The Bureau of Reclamation is seeking public comment on a draft Environmental Assessment on the proposed transfer of a 7,746 acre-feet annual entitlement from 4 water companies to the Central Arizona Water Conservation District. The 4 water service companies are the West End Water Company, Sunrise Water Company, New River Utility Company, and Litchfield Park Service Company) located in western Maricopa County. None of these water companies have developed the infrastructure necessary to take, treat, and deliver Central Arizona Project water to their customers and are expected to continue to use groundwater to serve their customers.

The CAP water would be used exclusively by CAWCD in support of its groundwater replenishment obligations, acting in its capacity as the Central Arizona Groundwater Replenishment District (CAGRD). CAGRD would recharge the transferred CAP M&I water at existing recharge facilities. According to CAGRD, the most likely scenario is that the CAP water would be recharged within the Phoenix Active Management Area.

The draft EA is available on Reclamation's Phoenix Arizona Office website at http://www.usbr.gov/lc/phoenix. A hard copy or CD version of this document may also be obtained by calling the Environmental Resource Management Division at (623) 773-6251, or by e-mailing rkonst@lc.usbr.gov.

Send comments to the Bureau of Reclamation, 6150 West Thunderbird Road, Glendale, Ariz. 85306-4001, Attention: Ms. Sandy Eto, by June 8, 2007. Questions should be directed to Ms. Eto at 623-773-6254.