the sand. I refuse to ignore the problems we face,” Hobbs said Monday in his letter. State address. “We can no longer sit idly by while our rural communities go without help. They need solutions and security, not another decade of unemployment and uncertainty.”
The federal action will prohibit landowners from irrigating any additional farmland in this part of La Paz County and require those with the most powerful wells to begin reporting how much water they use. It will also bring about other reforms, creating a local council that advises and requires a plan to reduce water use.
State officials reached this decision after receiving comments from more than 400 people about the proposal, most of whom supported it. Tom Buschatzke, director of the Arizona Department of Water Resources, he made a decisionsaying that the future of local residents and businesses “depends on protecting limited groundwater resources.”
According to state data, water levels in wells in some parts of the area have dropped more than 200 feet over the past 40 years, and pumping has increased over the past decade.
Some residents are not he spoke at the forum last month he said it is wrong for Fondomonte to use the water to grow grass and send it around the world. Others said that they do not see the problem of having a foreign company as their neighbor, but they believe that farms should change to crops that use less water.
Following the government’s announcement, Fondomonte said in a written statement that it is “committed to promoting progressive, efficient agricultural practices,” supports the farming community, and has “invested heavily to bring the latest water-saving technology” to its farms. The company also said it will comply with state and local laws.
The company is currently facing a lawsuit filed by Arizona Atty. General Kris Mayes alleges that its excessive pumping violates the law by causing groundwater depletion, land degradation and water quality degradation. That case is scheduled to continue while the state imposes its new regulatory restrictions.
Holly Irwin, the manager of La Paz County who has been trying to protect the water in this area for years, said she is very happy that the state has finally taken action “to stop the bleeding that threatens the strength of our community.”
“It’s a big win,” said Irwin, a Republican. “It will prevent other megafarms from being able to come into the area and set up the same type of operation that Fondamonte is doing right now. And it will prevent them from growing.”
Fondomonte began its farming operations in Arizona in 2014. Saudi Arabia has banned domestic cultivation of alfalfa and other forage crops because groundwater has been depleted. As a result, Saudi companies have been buying farms overseas.
Said the company’s lawyer owns 3,600 acres in this part of Arizona. The company also leases 3,088 hectares of agricultural land and 3,163 hectares of pasture in the province.
In addition, it owns 3,375 acres of California farmland near Blythe, where it uses Colorado River water to irrigate alfalfa fields.
Efforts to address groundwater depletion present complex challenges for communities and government agencies in Arizona, California and other Western states, where climate change is increasing water stress.
Arizona’s current groundwater law, adopted in 1980, restricts pumping in Phoenix, Tucson and other urban areas. But those laws don’t apply in about 80% of the state, which has allowed big mining companies and investors to drill wells and pump as much as they want.
Since taking office in 2023, Hobbs has supported efforts to tackle overcrowding. In one step aimed at strengthening the use of water, he terminated Fondomonte’s lease of 3,520 acres of state ranch in Butler Valley in western Arizona. That decision followed the Arizona Republic investigation which revealed that the state had offered Fondomonte discounted, below-market rental rates.
In terminating those leases, Hobbs said Fondomonte was “recklessly pumping groundwater to increase the company’s profits.”
