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.
To learn more about Fondomonte and the history of Saudi Arabia in Arizona go to AZPM's water podcast Tapped
A lawsuit from the Arizona Attorney General's office claims that a foreign-owned alfalfa farm in a rural part of the state is pumping of groundwater at an excessive rate and causing a public nuisance.
Fondomonte owns 45,000 acres that sit atop the Renegras Plain Basin, an aquifer that supplies water to residents in the central part of La Paz County.
At a Wednesday news conference, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes said the farm last year pumped more than 31,000 acre-feet of water from the basin.
"Enough to support 93,000 Arizona households for an entire year, and they came to Arizona to grow alfalfa because doing so was banned in Saudi Arabia," she said.
The lawsuit repeatedly refers to Fondomonte's pumping as excessive. Mayes said she thinks the term is accurate.
"Excessive is dewatering nearby wells. Excessive is causing subsidence in a way that potentially damages the infrastructure. Excessive is pumping so much water that it damages the quality of the water that remains."
VIEW LARGER This map of subsidence in the area around Fondomonte's farm is included in the Arizona Attorney General's lawsuit.
In response to the lawsuit, Fondomonte issued the following statement.
“Fondomonte remains committed to progressive, efficient agricultural practices on all its operations. Fondomonte is a proud supporter of Arizona Agriculture and the farming community for the last 10 years. The company has invested significantly to bring the latest conservation technology and applies environmentally sustainable practices on these long-established farms. Fondomonte has continued to develop responsibly during its time farming in the state and the company complies with all state regulations. We find the allegations of the Attorney General totally unfounded, and we will defend any potential action against Fondomonte and our rights vigorously before the competent authorities.”
That statement about not violating state law is something that bothers Holly Irwin, a longtime La Paz County Supervisor who has been fighting this issue for almost a decade.
She said the fact that the state's water laws have not been updated in more than 40 years is a big part of the issue.
"The laws that were created in 1980 just frankly don't work anymore and we need an alternative but we need the legislature to work with us and allow us to create something for the betterment of the people that that we all serve."
Irwin has been part of a group of rural county supervisors that have fought for reform to water regulation. The group has tried to introduce reforms in the past, but its bills went nowhere.
"We can't even get a hearing down there in front of the Natural Resources Committee down there, and it's been extremely frustrating for all of us. It's time that we all come together, sit down at the table and get some good quality water groundwater reform," she said.
This lawsuit gives her hope that some progress can happen.
"It gives a little sense of hope that maybe we can finally get something done, and, quite frankly, going into the session, the governor's already expressed to use her authority to use the tools in her toolbox if we can't get something passed. But we definitely need some sort of alternative," said Irwin.
Attorney General Mayes agreed, and said this fight will continue until reform happens.
"I will continue to file these lawsuits to protect rural Arizona, but ultimately this needs to be something that the legislature does," she said.
La Paz County is not the only place this issue will be taken up, according to Mayes.
Her office is looking into another alfalfa grower, this one in Cochise County.
She said more on that situation will come later.
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