By Roland Murphy for AZBEX
The raising of Bartlett Dam could be the next step of the Verde River Water Storage project, and upcoming public meetings will give residents the opportunity to offer input.
The project is part of an effort by Salt River Project, the U.S. Department of the Interior, the Bureau of Reclamation, the cities of Avondale, Buckeye, Chandler, El Mirage, Glendale, Goodyear, Mesa, Peoria, Phoenix, Scottsdale, Surprise and Tempe, the towns of Cave Creek, Queen Creek and Gilbert, and other agencies and bodies to protect Arizona’s water supply, according to local news reports.
The Verde River Reservoir has lost 50,000 acre-feet of storage capacity because of sediment buildup, officials say. An acre-foot is 325,851 gallons. 50,000 acre-feet is roughly enough to supply the needs of 150,000 homes for one year.
The plan is to increase the height of Bartlett Dam by 100 feet to increase the amount that can be stored and offset the losses to sediment.
The Bureau of Reclamation has begun the required National Environmental Policy Act review process. Coinciding with that is a month-long public comment period, which runs through Aug. 11. There will be a total of five meetings to solicit input.
The NEPA review involves feasibility studies for various scenarios. Possible solutions include the proposed dam raising, as well as possibly dredging the reservoir to remove the sediment.
Assuming the expansion plan is the chosen solution, the new Bartlett Reservoir would be able to store enough water to meet the needs of one million households for a year, which would help reduce the project member cities’ dependence on both groundwater and the Colorado River.
According to the article, residents can provide input via the Environmental Impact Statements website or by mailing in a physical EIS form.
The NEPA process takes two years, and the project is expected to go to Congress for approval in 2028.
As of July 10, a notice of intent has been published in the Federal Register.
A Look at Project Components
Every year, BEX examines Capital Improvement Plans from around the state to identify upcoming public projects. The 2024 BEX CIP Project List has several parties and overviews associated with the plans to raise the dam and expand capacity. These include:
- Barlett Dam Expansion; City of Buckeye; FY 2026-2029; $60M; Add a renewable water supply through the purchase of New Verde space that will be created by modifying Bartlett Dam;
- Bartlett Dam and Reservoir Expansion; City of Mesa; FY 2027-2029; $5.46M; Expand the size of Bartlett Dam;
- New Verde Space Storage Capacity; City of Peoria; FY 2026-2028; $48.1M; Construction costs for a modified Bartlett Dam and an equivalent amount of dam storage capacity;
- SRP Cost Share Agreement; City of Surprise; FY 2024-2026; $13.2M; A study that will investigate options to increase capacity with Bartlett Lake, and
- Water Resources – Bartlett Dam; City of Tempe; FY 2026-2028; $48.79M; Raise the height of Bartlett Dam to restore the full storage capacity of the reservoir.
