Energy & Environment

The Big Story

Water fight: Arizona revokes lease from Saudi-owned farm

The state of Arizona is taking action to combat controversial uses of state water by a Saudi-owned firm.

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs (D) said she would cancel the lease held by Saudi company Fondomonte, which grows alfalfa, a water-intensive crop that feeds livestock.

Her office said that the firm is "in significant ongoing default of its lease dating back to 2016" and also said it would not renew three other leases held by the company that are set to expire next year.

Fondomonte's use of the scarce and important resource at a discounted rate has caused controversy in the The Grand Canyon State.
The leases in question are in Butler Valley, but the company still holds another 9,834 acres in nearby Vicksburg.
However, Butler Valley is a key water transportation basin, Hobbs's team emphasized.

"My administration has taken swift action to hold defaulting, high-volume water users accountable," Hobbs said statement on X, the platform formerly called Twitter.

Our colleague Sharon Udasin has more in a full report at TheHill.com.

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