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A sign in front of Fondomonte's 10,000 acre farm in La Paz County shows that, as of July 2024, the company is hiring.

Saudi-backed farm Fondomonte receives permit for new well on its property

Sep 6, 2024 The new well is a sign that the company is growing its Arizona operations despite the loss of state land leases.
Governor Katie Hobbs and an ADWR staff member look at a fissure near Willcox, AZ. The fissure is caused by dropping water levels in the aquifer. September 5, 2024

Hobbs willing to use administrative action over water

Sep 6, 2024 The Governor spent the day in Cochise County meeting with farmers and homeowners.
Secretary of the U.S. Department Interior Deb Haaland. She represented New Mexico in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2019-2021.

US Interior Secretary announces restoration of the once-endangered Apache trout species in Arizona

Sep 4, 2024 The Apache trout is found only in the streams of eastern Arizona's White Mountains.
This map shows an area of land identified by locals as the 15 Circles. State data still shows this land as being leased by Fondomonte, the Saudi-backed alfalfa farmers.

Hedge funds and foreign farms get water, rural Arizonans get empty wells

Sep 4, 2024 A Saudi presence in La Paz County is already well known. So who else is using the area's water?

A photographer captures life in America’s last remaining old-growth forests

Sep 3, 2024 NPR interviewed David Herasimtschuk about his efforts to educate people about the importance of preserving these ancient forests.
Stacks of hay bales sit beside an irrigation canal in Imperial Valley on June 20, 2023. Critics have called for reductions to the amount of alfalfa grown with Colorado River water. The particularly thirsty crop is mostly used for cattle feed.

The Buzz: Arizona/Saudi relations go back long before Fondomonte

Aug 30, 2024 We listen to an episode of AZPM's podcast Tapped that traces the link between the two deserts
Controlled burns in Sierra Vista are expected to help reduce this summer's mosquito population by cutting back on unwanted vegetation.

Mosquito-borne illnesses are rising: Here's how to protect yourself

Aug 30, 2024 Mosquitoes kill more people than any other creature in the world. So the key is — try not to get bitten.
A photo of a rare octopus species, nicknamed the Casper octopus, was captured almost three miles below the Ocean's surface in the southeast Pacific Ocean off the coast of Chile.

A newly mapped underwater mountain could be home to 20 new species

Aug 30, 2024 The potentially new species, which have yet to be officially confirmed, include a sea urchin, starfish and a squat lobster.

Breaks in only water pipeline for Grand Canyon prompt shutdown of overnight hotel stays

Aug 28, 2024 Visitors won’t be able to stay overnight in hotels at Grand Canyon National Park after a series of breaks in the only pipeline that serves the popular tourist destination.
Havasu Falls

Havasu Falls closed indefinitely after deadly flash flood

Aug 28, 2024 Havasupai Tribe and emergency teams assessing damage.
LEFT: Date Palms on the campus on the University of Arizona. July 2024. RIGHT: Arizona alfalfa field with flood irrigation on a sunny day.

From date palms to alfalfa: How Arizona became fertile ground for Saudi farms

Aug 28, 2024 What started with a camel handler would grow into a lucrative trade, but eventually ended in exploitation of lax water laws.
Stephanie Daniel, Menlo Park neighborhood resident and community gardener who visits the park daily, Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024, in Tucson, Ariz.

El Rio Clinic considers parking expansion, Menlo Park residents concerned about community garden

Aug 27, 2024 Menlo Park neighborhood responds to potential changes as El Rio Clinic weighs options for additional employee parking space.
A blue rectangular piece of microplastic sits on the finger of a researcher with the University of Washington-Tacoma environmental science program, after it was found in debris collected from the Thea Foss Waterway, in Tacoma, Wash., on May 19, 2010.

Microplastics are everywhere, but are they harming us?

Aug 22, 2024 A surge in research into plastics in food and water is raising questions about the accumulation of microplastics in the body.
Ruins in Hualapai Canyon, Hualapai Indian Reservation, Arizona

Lithium drilling project temporarily blocked on sacred tribal lands in Arizona

Aug 21, 2024 The case is among the latest legal fights to pit Native American tribes and environmentalists against President Joe Biden’s administration.
Arizona Corporation Commission building in downtown Phoenix.

Arizona Corporation Commission urges congress to exempt utilities from EPA hazardous waste costs

Aug 21, 2024 ACC pushes for federal legislation to avoid higher utility rates and cleanup expenses following EPA hazardous substance regulations.
A canal carries water from the Colorado River to tribal land in Arizona.

Hedge fund buys $100 million of land in La Paz County

Aug 20, 2024 Land is in an area that has little regulation on groundwater pumping, and could be sent elsewhere in the state.

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